Public Act 094-0852
 		





SB2782 Enrolled
LRB094 15527 DRJ 50726 b






    AN ACT concerning health.

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


 
    Section 2. The Abuse of Adults with Disabilities 
Intervention Act is amended  by changing Section 55 as follows:
 



    (20 ILCS 2435/55)  (from Ch. 23, par. 3395-55)



    Sec. 55. Access to records. All records concerning reports 
of abuse,
neglect, or exploitation of an adult with

disabilities and all
records generated as a result of the 
reports shall be confidential and
shall not be disclosed except 
as specifically authorized by this Act or
other applicable law. 
A person making a report of alleged abuse, neglect, or 
exploitation functioning in his or her capacity as a licensed 
professional may be entitled to the finding of the 
investigative assessment and subsequent referrals as 
authorized by the Inspector General. Office of Inspector 
General (OIG) investigators shall inform the alleged victim or 
guardian that information regarding the finding and referrals 
may be released to the person who made the report if that 
person is a professional, and the alleged victim or guardian 
shall be afforded the opportunity to refuse to consent to the 
release of that information.  Access to the records, but not 
access to the
identity of the person or persons making a report 
of alleged
abuse, neglect, or exploitation as contained in the 
records, shall be
allowed to the following persons and for the 
following purposes:

    (a) Adults with Disabilities Abuse Project staff in the

furtherance of their
responsibilities under this Act;

    (b) A law enforcement agency investigating alleged or 
suspected
abuse, neglect, or exploitation of an adult with 
disabilities;

    (c) An adult with disabilities reported to be
abused, 
neglected, or
exploited, or the guardian of an adult with

disabilities unless the guardian is
the alleged perpetrator of 
the abuse, neglect, or exploitation;

    (d) A court, upon its finding that access to the records 
may be
necessary for the determination of an issue before the 
court.  However,
the access shall be limited to an in camera 
inspection of the records,
unless the court determines that 
disclosure of the information contained
therein is necessary 
for the resolution of an issue then pending before it;

    (e) A grand jury, upon its determination that access to the 
records is
necessary to the conduct of its official business;

    (f) Any person authorized by the Secretary, in writing, for

audit or bona
fide research purposes;

    (g) A coroner or medical examiner who has reason to believe 
that abuse or
neglect contributed to or resulted in the death 
of an adult with disabilities;

    (h) The agency designated pursuant to the Protection and 
Advocacy for
Developmentally Disabled Persons Act and the

Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Persons Act.

(Source: P.A. 91-671, eff. 7-1-00.)

 
    Section 5. The Abused and Neglected Long Term Care Facility 
Residents Reporting
Act is amended  by changing Section 6 as 
follows:
 



    (210 ILCS 30/6)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4166)



    Sec. 6. All reports of suspected abuse or neglect made 
under this Act
shall be made immediately by telephone to the 
Department's central register
established under Section 14 on 
the single, State-wide, toll-free telephone
number established 
under Section 13, or in person or by telephone through
the 
nearest Department office.  No long term care facility 
administrator,
agent or employee, or any other person, shall 
screen reports or otherwise
withhold any reports from the 
Department, and no long term care facility,
department of State 
government, or other agency shall establish any rules,

criteria, standards or guidelines to the contrary.  Every long 
term care
facility, department of State government and other 
agency whose employees
are required to make or cause to be made 
reports under Section 4 shall
notify its employees of the 
provisions of that Section and of this Section,
and provide to 
the Department documentation that such notification has been

given.  The Department of Human Services shall train all of its 
mental health and developmental
disabilities employees in the 
detection and reporting of suspected
abuse and neglect of 
residents.  Reports made to the central register
through the 
State-wide, toll-free telephone number shall be transmitted to

appropriate Department offices and municipal health 
departments that have
responsibility for licensing long term 
care facilities under the Nursing
Home Care Act.  All reports 
received through offices of the Department
shall be forwarded 
to the central register, in a manner and form described
by the 
Department.  The Department shall be capable of receiving 
reports of
suspected abuse and neglect 24 hours a day, 7 days a 
week.  Reports shall
also be made in writing deposited in the 
U.S. mail, postage prepaid, within
24 hours after having 
reasonable cause to believe that the condition of the
resident 
resulted from abuse or neglect.  Such reports may in addition be

made to the local law enforcement agency in the same manner. 
However, in
the event a report is made to the local law 
enforcement agency, the
reporter also shall immediately so 
inform the Department.  The Department
shall initiate an 
investigation of each report of resident abuse and
neglect 
under this Act, whether oral or written, as provided for in 
Section
3-702 of the Nursing Home Care Act, except that reports 
of abuse which
indicate that a resident's life or safety is in 
imminent danger shall be
investigated within 24 hours of such 
report. The Department may delegate to
law enforcement 
officials or other public agencies the duty to perform such

investigation.

