093_HB3915

 
                                     LRB093 14399 DRJ 20035 b

 1        AN ACT in relation to mental health.

 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section 1.  Short title. This Act may be cited as the  MI
 5    Olmstead Initiative of 2004.

 6        Section 5.  Purposes.
 7        (a)  The  General  Assembly  recognizes  that  the United
 8    States Supreme Court in Olmstead v. L.C. ex Rel. Zimring, 119
 9    S.  Ct.  2176  (1999),  affirmed   that   the   unjustifiable
10    institutionalization  of a person with a disability who could
11    live in the community with proper support, and wishes  to  do
12    so,  is unlawful discrimination in violation of the Americans
13    with Disabilities Act (ADA). The  State  of  Illinois,  along
14    with  all  other  states,  is required to provide appropriate
15    residential and community-based support services  to  persons
16    with  disabilities  who  wish  to  live  in  less restrictive
17    settings and are able to do so.
18        (b)  It is the purpose of this Act to  implement  the  MI
19    Olmstead  Initiative  in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's
20    decision in Olmstead v. L.C. in order  (1)  to  enable  1,000
21    persons  with  mental  illness  or a co-occurring disorder of
22    mental illness and substance abuse, who currently  reside  in
23    nursing  facilities,  who choose to move, and who are able to
24    do so, to move within the next 5 years to the most integrated
25    residential settings in the community as possible and (2)  to
26    provide cost effective community residential environments and
27    supports  to enable these persons to live successfully in the
28    community.
29        (c)  It is the further purpose of this Act  to  create  a
30    continuum of residential and supportive services in community
31    settings  for  persons  with mental illness or a co-occurring
 
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 1    disorder  of  mental  illness  and  substance  abuse,   while
 2    increasing federal and client financial participation through
 3    the Medicaid and Social Security programs, wherever possible.
 4        (d)  The  MI  Olmstead  Initiative  is  not  intended  to
 5    substitute  for  or  replace  the  obligation of the State of
 6    Illinois  to   develop   and   implement   a   comprehensive,
 7    effectively   working   plan   for   placing   persons   with
 8    disabilities  in less restrictive settings, under the Supreme
 9    Court decision in Olmstead v. L.C.

10        Section 10.  Definitions. For purposes of this Act:
11        "Department" means the Department of Human Services.
12        "Institution for mental diseases" (IMD) means  a  nursing
13    facility licensed by the Illinois Department of Public Health
14    under  the  Nursing Home Care Act as defined, consistent with
15    federal regulations, by the Illinois Department of Public Aid
16    where  services  to  residents  are  ineligible  for  federal
17    financial participation under the  Medicaid  program  because
18    mental  illness  is  the  specific  reason  for  being in the
19    facility for more than 50% of the residents over 21 and under
20    65 years of age.
21        "Qualified individual" means an adult who is 19 years  of
22    age  or  older  and  under  65  years  of  age  who agrees to
23    participate in the MI Olmstead Initiative, is assessed by  an
24    appropriate  professional  and  found to be able to move to a
25    less restrictive setting, and  meets  one  of  the  following
26    criteria:
27             (1)  the  person  is  substantially impaired in 2 or
28        more major life activities as a consequence of  a  mental
29        illness  or  a  co-occurring mental illness and substance
30        abuse disorder; or
31             (2)  the  person  has  a  record  of   having   been
32        substantially impaired in 2 or more major life activities
33        as  a  consequence  of a mental illness or a co-occurring
 
                            -3-      LRB093 14399 DRJ 20035 b
 1        mental illness and substance abuse disorder.

