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[ House Amendment 001 ] |
90_HB0099 210 ILCS 30/6.2 from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4166.2 210 ILCS 30/6.9 new Amends the Abused and Neglected Long Term Care Facility Residents Reporting Act to require the Governor to appoint for a 4 year term an Inspector General to conduct separate and independent investigations into allegations or incidents of abuse or neglect of the residents of long term care facilities licensed by the Department of Public Health. Allows the Inspector General access to facilities and to all necessary information and personnel. Requires the Inspector General to notify the proper enforcement authority of possible criminal acts. Permits the Inspector General to recommend civil or criminal actions and to seek the assistance of the Attorney General or any of the State's Attorneys. Grants to the Inspector General the power to subpoena witnesses and compel production of books and papers pertinent to an investigation; makes failing to appear or to produce or giving false testimony a Class A misdemeanor. Effective immediately. LRB9000697DPcc LRB9000697DPcc 1 AN ACT to amend the Abused and Neglected Long Term Care 2 Facility Residents Reporting Act by changing Section 6.2 and 3 adding Section 6.9. 4 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 5 represented in the General Assembly: 6 Section 5. The Abused and Neglected Long Term Care 7 Facility Residents Reporting Act is amended by changing 8 Section 6.2 and adding Section 6.9 as follows: 9 (210 ILCS 30/6.2) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4166.2) 10 (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2000) 11 (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 89-507) 12 Sec. 6.2. Inspector General; mental health and 13 developmental disability facilities. 14 (a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall 15 confirm, an Inspector General who shall function within the 16 Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities 17 and report to the Director. The Inspector General shall 18 investigate reports of suspected abuse or neglect (as those 19 terms are defined in Section 3 of this Act) of patients or 20 residents in any facility operated by the Department of 21 Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities and shall have 22 authority to investigate and take immediate action on reports 23 of abuse or neglect of recipients, whether patients or 24 residents, in any facility or program that is licensed or 25 certified by the Department of Mental Health and 26 Developmental Disabilities or that is funded by the 27 Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities 28 and is not licensed or certified by any agency of the State. 29 At the specific, written request of an agency of the State 30 other than the Department of Mental Health and Developmental 31 Disabilities, the Inspector General may cooperate in -2- LRB9000697DPcc 1 investigating reports of abuse and neglect of persons with 2 mental illness or persons with developmental disabilities. 3 The Inspector General shall have no supervision over or 4 involvement in routine, programmatic, licensure, or 5 certification operations of the Department of Mental Health 6 and Developmental Disabilities or any of its funded agencies. 7 The Inspector General shall promulgate rules establishing 8 minimum requirements for initiating, conducting, and 9 completing investigations. The promulgated rules shall 10 clearly set forth that in instances where 2 or more State 11 agencies could investigate an allegation of abuse or neglect, 12 the Inspector General shall not conduct an investigation that 13 is redundant to an investigation conducted by another State 14 agency. The rules shall establish criteria for determining, 15 based upon the nature of the allegation, the appropriate 16 method of investigation, which may include, but need not be 17 limited to, site visits, telephone contacts, or requests for 18 written responses from agencies. The rules shall also 19 clarify how the Office of the Inspector General shall 20 interact with the licensing unit of the Department of Mental 21 Health and Developmental Disabilities in investigations of 22 allegations of abuse or neglect. Any allegations or 23 investigations of reports made pursuant to this Act shall 24 remain confidential until a final report is completed. Final 25 reports regarding unsubstantiated or unfounded allegations 26 shall remain confidential, except that final reports may be 27 disclosed pursuant to Section 6 of this Act. 28 The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4 29 years. 30 (b) The Inspector General shall within 24 hours after 31 receiving a report of suspected abuse or neglect determine 32 whether the evidence indicates that any possible criminal act 33 has been committed. If he determines that a possible criminal 34 act has been committed, or that special expertise is required -3- LRB9000697DPcc 1 in the investigation, he shall immediately notify the 2 Department of State Police. The Department of State Police 3 shall investigate any report indicating a possible murder, 4 rape, or other felony. All investigations conducted by the 5 Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to 6 ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a 7 criminal prosecution. 8 (c) The Inspector General shall, within 10 calendar days 9 after the transmittal date of a completed investigation where 10 abuse or neglect is substantiated or administrative action is 11 recommended, provide a complete report on the case to the 12 Director of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities and 13 to the agency in which the abuse or neglect is alleged to 14 have happened. There shall be an appeals process for any 15 person or agency that is subject to any action based on a 16 recommendation or recommendations. 