This legislation strengthens the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act by requiring enforcement, accountability and assurances of the prevailing wage law for contractors and subcontractors on state projects. The legislation requires contractors to include in their project specification that prevailing wages will be paid and they must post a current copy of the prevailing wage. The new law also requires that contractors maintain detailed employment records, including the hourly wages paid and how many hours are worked each day, from public works projects for three years. House Bill 3398.

A new law will allow taxpayers to choose to donate a portion or all of their income tax refund to the Les Turner ALS Foundation (Lou Gehrig’s disease). A check-off box for this purpose will be added onto the Illinois 1040 income tax form beginning with the taxable year ending Dec. 31, 2003. Senate Bill 1044.

This legislation is aimed at making prescription drugs more affordable for Illinois senior citizens and the disabled. The legislation creates a state-run club for seniors and the disabled which will allow members to present a membership card at participating pharmacies to receive state-negotiated discounts on the cost of prescription drugs. Illinois residents 65 years of age or older and the disabled are eligible to enroll in the club for a fee of $25.00 per year. Senate Bill 0003.

Illinois is the first state in the nation to ban the sale of Ephedra pursuant to a new law signed by Governor Blagojevich. Ephedra is the controversial herbal weight loss, bodybuilding and athletic enhancing supplement that has been linked to more than 100 deaths and 18,000 other medical problems. The law makes it a misdemeanor to sell Ephedra supplements in the state, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine. Repeat offenders could face up to five years in jail and a $20,000 fine. Senate Bill 1418.

The Illinois Equal Pay Act expands the federal Equal Pay Act of 1963 which prohibits employers from paying a man more for doing the same or similar work as a woman, except if the wage difference is based on seniority, merit or another valid factor other than gender. The new Illinois Equal Pay Act expands the scope of the original law to cover all public and private employers with four or more employees. Employers found guilty of pay discrimination will be required to make up the wage difference to the employee, pay legal costs, and may be subject to civil fines of up to $2,500 per violation, provided that the action is brought within 3 years from the date the employee learned of the underpayment. In addition, employers must post a notice in their workplace summarizing workers’ rights under the act. Senate Bill 0002.

The Health Care Services Lien Act combines several lien acts (Clinical Psychologists Lien Act, the Dentists Lien Act, the Emergency Medical Services Personnel Lien Act, the Home Health Agency Lien Act, the Hospital Lien Act, the Physical Therapist Lien Act, and the Physicians Lien Act). The Act provides that the total amount of all liens may not exceed 40% of the injured person’s award or settlement. The Act also amends the Attorney’s Lien Act to provide that in cases where the total amount of all liens under the Act meets or exceeds 40% of the sum paid or due the injured person, the amount of all liens under the Attorneys Lien Act is limited to 30% of the sum paid or due the injured person. Senate Bill 0274.

This legislation (Senate Bill 1912) amends the Health Care Worker Background Check Act to add more disqualifying crimes. Health care employers are prohibited from hiring an individual to a direct care position who has been convicted of: permitting sexual abuse of a child in violation of the Wrongs to Children Act (720 ILCS 150/5.1); committing a violation of the Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act, 225 ILCS 65/10-5; committing or attempting to commit specified offenses in the Illinois Credit Card and Debit Card Act, 720 ILCS 250; or committing or attempting to commit the following additional offenses from the Criminal Code of 1961: (720 ILCS 5):

• Aggravated battery with a machine gun or a firearm equipped with any device or attachment designed or used for silencing the report of a firearm
• Theft of lost or mislaid property
• Financial identity theft
• Aggravated financial identity theft
• Aggravated robbery
• Residential arson
• Unlawful use or possession of weapons by felons or persons in the custody of the Department of Corrections facilities
• Aggravated discharge of a machine gun or a firearm equipped with a device designed or used for silencing the report of a firearm
• Aggravated unlawful use of a weapon
• Unlawful discharge of firearm projectiles
• Unlawful sale or delivery of firearms on the premises of any school
• Aggravated domestic battery

This amendment requires health care facilities to fulfill requests for copies of medical records within 30 days, unless notice is given to the requestor. Requests for medical records must be made in writing and must be delivered to the administrator or manager of the health care facility. In addition, health care facilities that are closing must provide the public with 30 days prior notice of the closure and an explanation of how patients may access copies of their records. House Bill 1038. .

This amendment to the Insurance Code provides that the Department of Public Health shall require all hospitals licensed to operate in the State to adopt a uniform system for submitting patient charges for payment from public and private payors that is based upon the adoption of the uniform electronic hospital billing form pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This amendment also contains provisions concerning the submission, collection, compilation, and disclosure of certain patient charge and quality of care data and the process for public disclosure of that data. House Bill 2202.

