Legislative Update for March 16, 2007
The following are some of the more significant disability related bills filed in the Illinois General Assembly this session which are scheduled to be heard in committee during the week of March 19, 2007:
House Insurance Committee
March 20, 2007, 1:00 p.m.
Room D-1, Stratton Building
Springfield, IL
HB 953, HB 1247 (rescheduled from previous dates)
See: prior legislative updates for bill descriptions.
House Health Care Availability and Access Committee
March 20, 2007, 3:00 p.m.
Room 118, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
HB 385, HB 1432 (rescheduled from previous dates)
See: prior legislative updates for bill description.
House Judiciary II-Criminal Law Committee
March 20, 2007, 3:30 p.m.
March 22, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room D-1, Stratton Building
Springfield, IL
HB 1728, chief sponsor, Representative Kevin Joyce
Amends the Health Care Worker Background Check Act. Provides that the Act applies to all employees of licensed or certified long-term care facilities that have or may have access to (instead of contact with) residents. Defines "access to" and makes changes to the definition of "health care employer" and "long-term care facility".
House Human Services Committee
March 21, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room D-1, Stratton Building
Springfield, IL
HB 1286, HB 1561, HB 3511, HB 3517 (rescheduled from previous dates)
See: prior legislative updates for bill descriptions.
HB 1668, chief sponsor, Representative Esther Golar
Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that a "service provider" may be another entity besides a person or corporation. Provides that the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, by rule, shall apply a comparable, prospective cost-reimbursement methodology for service providers to provide child and adult psychiatric services on an outpatient basis with the stipulation that the service provider meets certain criteria. Provides for reimbursement of advanced practice nurses providing such services at 100% of the established physician rate.
HB 1865, chief sponsor, Representative Elizabeth Hernandez
Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that in any calendar year in which there is a cost-of-living increase in federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits or Social Security Administration (SSA) payments, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (DHFS) shall increase the per diem Medicaid rate by an amount equal to the increase for total SSI benefits or SSA payments for intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled. Amends the Community Services Act; provides that in any calendar year in which there is a cost-of-living increase in federal SSI benefits or SSA payments, the Department of Human Services and DHFS shall increase the per diem Medicaid rate by an amount equal to the increase for total SSI benefits or SSA payments to community providers of developmental disability, mental health, and alcohol and substance abuse services and supports.
HB 3380, chief sponsor, Representative Lisa M. Dugan
Amends the Community Services Act. Provides that if a new governmental mandate effective on or after July 1, 2007 (i) is imposed upon a private service provider, corporation, local government entity, or voluntary association providing services to persons with mental illness, persons with a developmental disability, or persons with an alcohol or drug dependency living in the community and (ii) has or will have a material adverse financial impact on the private service provider or other entity, the Department of Human Services (DHS) shall negotiate a contract amendment with the private service provider or other entity to increase the maximum obligation amount or unit price to offset the material adverse financial impact of the new governmental mandate, provided that the private service provider or other entity furnishes substantial evidence to DHS of such material adverse financial impact along with a request to renegotiate based on a new governmental mandate. Provides for an appeal process.
HB 3625, chief sponsor, Representative Lou Lang
Amends the Medical Practice Act of 1987. Allows a person licensed under the Act who issues a prescription for a drug or medicine intended for the treatment of attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder to deem the prescription refillable.
House Disability Services Committee
March 21, 2007, 4:00 p.m.
Room 115, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
HB 226, HB 785, HB 1435, HB 1645, HB 1796, HB 2002 (rescheduled from
previous dates)
See: prior legislative updates for bill descriptions.
House Aging Committee
March 22, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room 114, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
HB 1350, chief sponsor, Representative Kenneth Dunkin
Amends the Older Adult Services Act. Provides that fundable services under the Act also include an expansion of assisted living services under a waiver to include case management services, assisted living services, and incontinence supplies for persons who (i) are age 65 or older, or age 60 to 64 and disabled, and (ii) are eligible for Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid for the Aged or Disabled or meet the Medicaid Waiver Assistance income and asset requirements. Requires the Department on Aging to apply for any necessary waiver of federal law or regulations.
HB 3508, chief sponsor, Representative Kevin Joyce
Amends the Illinois Act on the Aging, the Nursing Home Care Act, and the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that the Office of State Long Term Care Ombudsman shall: (1) operate an Internet database to aid Illinoisans and their families in making informed choices about long-term care; (2) in collaboration with the Attorney General, create a Consumer Choice Information Report form to be completed by long-term care facilities; (3) develop a database of Consumer Choice Information Reports completed by facilities that includes certain information as identified by the Attorney General; (4) make this information accessible to the public on the Internet by means of a hyperlink labeled "Resident's Right to Know" on the Office's World Wide Web home page; (5) have the authority, with the Attorney General, to ensure that information provided by a facility is accurate; and (6) request a new report from any licensed facility whenever it deems necessary. Requires nursing homes to file annual Consumer Choice Information Reports with the Office beginning July 1, 2008. Provides that a nursing home's violation of the Consumer Choice Information Report provisions is an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
House Appropriations-Human Services Committee
March 22, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room 114, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
This committee is not currently assigned to hear any legislation. However, it will hold a subject matter hearing on the FY 08 Governor's introduced budget for: Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission, Guardianship and Advocacy Commission, Illinois Council on DD and DHS. In the afternoon agencies to be heard will be: Human Rights Commission, Medical District Commission, HFS, Aging and Veterans Affairs.
House Revenue Committee
March 22, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room 115, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
HB 1682, chief sponsor, Representative Julie Hamos
Amends the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act. Provides that "redevelopment project costs" includes the costs associated with affordable housing programs within the redevelopment project area.
House Telecommunications Committee
March 22, 2007, 8:00 a.m.
Room C-1, Stratton Building
Springfield, IL
HB 1487, chief sponsor, Representative Constance A. Howard
Creates the Sustainable Funding for Community Technology Act. Authorizes the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to (i) establish community collaboratives for the purpose of strategic planning for computing and telecommunications infrastructure and related community and economic development in low-income rural and urban areas and (ii) award strategic planning grants and telecommunications and computing infrastructure sustainable funding grants to those community collaboratives.
NOTE: If you wish to take any action regarding any of these bills, you may wish to attend the committee hearing and/or contact the sponsor(s) of the bill, the members of the committee hearing the bill, and/or the legislators in your home district. The names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all legislators, both Representatives and Senators, can be found on the Illinois General Assembly website at: www.ilga.gov. You may also check this website to find out if any of the committee hearing dates or times have been changed (which may happen upon very short notice) and to read the full text of the bills.