17 (d) The Inspector General may recommend to the 18 Departments of Public Health and Mental Health and 19 Developmental Disabilities sanctions to be imposed against 20 facilities under the jurisdiction of the Department of Mental 21 Health and Developmental Disabilities for the protection of 22 residents, including appointment of on-site monitors or 23 receivers, transfer or relocation of residents, and closure 24 of units. The Inspector General may seek the assistance of 25 the Attorney General or any of the several State's attorneys 26 in imposing such sanctions. 27 (e) The Inspector General shall establish and conduct 28 periodic training programs for Department employees 29 concerning the prevention and reporting of neglect and abuse. 30 (f) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted 31 access to any facility operated by the Department, shall 32 establish and conduct unannounced site visits to those 33 facilities at least once annually, and shall be granted 34 access, for the purpose of investigating a report of abuse or -4- LRB9000697DPcc 1 neglect, to any facility or program funded by the Department 2 that is subject under the provisions of this Section to 3 investigation by the Inspector General for a report of abuse 4 or neglect. 5 (g) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations 6 by the Department of Mental Health and Developmental 7 Disabilities that may otherwise be required by law or that 8 may be necessary in that Department's capacity as the central 9 administrative authority responsible for the operation of 10 State mental health and developmental disability facilities. 11 (h) This Section is repealed on January 1, 2000. 12 (Source: P.A. 89-427, eff. 12-7-95.) 13 (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 89-507) 14 Sec. 6.2. Inspector General; mental health and 15 developmental disability facilities. 16 (a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall 17 confirm, an Inspector General who shall function within the 18 Department of Human Services and report to the Secretary of 19 Human Services. The Inspector General shall investigate 20 reports of suspected abuse or neglect (as those terms are 21 defined in Section 3 of this Act) of patients or residents in 22 any mental health or developmental disabilities facility 23 operated by the Department of Human Services and shall have 24 authority to investigate and take immediate action on reports 25 of abuse or neglect of recipients, whether patients or 26 residents, in any mental health or developmental disabilities 27 facility or program that is licensed or certified by the 28 Department of Human Services (as successor to the Department 29 of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities) or that is 30 funded by the Department of Human Services (as successor to 31 the Department of Mental Health and Developmental 32 Disabilities) and is not licensed or certified by any agency 33 of the State. At the specific, written request of an agency 34 of the State other than the Department of Human Services (as -5- LRB9000697DPcc 1 successor to the Department of Mental Health and 2 Developmental Disabilities), the Inspector General may 3 cooperate in investigating reports of abuse and neglect of 4 persons with mental illness or persons with developmental 5 disabilities. The Inspector General shall have no 6 supervision over or involvement in routine, programmatic, 7 licensure, or certification operations of the Department of 8 Human Services or any of its funded agencies. 9 The Inspector General shall promulgate rules establishing 10 minimum requirements for initiating, conducting, and 11 completing investigations. The promulgated rules shall 12 clearly set forth that in instances where 2 or more State 13 agencies could investigate an allegation of abuse or neglect, 14 the Inspector General shall not conduct an investigation that 15 is redundant to an investigation conducted by another State 16 agency. The rules shall establish criteria for determining, 17 based upon the nature of the allegation, the appropriate 18 method of investigation, which may include, but need not be 19 limited to, site visits, telephone contacts, or requests for 20 written responses from agencies. The rules shall also 21 clarify how the Office of the Inspector General shall 22 interact with the licensing unit of the Department of Human 23 Services in investigations of allegations of abuse or 24 neglect. Any allegations or investigations of reports made 25 pursuant to this Act shall remain confidential until a final 26 report is completed. Final reports regarding unsubstantiated 27 or unfounded allegations shall remain confidential, except 28 that final reports may be disclosed pursuant to Section 6 of 29 this Act. 30 The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4 31 years. 32 (b) The Inspector General shall within 24 hours after 33 receiving a report of suspected abuse or neglect determine 34 whether the evidence indicates that any possible criminal act -6- LRB9000697DPcc 1 has been committed. If he determines that a possible criminal 2 act has been committed, or that special expertise is required 3 in the investigation, he shall immediately notify the 4 Department of State Police. The Department of State Police 5 shall investigate any report indicating a possible murder, 6 rape, or other felony. All investigations conducted by the 7 Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to 8 ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a 9 criminal prosecution. 10 (c) The Inspector General shall, within 10 calendar days 11 after the transmittal date of a completed investigation where 12 abuse or neglect is substantiated or administrative action is 13 recommended, provide a complete report on the case to the 14 Secretary of Human Services and to the agency in which the 15 abuse or neglect is alleged to have happened. There shall be 16 an appeals process for any person or agency that is subject 17 to any action based on a recommendation or recommendations. 