HB0616ham001 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

DCFS Oversight Committee

Filed: 3/15/2007

09500HB0616ham001 LRB095 05209 DRJ 33228 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 616

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 616 on page 1, after line 3, by inserting the following:

"Section 2. The Child Death Review Team Act is amended by changing Sections 20 and 40 as follows:

(20 ILCS 515/20)

Sec. 20. Reviews of child deaths.

(a) Every child death shall be reviewed by the team in the subregion which has primary case management responsibility. The deceased child must be one of the following:

(1) A ward of the Department.

(2) The subject of an open service case maintained by the Department.

(3) The subject of a pending child abuse or neglect investigation.

(4) A child who was the subject of an abuse or neglect investigation at any time during the 12 months preceding the child's death.

(5) Any other child whose death is reported to the State central register as a result of alleged child abuse or neglect which report is subsequently indicated.

A child death review team may, at its discretion, review other sudden, unexpected, or unexplained child deaths.

(b) A child death review team's purpose in conducting reviews of child deaths is to do the following:

(1) Assist in determining the cause and manner of the child's death, when requested.

(2) Evaluate means by which the death might have been prevented.

(3) Report its findings to appropriate agencies and make recommendations that may help to reduce the number of child deaths caused by abuse or neglect.

(4) Promote continuing education for professionals involved in investigating, treating, and preventing child abuse and neglect as a means of preventing child deaths due to abuse or neglect.

(5) Make specific recommendations to the Director and the Inspector General of the Department concerning the prevention of child deaths due to abuse or neglect and the establishment of protocols for investigating child deaths.

(c) A child death review team shall review a child death as soon as practical and not later than 90 days following the completion by the Department of the investigation of the death under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. When there has been no investigation by the Department, the child death review team shall review a child's death within 90 days after obtaining the information necessary to complete the review from the coroner, pathologist, medical examiner, or law enforcement agency, depending on the nature of the case. A child death review team shall meet at least once in each calendar quarter.

(d) The Director shall, within 90 days, review and reply to recommendations made by a team under item (5) of subsection (b). With respect to each recommendation made by a team, the Director shall submit his or her reply both to the chairperson of that team and to the chairperson of the Executive Council. The Director's reply to each recommendation must include a statement as to whether the Director intends to implement the recommendation.

The Director shall implement recommendations as feasible and appropriate and shall respond in writing to explain the implementation or nonimplementation of the recommendations.

(e) Within 90 days after the Director submits a reply with respect to a recommendation as required by subsection (d), the Director must submit an additional report that sets forth in detail the way, if any, in which the Director will implement the recommendation and the schedule for implementing the recommendation. The Director shall submit this report to the chairperson of the team that made the recommendation and to the chairperson of the Executive Council.

(f) Within 180 days after the Director submits a report under subsection (e) concerning the implementation of a recommendation, the Director shall submit a further report to the chairperson of the team that made the recommendation and to the chairperson of the Executive Council. This report shall set forth the specific changes in the Department's policies and procedures that have been made in response to the recommendation.

(Source: P.A. 90-239, eff. 7-28-97; 90-608, eff. 6-30-98.)

(20 ILCS 515/40)

Sec. 40. Illinois Child Death Review Teams Executive Council.

(a) The Illinois Child Death Review Teams Executive Council, consisting of the chairpersons of the 9 child death review teams in Illinois, is the coordinating and oversight body for child death review teams and activities in Illinois. The vice-chairperson of a child death review team, as designated by the chairperson, may serve as a back-up member or an alternate member of the Executive Council, if the chairperson of the child death review team is unavailable to serve on the Executive Council. The Inspector General of the Department, ex officio, is a non-voting member of the Executive Council. The Director may appoint to the Executive Council any ex-officio members deemed necessary. Persons with expertise needed by the Executive Council may be invited to meetings. The Executive Council must select from its members a chairperson and a vice-chairperson, each to serve a 2-year, renewable term.

The Executive Council must meet at least 4 times during each calendar year. At each such meeting, in addition to any other matters under consideration, the Executive Council shall review all replies and reports received from the Director pursuant to subsections (d), (e), and (f) of Section 20 since the Executive Council's previous meeting. The Executive Council's review must include consideration of the Director's proposed manner of and schedule for implementing each recommendation made by a child death review team.

(b) The Department must provide or arrange for the staff support necessary for the Executive Council to carry out its duties. The Director, in cooperation and consultation with the Executive Council, shall appoint, reappoint, and remove team members.

(c) The Executive Council has, but is not limited to, the following duties:

(1) To serve as the voice of child death review teams in Illinois.

(2) To oversee the regional teams in order to ensure that the teams' work is coordinated and in compliance with the statutes and the operating protocol.

(3) To ensure that the data, results, findings, and recommendations of the teams are adequately used to make any necessary changes in the policies, procedures, and statutes in order to protect children in a timely manner.

(4) To collaborate with the General Assembly, the Department, and others in order to develop any legislation needed to prevent child fatalities and to protect children.

(5) To assist in the development of quarterly and annual reports based on the work and the findings of the teams.

(6) To ensure that the regional teams' review processes are standardized in order to convey data, findings, and recommendations in a usable format.

(7) To serve as a link with child death review teams throughout the country and to participate in national child death review team activities.

(8) To develop an annual statewide symposium to update the knowledge and skills of child death review team members and to promote the exchange of information between teams.

(9) To provide the child death review teams with the most current information and practices concerning child death review and related topics.

(10) To perform any other functions necessary to enhance the capability of the child death review teams to reduce and prevent child injuries and fatalities.

(c-5) The Executive Council shall prepare an annual report. The report must include, but need not be limited to, (i) each recommendation made by a child death review team pursuant to item (5) of subsection (b) of Section 20 during the period covered by the report, (ii) the Director's proposed schedule for implementing each such recommendation, and (iii) a description of the specific changes in the Department's policies and procedures that have been made in response to the recommendation. The Executive Council shall send a copy of its annual report to each of the following:

(1) The Governor.

(2) Each member of the Senate or the House of Representatives whose legislative district lies wholly or partly within the region covered by any child death review team whose recommendation is addressed in the annual report.

(3) Each member of each child death review team in the State.

(d) In any instance when a child death review team does not operate in accordance with established protocol, the Director, in consultation and cooperation with the Executive Council, must take any necessary actions to bring the team into compliance with the protocol.

(Source: P.A. 92-468, eff. 8-22-01.)".