 2        Section 15.  Programs and services  of  the  MI  Olmstead
 3    Initiative.
 4        (a)  The   Department   shall   identify   200  qualified
 5    individuals  during  each  of  the  5  years  following   the
 6    implementation  date  of  this Act or 1,000 persons in total,
 7    who agree to and are able to be transitioned  to  alternative
 8    residential  settings  within  the  community.   In  order to
 9    appropriately select persons for the MI Olmstead  Initiative,
10    the  Department,  by  working in conjunction with an owner or
11    operator of a nursing  facility  or  an  IMD,  and  with  the
12    guardian  of  the  qualified individual, if any, shall assure
13    that:
14             (1)  a comprehensive evaluation and diagnosis of the
15        qualified individual has been administered by a qualified
16        examiner, including an assessment of  skills,  abilities,
17        and potential for residential and work placement, adapted
18        to  the  person's  primary language, cultural background,
19        and ethnic origin;
20             (2)  an  individual  program  plan   or   individual
21        treatment  plan,  or  both,  has  been  completed for the
22        qualified individual, outlining a range of services to be
23        provided as outlined in subsection (b) of this Section;
24             (3)  the  qualified   individual   is   advised   of
25        available  and  appropriate  community-based alternatives
26        for his or her care before a  decision  on  placement  is
27        made; and
28             (4)  a  planning  specialist or case manager assists
29        the individual in making the move from an institution  to
30        a community setting.
31        (b)  The  MI Olmstead Initiative shall be designed with a
32    capacity for 1,000 qualified individuals  over  5  years  and
33    shall  offer,  or  create as necessary, services and supports
 
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 1    for  these  individuals  to  live  in  the  most   integrated
 2    community-based  setting  possible. The services and supports
 3    in community-based settings shall include, but not be limited
 4    to:
 5             (1)  residence  in  the  most   integrated   setting
 6        possible,   whether   independent  living  in  a  private
 7        residence, a supported residential program, a  supervised
 8        residential    program,   or   supportive   housing,   as
 9        appropriate;
10             (2)  rehabilitation and support services,  including
11        assertive    community    treatment,   case   management,
12        supportive and supervised day treatment, and psychosocial
13        rehabilitation;
14             (3)  vocational  training,  as   appropriate,   that
15        contributes  to  the person's independence and employment
16        potential;
17             (4)  employment,   as   appropriate,    free    from
18        discrimination  pursuant  to the Constitution and laws of
19        this State;
20             (5)  periodic  reevaluation  and   review   of   the
21        individual program plan or the individual treatment plan,
22        or  both,  at  least twice each year, in order to measure
23        progress, to modify or change  objectives  if  necessary,
24        and  to  provide guidance and remediation techniques. The
25        qualified individual and his or  her  guardian,  if  any,
26        shall  have  the right (i) to participate in the planning
27        and decision-making process regarding the plan  and  (ii)
28        to  be  informed in writing, or in that individual's mode
29        of  communication,  of  progress   at   reasonable   time
30        intervals;
31             (6)  due process so that any individual aggrieved by
32        a  decision of the Department regarding services provided
33        under  this  Act  is  given  an  opportunity  to  present
34        complaints at a due  process  hearing  before  a  hearing
 
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 1        officer  designated by the Director of the Department, in
 2        addition to any other rights  under  federal,  State,  or
 3        local laws.
 4        (c)  The Department shall implement, coordinate, monitor,
 5    and  evaluate  the MI Olmstead Initiative in cooperation with
 6    the Department  of  Public  Aid,  the  Department  of  Public
 7    Health,  the  Governor's Office of Management and Budget, and
 8    other State agencies as appropriate, as well as organizations
 9    or service providers whose mission includes advocacy  for  or
10    the  provision  of  quality  services  to persons with mental
11    illness or a co-occurring  disorder  of  mental  illness  and
12    substance abuse.

13        Section   20.  Report   to   the  General  Assembly.  The
14    Department, in cooperation with the Department of Public  Aid
15    and  the  Department  of  Public  Health, shall report to the
16    General Assembly on the status of the MI Olmstead  Initiative
17    by  October  1  each year of the 5-year initiative, and shall
18    include in the report an analysis of the costs  and  benefits
19    of  the  Initiative,  a  review of the State's use of nursing
20    facilities, including IMD's, for the  care  of  persons  with
21    severe mental illness, and a plan for adjusting State policy,
22    including  the  further  consolidation  or  conversion of IMD
23    facilities to non-IMD nursing facilities for the  purpose  of
24    maximizing federal financial participation under the Medicaid
25    program.

26        Section  25.  Implementation  dates. The Department shall
27    adopt rules to govern all aspects of this  Act  by  April  1,
28    2005.  Subject  to  available  appropriations, the Department
29    shall begin implementation of the MI Olmstead  Initiative  by
30    July 1, 2005.

31        Section  99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect upon
 
                            -6-      LRB093 14399 DRJ 20035 b
 1    becoming law.