Public Act 099-0323

SB1947 Enrolled LRB099 09970 KTG 30189 b

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Department of Human Services Act is amended

by changing Section 1-17 as follows:

(20 ILCS 1305/1-17)

Sec. 1-17. Inspector General.

(a) Nature and purpose. It is the express intent of the

General Assembly to ensure the health, safety, and financial

condition of individuals receiving services in this State due

to mental illness, developmental disability, or both by

protecting those persons from acts of abuse, neglect, or both

by service providers. To that end, the Office of the Inspector

General for the Department of Human Services is created to

investigate and report upon allegations of the abuse, neglect,

or financial exploitation of individuals receiving services

within mental health facilities, developmental disabilities

facilities, and community agencies operated, licensed, funded

or certified by the Department of Human Services, but not

licensed or certified by any other State agency.

(b) Definitions. The following definitions apply to this

Section:

"Adult student with a disability" means an adult student,

age 18 through 21, inclusive, with an Individual Education

Program, other than a resident of a facility licensed by the

Department of Children and Family Services in accordance with

the Child Care Act of 1969. For purposes of this definition,

"through age 21, inclusive", means through the day before the

student's 22nd birthday.

"Agency" or "community agency" means (i) a community agency

licensed, funded, or certified by the Department, but not

licensed or certified by any other human services agency of the

State, to provide mental health service or developmental

disabilities service, or (ii) a program licensed, funded, or

certified by the Department, but not licensed or certified by

any other human services agency of the State, to provide mental

health service or developmental disabilities service.

"Aggravating circumstance" means a factor that is

attendant to a finding and that tends to compound or increase

the culpability of the accused.

"Allegation" means an assertion, complaint, suspicion, or

incident involving any of the following conduct by an employee,

facility, or agency against an individual or individuals:

mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or

financial exploitation.

"Day" means working day, unless otherwise specified.

"Deflection" means a situation in which an individual is

presented for admission to a facility or agency, and the

facility staff or agency staff do not admit the individual.

"Deflection" includes triage, redirection, and denial of

admission.

"Department" means the Department of Human Services.

"Developmentally disabled" means having a developmental

disability.

"Developmental disability" means "developmental

disability" as defined in the Mental Health and Developmental

Disabilities Code.

"Egregious neglect" means a finding of neglect as

determined by the Inspector General that (i) represents a gross

failure to adequately provide for, or a callused indifference

to, the health, safety, or medical needs of an individual and

(ii) results in an individual's death or other serious

deterioration of an individual's physical condition or mental

condition.

"Employee" means any person who provides services at the

facility or agency on-site or off-site. The service

relationship can be with the individual or with the facility or

agency. Also, "employee" includes any employee or contractual

agent of the Department of Human Services or the community

agency involved in providing or monitoring or administering

mental health or developmental disability services. This

includes but is not limited to: owners, operators, payroll

personnel, contractors, subcontractors, and volunteers.

"Facility" or "State-operated facility" means a mental

health facility or developmental disabilities facility

operated by the Department.

"Financial exploitation" means taking unjust advantage of

an individual's assets, property, or financial resources

through deception, intimidation, or conversion for the

employee's, facility's, or agency's own advantage or benefit.

"Finding" means the Office of Inspector General's

determination regarding whether an allegation is

substantiated, unsubstantiated, or unfounded.

"Health care worker registry" or "registry" means the

health care worker registry created by the Nursing Home Care

Act.

"Individual" means any person receiving mental health

service, developmental disabilities service, or both from a

facility or agency, while either on-site or off-site.

"Mental abuse" means the use of demeaning, intimidating, or

threatening words, signs, gestures, or other actions by an

employee about an individual and in the presence of an

individual or individuals that results in emotional distress or

maladaptive behavior, or could have resulted in emotional

distress or maladaptive behavior, for any individual present.

"Mental illness" means "mental illness" as defined in the

Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code.

"Mentally ill" means having a mental illness.

"Mitigating circumstance" means a condition that (i) is

attendant to a finding, (ii) does not excuse or justify the

conduct in question, but (iii) may be considered in evaluating

the severity of the conduct, the culpability of the accused, or

both the severity of the conduct and the culpability of the

accused.

