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92_SR0373
LRB9216491RHrh
1 SENATE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, About one in five adults will suffer from a
3 diagnosable mental disorder in a given year; mental illness
4 will affect more than two million Illinois citizens; and
5 WHEREAS, Mental illness is the second leading cause of
6 disability in the United States; and
7 WHEREAS, The State of Illinois must ensure that all of
8 its citizens who may be in need of accurate and current
9 information concerning involuntary commitment procedures, and
10 who may need mental health evaluation and treatment receive
11 such information, evaluation, or treatment with no one being
12 excluded; and
13 WHEREAS, The laws of this State should be examined to
14 determine whether this State is fulfilling its
15 responsibilities toward its citizens who may need mental
16 health information, evaluation and or treatment with respect
17 to involuntary commitment; therefore, be it
18 RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY SECOND GENERAL
19 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that a Mental Health Task
20 Force in relation to Involuntary Commitment shall convene to
21 examine Illinois laws to determine whether this State is
22 fulfilling its responsibilities toward its citizens who may
23 need accurate information, mental health evaluation, and
24 treatment with respect to involuntary commitment procedures
25 and whether those laws should be changed in order to better
26 enable the State to fulfill its responsibilities with no one
27 being excluded; and be it further
28 RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall specifically review
29 and evaluate the following criteria:
30 (1) Rewriting the definition of involuntary admission to
31 make it more flexible and to assure that no one is excluded
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1 from receiving help;
2 (2) Adding an educational component to the law to provide
3 yearly in-service to all parties involved in involuntary
4 admission;
5 (3) The amount of time given to "rural" health facilities
6 to properly evaluate and prepare for an involuntary mental
7 health admission;
8 (4) The length of time given to prepare before a court
9 appearance concerning an involuntary admission; and
10 (5) The possibility of amending the law to allow for
11 additional psychotropic drugs given (under the same
12 diagnosis) without a return to court; and be it further
13 RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall consist of the
14 following 22 members:
15 (1) Two persons appointed by the President of the Senate;
16 (2) Two persons appointed by the Minority Leader of the
17 Senate;
18 (3) The Secretary of Human Services or his or her
19 designee;
20 (4) The Director of State Police or his or her designee;
21 (5) A representative of the Illinois State's Attorney's
22 Association;
23 (6) A representative of the Illinois State Medical
24 Society;
25 (7) The President of Equip for Equality;
26 (8) A representative of the Guardianship and Advocacy
27 Commission;
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1 (9) A representative of the Alliance for the Mentally Ill
2 of Illinois;
3 (10) A representative of the Illinois State Bar
4 Association;
5 (11) A representative of the Chicago Bar Association;
6 (12) A representative of the Mental Health Association in
7 Illinois;
8 (13) A representative of the Community Behavior Healthcare
9 Association of Illinois;
10 (14) A representative of the Illinois Hospital and Health
11 Systems Association;
12 (15) A representative of the Illinois Psychiatric Society;
13 (16) A representative of the Illinois Psychological
14 Association;
15 (17) Two members of the Public appointed by the President
16 of the Senate; and
17 (18) Two members of the Public appointed by the Minority
18 Leader of the Senate; and be it further
19 RESOLVED, That the President of the Senate shall
20 designate one of the members appointed by him or her to serve
21 as the chair of the Task Force; and be it further
22 RESOLVED, That the meetings of the Task Force shall be
23 convened at the call of the chair and shall be open to the
24 public; and be it further
25 RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall report its
26 recommendations for legislation to the Senate no later than
27 November 1, 2002; and be it further
28 RESOLVED, That the Task Force members shall not receive
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1 any compensation for performing their duties or be reimbursed
2 for any expenses incurred in performing their duties; and be
3 it further
4 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this Resolution shall
5 be presented to each member of the Task Force upon his or her
6 appointment.