The Illinois Civil Rights Act of 2003 prohibits any unit of State, county, or local government from excluding a person from participation in, denying a person the benefits of, or subjecting a person to discrimination in any program or activity on the grounds of his or her race, color, or national origin and from using criteria or methods of administration that have the effect of subjecting individuals to discrimination because of their race, color or national origin. Authorizes a person to bring a lawsuit for a violation of the Act in State Circuit Court. House Bill 2330.

This amendment to the Drug Paraphernalia Control Act and the Hypodermic Syringes and Needles Act authorizes a person who is at least 18 years of age to purchase up to 20 sterile hypodermic needles at a pharmacy without a prescription. Allows a pharmacist to sell up to 20 sterile hypodermic needles at a pharmacy without a prescription. Also requires that the Illinois Department of Public Health develop educational materials regarding safer injection, HIV prevention, syringe disposal and drug treatment and make copies available to pharmacists. The sale no longer needs to recorded. Senate Bill 0880.

The Lobbyist Registration Act now requires that a lobbyist provide a copy of his or her expenditure report to each official listed in it at least 25 days before filing the report. If an official returns or reimburses the lobbyist’s gift or honorarium within 10 days after the official receives the report, then it does not need to be listed. House Bill 2205.

The Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act is amended to add licensed professional counselors and licensed clinical professional counselors to the list of persons required to report possible child abuse or neglect. House Bill 1284.

The Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act now provides that a person who acts as part of a plan or scheme which has as its object its object the prevention of discovery of an abused or neglected child by lawful authorities for the purpose of protecting or insulating a person or entity from arrest or prosecution, the person is guilty of a Class 4 felony for a first offense and a Class 3 felony for a second or subsequent offense House Bill 2902.

The Minimum Wage Law has been amended to increase the minimum wage, from January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2004 to $5.50 for each employee who is 18 years of age or older. This amendment provides that on or after January 1, 2005, every employee who is 18 years of age or older shall be paid $6.50 per hour. Employees who are under the age of 18, shall not be paid less than $6.00 per hour. Senate Bill 0600.

The Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code has been amended to include:
(1) definition of “mental illness”, for the purposes of determining if a person may be subject to involuntary admission. “Mental illness” is defined as a mental or emotional disorder that substantially impairs a person’s thought, perception of reality, emotional process, judgment, behavior, or ability to cope with the ordinary demands of life, but does not include a developmental disability, dementia, or Alzheimers, absent psychosis, including substance abuse disorder.
(2) In determining whether a person meets the criteria for involuntary admission, the court may consider evidence of the person’s repeated past pattern of specific behavior and actions related to the person’s illness. The amendment also makes changes with respect to the factors that must be present for authorized involuntary treatment to be administered. The recipient must currently exhibit one of the following behaviors:
1) deterioration on his or her ability to function as compared to the recipients prior ability to function prior to treatment;
2) suffering; or
3) threatening behavior

Senate Bill 0199.

Created the Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act. Provides that an employee who is a victim of domestic or sexual violence, or who has a family or household member who is a victim of domestic or sexual violence whose interests are not adverse to the employee, may take leave from work to address domestic or sexual violence including:

• Seeking medical attention;
• Obtaining services from a victim services organization;
• Taking actions to increase the safety of employee’s family or household members from future domestic or sexual violence or to ensure economic security;
• Seeking legal assistance or remedies to ensure the health and safety of the employee, the employee’s family or household member

Employee may take a leave of up to 12 working weeks per 12 month period. House Bill 3486.

The Children’s Privacy Protection and Parental Empowerment Act prohibits the sale or purchase of personal information concerning children without parental or legal guardian consent. Provides that persons who broker, solicit or facilitate the sale of personal information concerning children are required to disclose to parents or legal guardian, upon request, the source and content of personal information on file with regard to their children, and to disclose to parents, upon request, the names of persons or entities that have received or solicited personal information with regard to their children. Also provides that, within 20 days of parent or legal guardian’s completion of procedures to withdraw consent, broker must discontinue disclosing personal information relating to that child. Senate Bill 0404.