"Neglect" means an employee's, agency's, or facility's

failure to provide adequate medical care, personal care, or

maintenance and that, as a consequence, (i) causes an

individual pain, injury, or emotional distress, (ii) results in

either an individual's maladaptive behavior or the

deterioration of an individual's physical condition or mental

condition, or (iii) places the individual's health or safety at

substantial risk.

"Physical abuse" means an employee's non-accidental and

inappropriate contact with an individual that causes bodily

harm. "Physical abuse" includes actions that cause bodily harm

as a result of an employee directing an individual or person to

physically abuse another individual.

"Recommendation" means an admonition, separate from a

finding, that requires action by the facility, agency, or

Department to correct a systemic issue, problem, or deficiency

identified during an investigation.

"Required reporter" means any employee who suspects,

witnesses, or is informed of an allegation of any one or more

of the following: mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse,

neglect, or financial exploitation.

"Secretary" means the Chief Administrative Officer of the

Department.

"Sexual abuse" means any sexual contact or intimate

physical contact between an employee and an individual,

including an employee's coercion or encouragement of an

individual to engage in sexual behavior that results in sexual

contact, intimate physical contact, sexual behavior, or

intimate physical behavior. Sexual abuse also includes (i) an

employee's actions that result in the sending or showing of

sexually explicit images to an individual via computer,

cellular phone, electronic mail, portable electronic device,

or other media with or without contact with the individual or

(ii) an employee's posting of sexually explicit images of an

individual online or elsewhere whether or not there is contact

with the individual.

"Sexually explicit images" includes, but is not limited to,

any material which depicts nudity, sexual conduct, or

sado-masochistic abuse, or which contains explicit and

detailed verbal descriptions or narrative accounts of sexual

excitement, sexual conduct, or sado-masochistic abuse.

"Substantiated" means there is a preponderance of the

evidence to support the allegation.

"Unfounded" means there is no credible evidence to support

the allegation.

"Unsubstantiated" means there is credible evidence, but

less than a preponderance of evidence to support the

allegation.

(c) Appointment. The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate

shall confirm, an Inspector General. The Inspector General

shall be appointed for a term of 4 years and shall function

within the Department of Human Services and report to the

Secretary and the Governor.

(d) Operation and appropriation. The Inspector General

shall function independently within the Department with

respect to the operations of the Office, including the

performance of investigations and issuance of findings and

recommendations. The appropriation for the Office of Inspector

General shall be separate from the overall appropriation for

the Department.

(e) Powers and duties. The Inspector General shall

investigate reports of suspected mental abuse, physical abuse,

sexual abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation of

individuals in any mental health or developmental disabilities

facility or agency and shall have authority to take immediate

action to prevent any one or more of the following from

happening to individuals under its jurisdiction: mental abuse,

physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or financial

exploitation. Upon written request of an agency of this State,

the Inspector General may assist another agency of the State in

investigating reports of the abuse, neglect, or abuse and

neglect of persons with mental illness, persons with

developmental disabilities, or persons with both. To comply

with the requirements of subsection (k) of this Section, the

Inspector General shall also review all reportable deaths for

which there is no allegation of abuse or neglect. Nothing in

this Section shall preempt any duties of the Medical Review

Board set forth in the Mental Health and Developmental

Disabilities Code. The Inspector General shall have no

authority to investigate alleged violations of the State

Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Allegations of misconduct

under the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act shall be

referred to the Office of the Governor's Executive Inspector

General for investigation.

(f) Limitations. The Inspector General shall not conduct an

investigation within an agency or facility if that

investigation would be redundant to or interfere with an

investigation conducted by another State agency. The Inspector

General shall have no supervision over, or involvement in, the

routine programmatic, licensing, funding, or certification

operations of the Department. Nothing in this subsection limits

investigations by the Department that may otherwise be required

by law or that may be necessary in the Department's capacity as

central administrative authority responsible for the operation

of the State's mental health and developmental disabilities

facilities.