18 (d) The Inspector General may recommend to the 19 Departments of Public Health and Human Services sanctions to 20 be imposed against mental health and developmental 21 disabilities facilities under the jurisdiction of the 22 Department of Human Services for the protection of residents, 23 including appointment of on-site monitors or receivers, 24 transfer or relocation of residents, and closure of units. 25 The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the Attorney 26 General or any of the several State's attorneys in imposing 27 such sanctions. 28 (e) The Inspector General shall establish and conduct 29 periodic training programs for Department employees 30 concerning the prevention and reporting of neglect and abuse. 31 (f) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted 32 access to any mental health or developmental disabilities 33 facility operated by the Department, shall establish and 34 conduct unannounced site visits to those facilities at least -7- LRB9000697DPcc 1 once annually, and shall be granted access, for the purpose 2 of investigating a report of abuse or neglect, to any 3 facility or program funded by the Department that is subject 4 under the provisions of this Section to investigation by the 5 Inspector General for a report of abuse or neglect. 6 (g) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations 7 by the Department of Human Services that may otherwise be 8 required by law or that may be necessary in that Department's 9 capacity as the central administrative authority responsible 10 for the operation of State mental health and developmental 11 disability facilities. 12 (h) This Section is repealed on January 1, 2000. 13 (Source: P.A. 89-427, eff. 12-7-95; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.) 14 (210 ILCS 30/6.9 new) 15 Sec. 6.9. Inspector General; long term care facilities. 16 (a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall 17 confirm, an Inspector General who shall have the authority to 18 conduct investigations into allegations of or incidents of 19 possible misconduct, misfeasance, malfeasance, or violations 20 of rules, procedures, or laws concerning the abuse or neglect 21 of residents of long term care facilities licensed by the 22 Department of Public Health. The Inspector General shall make 23 recommendations to the Director of Public Health concerning 24 civil or criminal actions against long term care facilities. 25 Any investigation conducted by the Inspector General shall be 26 independent and separate from the reports mandated by Section 27 4. The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4 28 years. The Inspector General shall be independent of the 29 operations of the Department and shall report to the Director 30 of Public Health and perform other duties the Director may 31 designate. 32 (b) The Inspector General shall have access to all 33 information and personnel necessary to perform the duties of -8- LRB9000697DPcc 1 the office. 2 (c) The Inspector General shall be the primary liaison 3 between the Attorney General, the State's Attorneys, and the 4 various law enforcement agencies of this State and its 5 political subdivisions with regard to investigations 6 conducted under the Inspector General's auspices. If the 7 Inspector General determines that a possible criminal act has 8 been committed, or that special expertise is required in the 9 investigation, he or she shall immediately notify the proper 10 enforcement authority. All investigations conducted by the 11 Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to 12 ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a 13 criminal prosecution. 14 (d) The Inspector General may recommend to the 15 Department, the Department of Human Services, or any other 16 appropriate agency, civil or criminal actions to be brought 17 against long term care facilities licensed by the Department. 18 The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the Attorney 19 General or any of the State's Attorneys in imposing 20 liability. 21 (e) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted 22 access to any long term care facility licensed by the 23 Department. 24 (f) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations 25 by the Department that may otherwise be required by law or 26 that may be necessary in the Department's capacity as the 27 central licensing authority for long term care facilities. 28 (g) The Inspector General shall have the power to 29 subpoena witnesses and compel the production of books and 30 papers pertinent to an investigation authorized by this Act. 31 Any person who fails to appear in response to a subpoena or 32 to answer any question or produce any books or papers 33 pertinent to an investigation under this Act or who knowingly 34 gives false testimony in relation to an investigation under -9- LRB9000697DPcc 1 this Act is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. 2 (h) The Inspector General shall provide to the General 3 Assembly and the Governor, no later than January 1 of each 4 year, a summary of reports and investigations made under this 5 Section for the prior fiscal year. The summaries shall detail 6 the imposition of sanctions and the final disposition of 7 those recommendations. The summaries shall not contain any 8 confidential or identifying information concerning the 9 subjects of the reports and investigations. The summaries 10 also shall include detailed recommended administrative 11 actions and matters for consideration by the General 12 Assembly. 13 (i) As used in this Section, "Inspector General" refers 14 to the person appointed under subsection (a) of this Section. 15 Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act 16 makes changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by 17 text that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a 18 Section represented by multiple versions), the use of that 19 text does not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i) 20 the changes made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from 21 any other Public Act. 22 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 23 becoming law.