    With respect to investigations of reports of suspected 
abuse or neglect
of residents of mental health and 
developmental disabilities institutions
under the jurisdiction 
of the Department of
Human Services, the
Department shall 
transmit
copies of such reports to the Department of State 
Police, the Department of
Human Services, and the
Inspector 
General
appointed under Section 6.2.  If the Department receives 
a report
of suspected abuse or neglect of a recipient of 
services as defined in Section
1-123 of the Mental Health and 
Developmental Disabilities Code, the
Department shall transmit 
copies of such report to the Inspector General
and the 
Directors of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission and the

agency designated by the Governor pursuant to the Protection 
and Advocacy
for Developmentally Disabled Persons Act.  When 
requested by the Director
of the Guardianship and Advocacy 
Commission,
or the agency designated by the
Governor pursuant 
to the Protection and Advocacy for Developmentally
Disabled 
Persons Act, or the Department of Financial and Professional 
Regulation, the Department, the Department of Human Services 
and the Department of State Police shall make
available a copy 
of the final investigative report regarding investigations

conducted by their respective agencies on incidents of 
suspected abuse or
neglect of residents of mental health and 
developmental disabilities
institutions or individuals 
receiving services at community agencies under the 
jurisdiction of the Department of Human Services.  Such final 
investigative
report shall not contain witness statements, 
investigation notes, draft
summaries, results of lie detector 
tests, investigative files or other raw data
which was used to 
compile the final investigative report.  Specifically, the

final investigative report of the Department of State Police 
shall mean the
Director's final transmittal letter.  The 
Department of Human Services shall also make available a
copy 
of the results of disciplinary proceedings of employees 
involved in
incidents of abuse or neglect to the Directors.  All 
identifiable
information in reports provided shall not be 
further disclosed except as
provided by the Mental Health and 
Developmental Disabilities
Confidentiality Act.  Nothing in 
this Section is intended to limit or
construe the power or 
authority granted to the agency designated by the
Governor 
pursuant to the Protection and Advocacy for Developmentally

Disabled Persons Act, pursuant to any other State or federal 
statute.

    With respect to investigations of reported resident abuse 
or neglect, the
Department shall effect with appropriate law 
enforcement agencies formal
agreements concerning methods and 
procedures for the conduct of investigations
into the criminal 
histories of any administrator, staff assistant or employee
of 
the nursing home or other person responsible for the residents 
care,
as well as for other residents in the nursing home who 
may be in a position
to abuse, neglect or exploit the patient.  
Pursuant to the formal agreements
entered into with appropriate 
law enforcement agencies, the Department may
request 
information with respect to whether the person or persons set 
forth
in this paragraph have ever been charged with a crime and 
if so, the
disposition of those charges.  Unless the criminal 
histories of the
subjects involved crimes of violence or 
resident abuse or neglect, the
Department shall be entitled 
only to information limited in scope to
charges and their 
dispositions.  In cases where prior crimes of violence or

resident abuse or neglect are involved, a more detailed report 
can be made
available to authorized representatives of the 
Department, pursuant to the
agreements entered into with 
appropriate law enforcement agencies.  Any
criminal charges and 
their disposition information obtained by the
Department shall 
be confidential and may not be transmitted outside the

Department, except as required herein, to authorized 
representatives or
delegates of the Department, and may not be 
transmitted to anyone within
the Department who is not duly 
authorized to handle resident abuse or
neglect investigations.

    The Department shall effect formal agreements with 
appropriate law
enforcement agencies in the various counties 
and communities to encourage
cooperation and coordination in 
the handling of resident abuse or neglect
cases pursuant to 
this Act.  The Department shall adopt and implement
methods and 
procedures to promote statewide uniformity in the handling of

reports of abuse and neglect under this Act, and those methods 
and
procedures shall be adhered to by personnel of the 
Department involved in
such investigations and reporting.  The 
Department shall also make
information required by this Act 
available to authorized personnel within
the Department, as 
well as its authorized representatives.