(g) Rulemaking authority. The Inspector General shall

promulgate rules establishing minimum requirements for

reporting allegations as well as for initiating, conducting,

and completing investigations based upon the nature of the

allegation or allegations. The rules shall clearly establish

that if 2 or more State agencies could investigate an

allegation, the Inspector General shall not conduct an

investigation that would be redundant to, or interfere with, an

investigation conducted by another State agency. The rules

shall further clarify the method and circumstances under which

the Office of Inspector General may interact with the

licensing, funding, or certification units of the Department in

preventing further occurrences of mental abuse, physical

abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, and financial

exploitation.

(h) Training programs. The Inspector General shall (i)

establish a comprehensive program to ensure that every person

authorized to conduct investigations receives ongoing training

relative to investigation techniques, communication skills,

and the appropriate means of interacting with persons receiving

treatment for mental illness, developmental disability, or

both mental illness and developmental disability, and (ii)

establish and conduct periodic training programs for facility

and agency employees concerning the prevention and reporting of

any one or more of the following: mental abuse, physical abuse,

sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or financial

exploitation. Nothing in this Section shall be deemed to

prevent the Office of Inspector General from conducting any

other training as determined by the Inspector General to be

necessary or helpful.

(i) Duty to cooperate.

(1) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted

access to any facility or agency for the purpose of

investigating any allegation, conducting unannounced site

visits, monitoring compliance with a written response, or

completing any other statutorily assigned duty. The

Inspector General shall conduct unannounced site visits to

each facility at least annually for the purpose of

reviewing and making recommendations on systemic issues

relative to preventing, reporting, investigating, and

responding to all of the following: mental abuse, physical

abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or

financial exploitation.

(2) Any employee who fails to cooperate with an Office

of the Inspector General investigation is in violation of

this Act. Failure to cooperate with an investigation

includes, but is not limited to, any one or more of the

following: (i) creating and transmitting a false report to

the Office of the Inspector General hotline, (ii) providing

false information to an Office of the Inspector General

Investigator during an investigation, (iii) colluding with

other employees to cover up evidence, (iv) colluding with

other employees to provide false information to an Office

of the Inspector General investigator, (v) destroying

evidence, (vi) withholding evidence, or (vii) otherwise

obstructing an Office of the Inspector General

investigation. Additionally, any employee who, during an

unannounced site visit or written response compliance

check, fails to cooperate with requests from the Office of

the Inspector General is in violation of this Act.

(j) Subpoena powers. The Inspector General shall have the

power to subpoena witnesses and compel the production of all

documents and physical evidence relating to his or her

investigations and any hearings authorized by this Act. This

subpoena power shall not extend to persons or documents of a

labor organization or its representatives insofar as the

persons are acting in a representative capacity to an employee

whose conduct is the subject of an investigation or the

documents relate to that representation. Any person who

otherwise fails to respond to a subpoena or who knowingly

provides false information to the Office of the Inspector

General by subpoena during an investigation is guilty of a

Class A misdemeanor.

(k) Reporting allegations and deaths.

(1) Allegations. If an employee witnesses, is told of,

or has reason to believe an incident of mental abuse,

physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or financial

exploitation has occurred, the employee, agency, or

facility shall report the allegation by phone to the Office

of the Inspector General hotline according to the agency's

or facility's procedures, but in no event later than 4

hours after the initial discovery of the incident,

allegation, or suspicion of any one or more of the

following: mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse,

neglect, or financial exploitation. A required reporter as

defined in subsection (b) of this Section who knowingly or

intentionally fails to comply with these reporting

requirements is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(2) Deaths. Absent an allegation, a required reporter

shall, within 24 hours after initial discovery, report by

phone to the Office of the Inspector General hotline each

of the following:

(i) Any death of an individual occurring within 14

calendar days after discharge or transfer of the

individual from a residential program or facility.

(ii) Any death of an individual occurring within 24

hours after deflection from a residential program or

facility.

(iii) Any other death of an individual occurring at

an agency or facility or at any Department-funded site.

(3) Retaliation. It is a violation of this Act for any

employee or administrator of an agency or facility to take

retaliatory action against an employee who acts in good

faith in conformance with his or her duties as a required

reporter.

(l) Reporting to law enforcement.

