210 ILCS 30/6

(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, the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community Care Act, or the MC/DD 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, Section 2-208 of the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, Section 3-702 of the ID/DD Community Care Act, or Section 3-702 of the MC/DD 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 Illinois State Police, the Department of Human Services, and the Inspector General appointed under Section 1-17 of the Department of Human Services Act. 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 Persons with Developmental Disabilities Act. When requested by the Director of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission, the agency designated by the Governor pursuant to the Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Developmental Disabilities Act, or the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, the Department, the Department of Human Services and the Illinois 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 Illinois 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 Persons with Developmental Disabilities 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 persons with mental disabilities. 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. 102-538, eff. 8-20-21.)