Public Act 102-0989
 
SB1405 EnrolledLRB102 11182 KTG 16514 b

    AN ACT concerning health.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Medical Patient Rights Act is amended by
changing Section 3.2 as follows:
 
    (410 ILCS 50/3.2)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5403.2)
    Sec. 3.2. Visitation rights, policies, and procedures.
    (a) Every health care facility in this State shall permit
visitation by any person or persons designated by a patient
who is 18 years of age or older and who is allowed rights of
visitation unless (1) the facility does not allow any
visitation for a patient or patients, or (2) the facility or
the patient's physician determines that visitation would
endanger the physical health or safety of a patient or
visitor, or would interfere with the operations of the
facility. Nothing in this Act shall restrict the ability of a
health care facility to regulate the hours of visitation, the
number of visitors per patient or the movement of visitors
within the facility.
    (a-5) Notwithstanding subsection (a), during a period for
which the Governor has issued a proclamation under Section 7
of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act declaring that
a disaster exists or in the event of an outbreak or epidemic of
a communicable disease in the community in which the health
care facility is located, a health care facility shall ensure
an opportunity for at least one visitor to visit a resident or
patient of the health care facility. A health care facility
shall not count a clergy member toward any limit on the number
of visitors permitted to visit a resident or patient at one
time and shall permit a clergy member to visit with a resident
or patient in addition to the permitted number of visitors.
Visitation shall be subject to the guidelines, conditions, and
limitations of the health care facility's visitation policy
and any rules or guidelines established by the U.S. Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.
    Visitors under this subsection may be required by the
health care facility to submit to health screenings necessary
to prevent the spread of infectious disease. A health care
facility may restrict facility access to a visitor who does
not pass its health screening requirement. A health care
facility may require a visitor to adhere to infection control
procedures, including wearing personal protective equipment. A
health care facility may deny visitation under this Act if
visitation would endanger the physical health or safety of a
patient, the visitor, or health care workers or would
otherwise create a public health or safety problem.
    (a-10) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a skilled nursing
home, extended care facility, or intermediate care facility
may prohibit an individual from visiting a resident or patient
of the nursing home or facility if specific facts demonstrate
that the individual would endanger his or her physical health
or safety or the health or safety of a resident, patient, or
health care worker of the nursing home or facility. Any denial
of visitation under this subsection (a-10) shall be in writing
and shall be provided to the individual and the resident or
patient with whom the individual was denied visitation.
    (a-15) Each skilled nursing home, extended care facility,
and intermediate care facility shall:
        (1) inform each resident of the nursing home or
    facility (or that individual's representative) of the
    resident's visitation rights and the nursing home or
    facility's visitation-related policies and procedures,
    including any clinical or safety-related restriction or
    limitation on visitation rights, the reasons for the
    restriction or limitation, and the persons to whom the
    restriction or limitation may apply;
        (2) inform each resident of the resident's right:
            (A) to consent to receive designated visitors,
        such as a spouse, including, without limitation, a
        same-sex spouse; a domestic partner, including,
        without limitation, a same-sex domestic partner;
        another family member; or a friend; and
            (B) to withdraw or deny that consent at any time;
        (3) not restrict, limit, or otherwise deny visitation
    privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin,
    religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or
    disability; and
        (4) ensure that all of the resident's visitors enjoy
    full and equal visitation privileges, consistent with the
    resident's preferences.
    (b) Except as provided in subsection (a-5), nothing
Nothing in this Section shall be construed to further limit or
restrict the right of visitation provided by other provisions
of law or to restrict the ability of a health care facility to
regulate hours of visitation, the number of visitors per
patient, or the movement of visitors within the health care
facility.
    (c) For the purposes of this Section a "health care
facility" does not include a developmental disability
facility, a mental health facility or a mental health center.
(Source: P.A. 87-651.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.