(1) Reporting criminal acts. Within 24 hours after

determining that there is credible evidence indicating

that a criminal act may have been committed or that special

expertise may be required in an investigation, the

Inspector General shall notify the Department of State

Police or other appropriate law enforcement authority, or

ensure that such notification is made. The Department of

State Police shall investigate any report from a

State-operated facility indicating a possible murder,

sexual assault, or other felony by an employee. All

investigations conducted by the Inspector General shall be

conducted in a manner designed to ensure the preservation

of evidence for possible use in a criminal prosecution.

(2) Reporting allegations of adult students with

disabilities. Upon receipt of a reportable allegation

regarding an adult student with a disability, the

Department's Office of the Inspector General shall

determine whether the allegation meets the criteria for the

Domestic Abuse Program under the Abuse of Adults with

Disabilities Intervention Act. If the allegation is

reportable to that program, the Office of the Inspector

General shall initiate an investigation. If the allegation

is not reportable to the Domestic Abuse Program, the Office

of the Inspector General shall make an expeditious referral

to the respective law enforcement entity. If the alleged

victim is already receiving services from the Department,

the Office of the Inspector General shall also make a

referral to the respective Department of Human Services'

Division or Bureau.

(m) Investigative reports. Upon completion of an

investigation, the Office of Inspector General shall issue an

investigative report identifying whether the allegations are

substantiated, unsubstantiated, or unfounded. Within 10

business days after the transmittal of a completed

investigative report substantiating an allegation, or if a

recommendation is made, the Inspector General shall provide the

investigative report on the case to the Secretary and to the

director of the facility or agency where any one or more of the

following occurred: mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual

abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or financial exploitation.

In a substantiated case, the investigative report shall include

any mitigating or aggravating circumstances that were

identified during the investigation. If the case involves

substantiated neglect, the investigative report shall also

state whether egregious neglect was found. An investigative

report may also set forth recommendations. All investigative

reports prepared by the Office of the Inspector General shall

be considered confidential and shall not be released except as

provided by the law of this State or as required under

applicable federal law. Unsubstantiated and unfounded reports

shall not be disclosed except as allowed under Section 6 of the

Abused and Neglected Long Term Care Facility Residents

Reporting Act. Raw data used to compile the investigative

report shall not be subject to release unless required by law

or a court order. "Raw data used to compile the investigative

report" includes, but is not limited to, any one or more of the

following: the initial complaint, witness statements,

photographs, investigator's notes, police reports, or incident

reports. If the allegations are substantiated, the accused

shall be provided with a redacted copy of the investigative

report. Death reports where there was no allegation of abuse or

neglect shall only be released pursuant to applicable State or

federal law or a valid court order.

(n) Written responses and reconsideration requests.

(1) Written responses. Within 30 calendar days from

receipt of a substantiated investigative report or an

investigative report which contains recommendations,

absent a reconsideration request, the facility or agency

shall file a written response that addresses, in a concise

and reasoned manner, the actions taken to: (i) protect the

individual; (ii) prevent recurrences; and (iii) eliminate

the problems identified. The response shall include the

implementation and completion dates of such actions. If the

written response is not filed within the allotted 30

calendar day period, the Secretary shall determine the

appropriate corrective action to be taken.

(2) Reconsideration requests. The facility, agency,

victim or guardian, or the subject employee may request

that the Office of Inspector General reconsider or clarify

its finding based upon additional information.

(o) Disclosure of the finding by the Inspector General. The

Inspector General shall disclose the finding of an

investigation to the following persons: (i) the Governor, (ii)

the Secretary, (iii) the director of the facility or agency,

(iv) the alleged victims and their guardians, (v) the

complainant, and (vi) the accused. This information shall

include whether the allegations were deemed substantiated,

unsubstantiated, or unfounded.

(p) Secretary review. Upon review of the Inspector

General's investigative report and any agency's or facility's

written response, the Secretary shall accept or reject the

written response and notify the Inspector General of that

determination. The Secretary may further direct that other

administrative action be taken, including, but not limited to,

any one or more of the following: (i) additional site visits,

(ii) training, (iii) provision of technical assistance

relative to administrative needs, licensure or certification,

or (iv) the imposition of appropriate sanctions.

