210 ILCS 45/3-206

(210 ILCS 45/3-206) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4153-206)

Sec. 3-206. The Department shall prescribe a curriculum for training nursing assistants, habilitation aides, and child care aides.

(a) No person, except a volunteer who receives no compensation from a facility and is not included for the purpose of meeting any staffing requirements set forth by the Department, shall act as a nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide in a facility, nor shall any person, under any other title, not licensed, certified, or registered to render medical care by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, assist with the personal, medical, or nursing care of residents in a facility, unless such person meets the following requirements:

(1) Be at least 16 years of age, of temperate habits and good moral character, honest, reliable and trustworthy.

(2) Be able to speak and understand the English language or a language understood by a substantial percentage of the facility's residents.

(3) Provide evidence of employment or occupation, if any, and residence for 2 years prior to his present employment.

(4) Have completed at least 8 years of grade school or provide proof of equivalent knowledge.

(5) Begin a current course of training for nursing assistants, habilitation aides, or child care aides, approved by the Department, within 45 days of initial employment in the capacity of a nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide at any facility. Such courses of training shall be successfully completed within 120 days of initial employment in the capacity of nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide at a facility. Nursing assistants, habilitation aides, and child care aides who are enrolled in approved courses in community colleges or other educational institutions on a term, semester, or trimester basis, shall be exempt from the 120-day completion time limit. During a statewide public health emergency, as defined in the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, all nursing assistants, habilitation aides, and child care aides shall, to the extent feasible, complete the training. The Department shall adopt rules for such courses of training. These rules shall include procedures for facilities to carry on an approved course of training within the facility. The Department shall allow an individual to satisfy the supervised clinical experience requirement for placement on the Health Care Worker Registry under 77 Ill. Adm. Code 300.663 through supervised clinical experience at an assisted living establishment licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act. The Department shall adopt rules requiring that the Health Care Worker Registry include information identifying where an individual on the Health Care Worker Registry received his or her clinical training.

The Department may accept comparable training in lieu of the 120-hour course for student nurses, foreign nurses, military personnel, or employees of the Department of Human Services.

The Department shall accept on-the-job experience in lieu of clinical training from any individual who participated in the temporary nursing assistant program during the COVID-19 pandemic before the end date of the temporary nursing assistant program and left the program in good standing, and the Department shall notify all approved certified nurse assistant training programs in the State of this requirement. The individual shall receive one hour of credit for every hour employed as a temporary nursing assistant, up to 40 total hours, and shall be permitted 90 days after the end date of the temporary nursing assistant program to enroll in an approved certified nursing assistant training program and 240 days to successfully complete the certified nursing assistant training program. Temporary nursing assistants who enroll in a certified nursing assistant training program within 90 days of the end of the temporary nursing assistant program may continue to work as a nursing assistant for up to 240 days after enrollment in the certified nursing assistant training program. As used in this Section, "temporary nursing assistant program" means the program implemented by the Department of Public Health by emergency rule, as listed in 44 Ill. Reg. 7936, effective April 21, 2020.

The Department shall adopt rules that require the certification exam for nursing assistants to be offered in both English and Spanish. The Department shall not place any restrictions on which candidates may take the exam in Spanish instead of English, including, but not limited to, any requirement to be employed by a facility prior to testing or any requirement for a specified number of facility residents to speak a specific language.

The facility shall develop and implement procedures, which shall be approved by the Department, for an ongoing review process, which shall take place within the facility, for nursing assistants, habilitation aides, and child care aides.

At the time of each regularly scheduled licensure survey, or at the time of a complaint investigation, the Department may require any nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide to demonstrate, either through written examination or action, or both, sufficient knowledge in all areas of required training. If such knowledge is inadequate the Department shall require the nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide to complete inservice training and review in the facility until the nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide demonstrates to the Department, either through written examination or action, or both, sufficient knowledge in all areas of required training.

(6) Be familiar with and have general skills related to resident care.

(a-0.5) An educational entity, other than a secondary school, conducting a nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide training program shall initiate a criminal history record check in accordance with the Health Care Worker Background Check Act prior to entry of an individual into the training program. A secondary school may initiate a criminal history record check in accordance with the Health Care Worker Background Check Act at any time during or after a training program.

(a-1) Nursing assistants, habilitation aides, or child care aides seeking to be included on the Health Care Worker Registry under the Health Care Worker Background Check Act on or after January 1, 1996 must authorize the Department of Public Health or its designee to request a criminal history record check in accordance with the Health Care Worker Background Check Act and submit all necessary information. An individual may not newly be included on the Health Care Worker Registry unless a criminal history record check has been conducted with respect to the individual.

(b) Persons subject to this Section shall perform their duties under the supervision of a licensed nurse.

(c) It is unlawful for any facility to employ any person in the capacity of nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide, or under any other title, not licensed by the State of Illinois to assist in the personal, medical, or nursing care of residents in such facility unless such person has complied with this Section.

(d) Proof of compliance by each employee with the requirements set out in this Section shall be maintained for each such employee by each facility in the individual personnel folder of the employee. Proof of training shall be obtained only from the Health Care Worker Registry.

(e) Each facility shall obtain access to the Health Care Worker Registry's web application, maintain the employment and demographic information relating to each employee, and verify by the category and type of employment that each employee subject to this Section meets all the requirements of this Section.

(f) Any facility that is operated under Section 3-803 shall be exempt from the requirements of this Section.

(g) Each skilled nursing and intermediate care facility that admits persons who are diagnosed as having Alzheimer's disease or related dementias shall require all nursing assistants, habilitation aides, or child care aides, who did not receive 12 hours of training in the care and treatment of such residents during the training required under paragraph (5) of subsection (a), to obtain 12 hours of in-house training in the care and treatment of such residents. If the facility does not provide the training in-house, the training shall be obtained from other facilities, community colleges or other educational institutions that have a recognized course for such training. The Department shall, by rule, establish a recognized course for such training. The Department's rules shall provide that such training may be conducted in-house at each facility subject to the requirements of this subsection, in which case such training shall be monitored by the Department.

The Department's rules shall also provide for circumstances and procedures whereby any person who has received training that meets the requirements of this subsection shall not be required to undergo additional training if he or she is transferred to or obtains employment at a different facility or a facility other than a long-term care facility but remains continuously employed for pay as a nursing assistant, habilitation aide, or child care aide. Individuals who have performed no nursing or nursing-related services for a period of 24 consecutive months shall be listed as "inactive" and as such do not meet the requirements of this Section. Licensed sheltered care facilities shall be exempt from the requirements of this Section.

An individual employed during the COVID-19 pandemic as a nursing assistant in accordance with any Executive Orders, emergency rules, or policy memoranda related to COVID-19 shall be assumed to meet competency standards and may continue to be employed as a certified nurse assistant when the pandemic ends and the Executive Orders or emergency rules lapse. Such individuals shall be listed on the Department's Health Care Worker Registry website as "active".

(Source: P.A. 103-1, eff. 4-27-23; 103-695, eff. 7-19-24.)