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| 1 | AN ACT concerning health.
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| 2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
| 3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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| 4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the First | ||||||
| 5 | Responder Mental Health Grant Program Act. | ||||||
| 6 | Section 5. Legislative intent. | ||||||
| 7 | (a) The General Assembly recognizes the difficult nature | ||||||
| 8 | of the job of first responder, including trauma endured by | ||||||
| 9 | first responders in the performance of their duties. | ||||||
| 10 | (b) It is the intent of the General Assembly to ensure that | ||||||
| 11 | first responders, including police, firefighters, emergency | ||||||
| 12 | medical technicians, and public safety telecommunicators | ||||||
| 13 | across this State have full access to supportive and | ||||||
| 14 | responsive behavioral health services and treatment. | ||||||
| 15 | (c) The General Assembly recognizes that these services | ||||||
| 16 | should be responsive to the individual's needs and must be | ||||||
| 17 | kept confidential. | ||||||
| 18 | (d) The General Assembly recognizes that the | ||||||
| 19 | administration and provision of these services both recognize | ||||||
| 20 | and reduce the historical barrier of stigma and a lack of | ||||||
| 21 | confidentiality that first responders face when attempting to | ||||||
| 22 | access behavioral health services and treatment.
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| 1 | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
| 2 | "Behavioral health" means mental health, health relating | ||||||
| 3 | to substance use, or both. | ||||||
| 4 | "Behavioral health care" means services, treatment, | ||||||
| 5 | medication, and other measures to overcome, mitigate, or | ||||||
| 6 | prevent a behavioral health issue. These services, treatment, | ||||||
| 7 | medication, and other measures qualify as "behavioral health | ||||||
| 8 | care" even if there is no formal diagnosis of a specific | ||||||
| 9 | condition. | ||||||
| 10 | "Department" means the Department of Human Services. | ||||||
| 11 | "First responder" means a law enforcement officer, | ||||||
| 12 | firefighter, emergency medical services personnel as defined | ||||||
| 13 | in Section 3.5 of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems | ||||||
| 14 | Act, or public safety telecommunicator as defined in Section 2 | ||||||
| 15 | of the Emergency Telephone Systems Act. | ||||||
| 16 | "Record" means any record kept by a therapist or by an | ||||||
| 17 | agency in the course of providing behavioral health care to a | ||||||
| 18 | first responder concerning the first responder and the | ||||||
| 19 | services provided. "Record" includes the personal notes of the | ||||||
| 20 | therapist or agency. "Record" includes all records maintained | ||||||
| 21 | by a court that have been created in connection with, in | ||||||
| 22 | preparation for, or as a result of the filing of any petition | ||||||
| 23 | or certificate under Chapter II, Chapter III, or Chapter IV of | ||||||
| 24 | the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code and | ||||||
| 25 | includes the petitions, certificates, dispositional reports, | ||||||
| 26 | treatment plans, and reports of diagnostic evaluations and of | ||||||
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| 1 | hearings under Article VIII of Chapter III or under Article V | ||||||
| 2 | of Chapter IV of that Code. "Record" does not include | ||||||
| 3 | information that has been de-identified in accordance with | ||||||
| 4 | HIPAA, as specified in 45 CFR 164.514. "Record" does not | ||||||
| 5 | include a reference to the receipt of behavioral health care | ||||||
| 6 | noted during a patient history and physical or other summary | ||||||
| 7 | of care. | ||||||
| 8 | Section 15. First Responder Behavioral Health Grant | ||||||
| 9 | Program. | ||||||
| 10 | (a) Subject to appropriation, there is created within the | ||||||
| 11 | Department of Human Services a First Responder Behavioral | ||||||
| 12 | Health Grant Program to provide grants to the following | ||||||
| 13 | recipients: | ||||||
| 14 | (1) units of local government; | ||||||
| 15 | (2) law enforcement agencies; | ||||||
| 16 | (3) fire protection districts; | ||||||
| 17 | (4) school districts; | ||||||
| 18 | (5) public or private hospitals; or | ||||||
| 19 | (6) ambulance services that employ first responders. | ||||||
| 20 | (b) The First Responder Behavioral Health Grant Fund is | ||||||
| 21 | hereby created as a special fund in the State treasury. Moneys | ||||||
| 22 | in the First Responder Behavioral Health Grant Fund shall be | ||||||
| 23 | used by the Secretary of Human Services to make grants to | ||||||
| 24 | eligible recipients as provided in subsection (a). | ||||||
| 25 | (c) Recipients eligible for grants under this Section | ||||||
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| 1 | shall use the grants for expenses related to behavioral health | ||||||
| 2 | care services for first responders, including, but not limited | ||||||
| 3 | to, telehealth services. An employer may not reduce behavioral | ||||||
| 4 | health care provided through a first responder's employee | ||||||
| 5 | benefit package as a result of the receipt of grant funds under | ||||||
| 6 | this Act. | ||||||
| 7 | (d) All records, notes, and conclusions by a treatment | ||||||
| 8 | provider providing behavioral health care to first responders | ||||||
| 9 | whose employers receive grants under this Act shall not be | ||||||
| 10 | shared with the employer unless otherwise mandated by law. | ||||||
| 11 | (e) Applicants seeking grants under this Act shall apply | ||||||
| 12 | to the Department in a form and manner prescribed by the | ||||||
| 13 | Department. | ||||||
| 14 | (f) The Department may adopt any rules necessary to | ||||||
| 15 | implement this Act.
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| 16 | Section 900. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | ||||||
| 17 | Section 5.970 as follows: | ||||||
| 18 | (30 ILCS 105/5.970 new) | ||||||
| 19 | Sec. 5.970. The First Responder Behavioral Health Grant | ||||||
| 20 | Fund. | ||||||