(q) Action by facility or agency. Within 30 days of the

date the Secretary approves the written response or directs

that further administrative action be taken, the facility or

agency shall provide an implementation report to the Inspector

General that provides the status of the action taken. The

facility or agency shall be allowed an additional 30 days to

send notice of completion of the action or to send an updated

implementation report. If the action has not been completed

within the additional 30 day period, the facility or agency

shall send updated implementation reports every 60 days until

completion. The Inspector General shall conduct a review of any

implementation plan that takes more than 120 days after

approval to complete, and shall monitor compliance through a

random review of approved written responses, which may include,

but are not limited to: (i) site visits, (ii) telephone

contact, and (iii) requests for additional documentation

evidencing compliance.

(r) Sanctions. Sanctions, if imposed by the Secretary under

Subdivision (p)(iv) of this Section, shall be designed to

prevent further acts of mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual

abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or financial exploitation

or some combination of one or more of those acts at a facility

or agency, and may include any one or more of the following:

(1) Appointment of on-site monitors.

(2) Transfer or relocation of an individual or

individuals.

(3) Closure of units.

(4) Termination of any one or more of the following:

(i) Department licensing, (ii) funding, or (iii)

certification.

The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the

Illinois Attorney General or the office of any State's Attorney

in implementing sanctions.

(s) Health care worker registry.

(1) Reporting to the registry. The Inspector General

shall report to the Department of Public Health's health

care worker registry, a public registry, the identity and

finding of each employee of a facility or agency against

whom there is a final investigative report containing a

substantiated allegation of physical or sexual abuse,

financial exploitation, or egregious neglect of an

individual.

(2) Notice to employee. Prior to reporting the name of

an employee, the employee shall be notified of the

Department's obligation to report and shall be granted an

opportunity to request an administrative hearing, the sole

purpose of which is to determine if the substantiated

finding warrants reporting to the registry. Notice to the

employee shall contain a clear and concise statement of the

grounds on which the report to the registry is based, offer

the employee an opportunity for a hearing, and identify the

process for requesting such a hearing. Notice is sufficient

if provided by certified mail to the employee's last known

address. If the employee fails to request a hearing within

30 days from the date of the notice, the Inspector General

shall report the name of the employee to the registry.

Nothing in this subdivision (s)(2) shall diminish or impair

the rights of a person who is a member of a collective

bargaining unit under the Illinois Public Labor Relations

Act or under any other federal labor statute.

(3) Registry hearings. If the employee requests an

administrative hearing, the employee shall be granted an

opportunity to appear before an administrative law judge to

present reasons why the employee's name should not be

reported to the registry. The Department shall bear the

burden of presenting evidence that establishes, by a

preponderance of the evidence, that the substantiated

finding warrants reporting to the registry. After

considering all the evidence presented, the administrative

law judge shall make a recommendation to the Secretary as

to whether the substantiated finding warrants reporting

the name of the employee to the registry. The Secretary

shall render the final decision. The Department and the

employee shall have the right to request that the

administrative law judge consider a stipulated disposition

of these proceedings.

(4) Testimony at registry hearings. A person who makes

a report or who investigates a report under this Act shall

testify fully in any judicial proceeding resulting from

such a report, as to any evidence of abuse or neglect, or

the cause thereof. No evidence shall be excluded by reason

of any common law or statutory privilege relating to

communications between the alleged perpetrator of abuse or

neglect, or the individual alleged as the victim in the

report, and the person making or investigating the report.

Testimony at hearings is exempt from the confidentiality

requirements of subsection (f) of Section 10 of the Mental

Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act.

(5) Employee's rights to collateral action. No

reporting to the registry shall occur and no hearing shall

be set or proceed if an employee notifies the Inspector

General in writing, including any supporting

documentation, that he or she is formally contesting an

adverse employment action resulting from a substantiated

finding by complaint filed with the Illinois Civil Service

Commission, or which otherwise seeks to enforce the

employee's rights pursuant to any applicable collective

bargaining agreement. If an action taken by an employer

against an employee as a result of a finding of physical

abuse, sexual abuse, or egregious neglect is overturned

through an action filed with the Illinois Civil Service

Commission or under any applicable collective bargaining

agreement and if that employee's name has already been sent

to the registry, the employee's name shall be removed from

the registry.