    The Department shall keep a continuing record of all 
reports made
pursuant to this Act, including indications of the 
final determination of
any investigation and the final 
disposition of all reports.

    The Department shall report annually to the General 
Assembly on the
incidence of abuse and neglect of long term 
care facility residents, with
special attention to residents 
who are mentally disabled. The report shall
include but not be 
limited to data on the number and source of reports of

suspected abuse or neglect filed under this Act, the nature of 
any injuries
to residents, the final determination of 
investigations, the type and
number of cases where abuse or 
neglect is determined to exist, and the
final disposition of 
cases.

(Source: P.A. 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)

 
    Section 10. The Mental Health and Developmental 
Disabilities Confidentiality Act is amended  by changing 
Section 11 as follows:
 



    (740 ILCS 110/11)  (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 811)



    Sec. 11. Disclosure of records and communications. Records  
and
communications may be disclosed:


        (i) in accordance with the provisions of the
Abused and 
    Neglected Child Reporting Act;


        (ii) when, and to the extent, a
therapist, in his or 
    her sole discretion, determines that disclosure is

    necessary to initiate or continue civil commitment 
    proceedings under the laws
of this State or to otherwise 
    protect the recipient or other person against a
clear, 
    imminent risk of serious physical or mental injury or 
    disease or death
being inflicted upon the recipient or by 
    the recipient on himself or another;


        (iii) when, and to the extent disclosure is, in the 
    sole discretion of the
therapist, necessary to the 
    provision of emergency medical care to a recipient
who is 
    unable to assert or waive his or her rights hereunder;


        (iv) when
disclosure is necessary to collect sums or 
    receive third
party payment representing charges for 
    mental health or developmental
disabilities services 
    provided by a therapist or agency to a recipient
under 
    Chapter V of the Mental Health and Developmental 
    Disabilities Code or to
transfer debts under the 
    Uncollected State Claims Act; however, disclosure
shall be 
    limited to information needed to pursue collection, and the

    information so disclosed shall not be used for any other 
    purposes nor shall it
be redisclosed except in connection 
    with collection activities;


        (v) when
requested by a family member, the Department 
    of Human Services may assist in
the location of the 
    interment site of a deceased recipient who is interred in a

    cemetery established under Section 100-26 of the Mental 
    Health and
Developmental Disabilities Administrative Act;


        (vi) in judicial proceedings
under Article VIII of 
    Chapter III and Article V of Chapter IV of the Mental

    Health and Developmental Disabilities Code and proceedings 
    and investigations
preliminary thereto, to the State's 
    Attorney for the county or residence of a
person who is the 
    subject of such proceedings, or in which the person is 
    found,
or in which the facility is located, to the attorney 
    representing the recipient
in the judicial proceedings, to 
    any person or agency providing mental health
services that 
    are the subject of the proceedings and to that person's or

    agency's attorney, to any court personnel, including but 
    not limited to judges
and circuit court clerks, and to a 
    guardian ad litem if one has been appointed
by the court, 
    provided that the information so disclosed shall not be 
    utilized
for any other purpose nor be redisclosed except in 
    connection with the
proceedings or investigations;


        (vii) when, and to the extent disclosure is
necessary 
    to comply with the requirements of the Census Bureau in 
    taking the
federal Decennial Census;


        (viii) when, and to the extent, in the
therapist's sole 
    discretion, disclosure is necessary to warn or protect a

    specific individual against whom a recipient has made a 
    specific threat of
violence where there exists a 
    therapist-recipient relationship or a special

    recipient-individual relationship;


        (ix) in accordance with the Sex Offender
Registration 
    Act; and


        (x) in accordance with the Rights of Crime Victims and

    Witnesses Act; .
        (xi) in accordance with Section 6 of the Abused and 
    Neglected Long Term Care Facility Residents Reporting Act; 
    and
        (xii) in accordance with Section 55 of the Abuse of 
    Adults with Disabilities Intervention Act.


    Any person, institution, or agency, under
this Act, 
participating in good faith in the making of a report under the

Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act or in the disclosure 
of records and
communications under this Section, shall have 
immunity from any liability,
civil, criminal or otherwise, that 
might result by reason of such action. For
the purpose of any 
proceeding, civil or criminal, arising out of a report or

disclosure under this Section, the good faith of any person, 
institution, or
agency so reporting or disclosing shall be 
presumed.

(Source: P.A. 90-423, eff. 8-15-97; 90-538, eff. 12-1-97; 
90-655, eff.
7-30-98; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)

 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.