Public Act 096-1340
 
SB3509 EnrolledLRB096 19788 ASK 35228 b

    AN ACT concerning professional regulation.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Truth
in Health Care Professional Services Act.
 
    Section 5. Purpose. The General Assembly hereby finds and
declares that:
    (a) There are widespread differences regarding the
training and qualifications required to earn the professional
degrees. These differences often concern the training and
skills necessary to correctly detect, diagnose, prevent, and
treat illness or health care conditions.
    (b) There is a compelling State interest in patients being
promptly and clearly informed of the training and
qualifications of the health care professionals who provide
health care services.
    (c) There is a compelling State interest in the public
being protected from potentially misleading and deceptive
health care advertising that might cause patients to have undue
expectations regarding their treatment and outcome.
 
    Section 10. Definitions. For purposes of this Act:
    "Advertisement" denotes any communication or statement,
whether printed, electronic, or oral, that names the health
care professional in relation to his or her practice,
profession, or institution in which the individual is employed,
volunteers, or otherwise provides health care services. This
includes business cards, letterhead, patient brochures,
e-mail, Internet, audio, and video, and any other communication
or statement used in the course of business.
    "Deceptive" or "misleading" includes, but is not limited
to, any advertisement or affirmative communication or
representation for health care services that misstates,
falsely describes, or falsely represents the health care
professional's skills, training, expertise, education, board
certification, or licensure.
    "Health care professional" means any person who treats
human ailments and is subject to licensure or regulation by the
State, including students and residents.
    "Licensee" means a health care professional who holds an
active license with the licensing board governing his or her
practice in this State.
 
    Section 15. Requirements.
    (a) An advertisement for health care services must identify
the type of license held by the health care professional
advertising or providing services pursuant to the definitions,
titles, and initials authorized under his or her licensing Act
or examination designations required for licensure under his or
her licensing Act. The advertisement shall be free from any and
all deceptive or misleading information.
    (b) A health care professional providing health care
services in this State must conspicuously post and
affirmatively communicate the professional's specific
licensure by doing the following:
        (1) The health care professional shall wear a name tag
    during all patient encounters that clearly identifies the
    type of license held by the health care professional,
    unless precluded by adopted sterilization or isolation
    protocols. The name tag shall be of sufficient size and be
    worn in a conspicuous manner so as to be visible and
    apparent;
        (2) If the health care professional has an office in
    which he or she sees current or prospective patients, then
    the health care professional shall display in his or her
    office a writing that clearly identifies the type of
    license held by the health care professional. The writing
    must be of sufficient size so as to be visible and apparent
    to all current and prospective patients; and
        (3) The health care professional must only use the
    licensure titles or initials authorized by his or her
    licensing Act, examination designations required for
    licensure under his or her licensing Act, or the titles
    authorized by the professional licensing Act for students
    in training.
    A health care professional who practices in more than one
office shall comply with these requirements in each practice
setting.
    (c) Health care professionals working in non-patient care
settings, and who do not have any direct patient care
interactions, are not subject to the provisions of subsection
(b) of this Section.
    (d) Under this Section, a health care professional who is a
student or resident and does not have a state license shall
only be required to wear a name tag that clearly identifies
himself or herself by name and as a student or resident, as
authorized by the professional licensing Act.
 
    Section 20. Violations and enforcement.
    (a) Failure to comply with any provision under this Section
shall constitute a violation under this Act.
    (b) Each day this Act is violated shall constitute a
separate offense and shall be punishable as such.
    (c) Any health care professional who violates any provision
of this Act is guilty of unprofessional conduct and subject to
disciplinary action under the appropriate provisions of the
specific Act governing that health care profession.
 
    Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are
severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
2010.