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90_HB2628
20 ILCS 1705/4.3 from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 100-4.3
Amends the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities
Administrative Act. Provides that facilities under the
jurisdiction of the Department of Human Services shall be
subject to a site audit at least once during each 12-month
period by the Department (now each biennium by the Citizens
Council on Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities).
Provides that the visit shall determine compliance with the
statutes relating to patient care and Department policies and
procedures (now Department policies and procedures).
Provides that visits shall be made to review and follow up on
complaints made by legislators, mental health organizations,
and advocates (now mental health agencies and advocates).
Provides that at least 3 non-profit organizations shall have
access to State-operated facilities. Provides that the
purpose of the access is to insure there will be independent
assessments of each facility. Provides that the Department
shall adopt rules governing access to the facilities.
Provides that visits may be carried out upon the notification
of a complaint. Provides that review of a complaint shall be
deferred until after the Office of the Inspector General
completes its investigation. Effective immediately.
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LRB9009149MWmg
1 AN ACT to amend the Mental Health and Developmental
2 Disabilities Administrative Act by changing Section 4.3.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The Mental Health and Developmental
6 Disabilities Administrative Act is amended by changing
7 Section 4.3 as follows:
8 (20 ILCS 1705/4.3) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 100-4.3)
9 Sec. 4.3. Site visits and inspections.
10 (a) Each facility under the jurisdiction of the
11 Department shall be subject to a site visit at least once
12 during each 12-month period biennium by the Citizens Council
13 on Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities as provided
14 in Section 11A-7 of the Legislative Commission Reorganization
15 Act of 1984, as now or hereafter amended.
16 (b) The Department shall establish a system of annual
17 on-site inspections of each facility under its jurisdiction.
18 The inspections shall be conducted by the Department
19 Department's central office to:
20 (1) Determine facility compliance with the statutes
21 relating to patient care and the Department policies and
22 procedures;
23 (2) Determine facility compliance with audit
24 recommendations;
25 (3) Evaluate facility compliance with applicable federal
26 standards;
27 (4) Review and follow up on complaints made by
28 legislators, community mental health organizations agencies
29 and advocates, and on findings of the Human Rights Authority
30 division of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission; and
31 (5) Review administrative and management problems
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1 identified by other sources.
2 (c) Before January 30 of each even-numbered year, the
3 Inspector General shall, with the advice of the Department,
4 certify at least 3 non-profit organizations whose primary
5 purpose is to improve the quality of mental health care in
6 State-operated facilities. The certified organizations shall
7 ensure that those persons who have access under this Section
8 comply with all statutory and regulatory provisions governing
9 recipients' rights, confidentiality, privacy, and safety and
10 that any individual who fails to comply shall not be
11 permitted to continue to participate in assessments. The
12 certified organizations shall ensure that individuals shall
13 not be permitted to participate in assessments at any
14 facility at which their presence would conflict with a
15 recipient's right to refuse contact with those individuals.
16 The Department shall adopt rules governing the certified
17 organization's access to the facilities. The rules shall
18 ensure that visits will be accomplished in a manner that is
19 not disruptive to the operation of the State-operated
20 facility and shall require that the organizations abide by
21 any clinically-dictated guidelines imposed by the Medical
22 Director of the State-operated facility for conducting the
23 visits or interviewing individuals. The purpose of the
24 access is to insure there will be independent assessments for
25 each State-operated facility, not to exceed 4 per year for
26 each facility. However, additional visits may be carried out
27 upon the notification of a specific complaint. In the event
28 of a pending investigation by the Office of Inspector
29 General, the organization shall defer its review of the
30 complaint until after the Office of Inspector General
31 completes its investigation. Under no circumstances shall a
32 site visitor take any action which may impede or interfere
33 with an Office of Inspector General investigation or any
34 criminal investigation being conducted by State or local
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1 police. The access shall exclude all patient records unless
2 the recipient has permitted the examination of his or her
3 records under the Mental Health and Developmental
4 Disabilities Confidentiality Act.
5 The Department shall adopt rules for certifying the
6 organizations and for establishing reasonable standards and
7 procedures for determining whether the organizations seeking
8 certification provide appropriate training and supervision to
9 those persons who will have access under the statute.
10 The reports of the assessments shall be provided to the
11 Department, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
12 the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader of the
13 Senate, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives,
14 and to others that the organizations may determine. Under no
15 circumstances shall certification or access be denied due to
16 a disagreement by the Department with any positions taken by
17 the organizations with regard to public policy, legislation,
18 or regulation concerning mental health services, the
19 operation of, or the quality of care provided by the
20 Department or any mental health provider. Any organization
21 suing the Department, using the visits to assist litigants,
22 failing to abide by the guidelines imposed by the Medical
23 Director of the facility, or otherwise failing to comply with
24 the requirements of the rules governing access shall have its
25 certification revoked by the Inspector General. The
26 Department shall adopt rules establishing standards and
27 procedures for internal review of any decision denying or
28 terminating access to any organization, including review by
29 the Director or his or her designee. Any organization denied
30 access under this statute by an administrative decision of
31 the Director or his or her designee may have that decision
32 reviewed under the Administrative Review Act.
33 The assessments shall be conducted by the certified
34 organizations at no charge.
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1 (Source: P.A. 86-1013.)
2 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3 becoming law.