The Department of Children and Family Services (“DCFS”) has adopted amendments to its regulations governing Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect. [89 Ill. Adm. Code §300]. The first amendment requires members of clergy to report cases of sexual abuse when “they have reasonable cause to believe that a child known to them in their professional or official capacity” may have been sexually abused. [89 Ill. Adm. Code §300.30(b)(2); 27 Ill.Reg. 9433, June 20, 2003]. Clergy are not required to disclose a confession or admission heard in his or her professional character or as a spiritual advisor. [89 Ill. Adm. Code §300.30(b)(2); 27 Ill.Reg. 9433, June 20, 2003]. A second amendment to the reporting rule allows disclosure of appropriate information to an extended family member regarding the findings and actions taken by DCFS to ensure the safety of the child(ren) subject(s) of the investigation. An extended family member interviewed for relevant information during the investigation may request and receive the following information:

• Name of the child subject of the report;
• Whether the report was indicated or unfounded;
• Whether DCFS took protective custody;
• Whether DCFS has opened a case for the family or children;
• What types of services are being offered to the family or children; and
• Whether a safety plan has been established.

The rule became effective June 9, 2003. [89 Ill. Adm. Code §300.130(d); 27 Ill.Reg. 9433, June 20, 2003].

Under the Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act, any check returned by the bank to the Secretary of State for any reason will automatically void the transaction for which the payment was intended. The filing itself will be treated as if it never occurred. Additionally, under the Limited Liability Company Act, the Secretary of State has repealed the requirement that a manager or member of an LLC must register in Illinois. Also, all limited liability company names must now also be distinguishable from domestic or foreign corporation names or assumed names, instead of merely other limited liability company names. The rule became effective May 19, 2003. [14 Ill. Adm. Code 170 and 14 Ill. Adm. Code 178].

The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (“OASA”), has adopted amendments to its regulations regarding substance abuse treatment and intervention licenses. These amendments relate to patient and client records and confidentiality of those records and have been adopted to ensure compliance with the privacy and security provisions of HIPAA. Several grammatical changes were made, references to HIPAA were added, and Section 2060.509 regarding recovery homes was added. Most significantly, the following changes were made:

• Definitions of “HIPAA” and “protected health information” were added; §2060.103
• Records of document disclosures must be maintained for six years; §2060.307
• Organizations must have policies and procedures in place to comply with HIPAA (if the organization must comply with HIPAA); §2060.319
• A patient must be given written notice of the uses and disclosures of protected health information that will be collected and maintained, and the rights provided by HIPAA; §2060.323
• Patient/client records must contain documentation of disclosures of protected health information; §2060.325
• Recovery homes must maintain the confidentiality of client identifying information in accordance with 42 CFR Part 2, and licensees covered by HIPAA must have listed procedures in place to comply with HIPAA. §2060.509

The rule became effective August 8, 2003. [77 Ill. Adm. Code §2060; 27 Ill.Reg. 13997, August 22, 2003].

The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (“OASA”), has adopted amendments to its regulations regarding subacute alcoholism and substance abuse treatment services. These amendments are made to ensure compliance with DARTS and the security and privacy provisions of HIPAA.

The amendments added language to the regulations requiring that data is reported to DARTS in the manner and data format prescribed by OASA, and that disclosure of information is made in accordance with 42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA to the extent HIPAA applies to the provider. The rule became effective August 8, 2003. [77 Ill. Adm. Code §2960; 27 Ill.Reg. 14022, August 22, 2003].

The Drug Enforcement Agency (“DEA”) published a proposed rule with comment period on June 25, 2003 which would permit practitioners to offer maintenance and detoxification treatment in their private practices without having a second registration as a Narcotic Treatment Program; permit qualifying physicians to prescribe and dispense narcotic (opioid) controlled drugs; permit opioid dependent patients to have one-on-one consultations with a practitioner in a private setting; and permit pharmacies to fill prescriptions for narcotic (opioid) controlled drugs specifically for use in maintenance or detox treatment. Written comments must be submitted by September 22, 2003. 68 Federal Register 37429; June 24, 2003.

A report issued August 2, 2003 by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“DHHS/OIG”) found that Medicaid’s net costs for twenty-five mental health drugs were the highest among government purchasers. The report also found that ten state Medicaid agencies paid from 11% to 29% more than other federal purchasers for the twenty-five mental health drugs reviewed. As a result, the Medicaid agencies paid on average between $47 and $126 million more than other government purchasers for the same drugs. The OIG concluded that, in order to safeguard the Medicaid program from excessive payment for mental health drugs, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should reconsider the OIG’s recommendations made in previous reports, including reviewing the current reimbursement methodology and working with the states to find a method that more accurately reflects pharmacy acquisition costs, as well as initiating a review of Medicaid rebates. . OIG Report: “Medicaid’s Mental Health Drug Expenditures”, OEI-05-02-00080, August 2, 2003.