(6) Removal from registry. At any time after the report

to the registry, but no more than once in any 12-month

period, an employee may petition the Department in writing

to remove his or her name from the registry. Upon receiving

notice of such request, the Inspector General shall conduct

an investigation into the petition. Upon receipt of such

request, an administrative hearing will be set by the

Department. At the hearing, the employee shall bear the

burden of presenting evidence that establishes, by a

preponderance of the evidence, that removal of the name

from the registry is in the public interest. The parties

may jointly request that the administrative law judge

consider a stipulated disposition of these proceedings.

(t) Review of Administrative Decisions. The Department

shall preserve a record of all proceedings at any formal

hearing conducted by the Department involving health care

worker registry hearings. Final administrative decisions of

the Department are subject to judicial review pursuant to

provisions of the Administrative Review Law.

(u) Quality Care Board. There is created, within the Office

of the Inspector General, a Quality Care Board to be composed

of 7 members appointed by the Governor with the advice and

consent of the Senate. One of the members shall be designated

as chairman by the Governor. Of the initial appointments made

by the Governor, 4 Board members shall each be appointed for a

term of 4 years and 3 members shall each be appointed for a

term of 2 years. Upon the expiration of each member's term, a

successor shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. In the case

of a vacancy in the office of any member, the Governor shall

appoint a successor for the remainder of the unexpired term.

Members appointed by the Governor shall be qualified by

professional knowledge or experience in the area of law,

investigatory techniques, or in the area of care of the

mentally ill or developmentally disabled. Two members

appointed by the Governor shall be persons with a disability or

a parent of a person with a disability. Members shall serve

without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses

incurred in connection with the performance of their duties as

members.

The Board shall meet quarterly, and may hold other meetings

on the call of the chairman. Four members shall constitute a

quorum allowing the Board to conduct its business. The Board

may adopt rules and regulations it deems necessary to govern

its own procedures.

The Board shall monitor and oversee the operations,

policies, and procedures of the Inspector General to ensure the

prompt and thorough investigation of allegations of neglect and

abuse. In fulfilling these responsibilities, the Board may do

the following:

(1) Provide independent, expert consultation to the

Inspector General on policies and protocols for

investigations of alleged abuse, neglect, or both abuse and

neglect.

(2) Review existing regulations relating to the

operation of facilities.

(3) Advise the Inspector General as to the content of

training activities authorized under this Section.

(4) Recommend policies concerning methods for

improving the intergovernmental relationships between the

Office of the Inspector General and other State or federal

offices.

(v) Annual report. The Inspector General shall provide to

the General Assembly and the Governor, no later than January 1

of each year, a summary of reports and investigations made

under this Act for the prior fiscal year with respect to

individuals receiving mental health or developmental

disabilities services. The report shall detail the imposition

of sanctions, if any, and the final disposition of any

corrective or administrative action directed by the Secretary.

The summaries shall not contain any confidential or identifying

information of any individual, but shall include objective data

identifying any trends in the number of reported allegations,

the timeliness of the Office of the Inspector General's

investigations, and their disposition, for each facility and

Department-wide, for the most recent 3-year time period. The

report shall also identify, by facility, the staff-to-patient

ratios taking account of direct care staff only. The report

shall also include detailed recommended administrative actions

and matters for consideration by the General Assembly.

(w) Program audit. The Auditor General shall conduct a

program audit of the Office of the Inspector General on an

as-needed basis, as determined by the Auditor General. The

audit shall specifically include the Inspector General's

compliance with the Act and effectiveness in investigating

reports of allegations occurring in any facility or agency. The

Auditor General shall conduct the program audit according to

the provisions of the Illinois State Auditing Act and shall

report its findings to the General Assembly no later than

January 1 following the audit period.

(x) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to mean that

a patient is a victim of abuse or neglect because of health

care services appropriately provided or not provided by health

care professionals.

(y) Nothing in this Section shall require a facility,

including its employees, agents, medical staff members, and

health care professionals, to provide a service to a patient in

contravention of that patient's stated or implied objection to

the provision of that service on the ground that that service

conflicts with the patient's religious beliefs or practices,

nor shall the failure to provide a service to a patient be

considered abuse under this Section if the patient has objected

to the provision of that service based on his or her religious

beliefs or practices.

(Source: P.A. 98-49, eff. 7-1-13; 98-711, eff. 7-16-14.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

becoming law.