Healthcare

Amends the Fair Patient Billing Act. Requires that a hospital's obligation to patients under the Act shall cover all health care services, including, but not limited to, on-site health care services provided by a non-hospital entity. Provides that, in the event the hospital outsources health care services to an individual or entity that is separate from the hospital within the hospital facility or otherwise on the hospital site, the hospital's obligations under the Act continue as though the hospital had provided the health care services. Requires a hospital to ensure that the individual or entity contracted to provide health care services agrees in writing to operate under the hospital's financial assistance policy, screening obligations, collections provisions, and all other provisions of the Act, and requires a hospital to ensure that a hospital agent or on-site provider of outsourced health care services complies with the Act. Amends the Hospital Uninsured Patient Discount Act to establish similar requirements for hospitals. Provides that a hospital shall include charges from the third-party individual or entity when calculating the charge, discount, or collectible amount applicable under the Act.

Creates the Nonopioid Alternatives for Pain Act. Allows the Department of Public Health to develop and publish on its website a nonopioid alternatives pamphlet, with certain requirements. Prohibits a health insurance issuer to deny coverage of a nonopioid prescription drug in favor of an opioid prescription drug. Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that coverage shall not be denied for a nonopioid prescription drug in favor of an opioid prescription drug. Requires that nonopioid drugs preferred on a specific list for the treatment or management of pain shall not be disadvantaged or discouraged with respect to coverage relative to any opioid or narcotic drug for the treatment or management of pain. Effective July 1, 2027.

Amends the Community Emergency Services and Support Act. Modifies legislative findings. Provides that appropriate mobile response services must, among other things, subject to the care decisions of the individual receiving care, coordinate transportation for any individual experiencing a mental or behavioral health emergency to the least restrictive setting feasible (rather than provide transportation for any individual experiencing a mental or behavioral health emergency). Provides that adequate mobile mental health relief provider training includes, among other things, training in recognizing and working with people with neurodivergent and developmental disability diagnoses and in the techniques available to help stabilize and connect them to further services and training in the involuntary commitment process, in identification of situations that meet the standards for involuntary commitment, and in cultural competencies and social biases to guard against any group being disproportionately subjected to the involuntary commitment process or the use of the process not warranted under the legal standard for involuntary commitment. Provides that mobile mental health relief providers may only participate in the involuntary commitment process to the extent permitted under the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code. Requires the system for gathering information developed by the Statewide Advisory Committee to determine the number of instances of mobile mental health relief providers initiating petitions for involuntary commitment. Provides that the exemption from civil liability for emergency care provided in the Good Samaritan Act applies to anyone providing care under the Act. Provides that each 9-1-1 public safety answering point and emergency service dispatched through a 9-1-1 public safety answering point must begin coordinating its activities with the mobile mental and behavioral health services established by the Division of Mental Health once all 3 of the following conditions are met, but not later than July 1, 2027 (rather than July 1, 2025). Adds definitions and modifies existing definitions. Effective immediately.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Repeals provisions that require: (i) the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to consult with stakeholders and General Assembly members for input on a plan to develop enhanced Medicaid rates for substance use disorder treatment and mental health treatment in underserved communities; and (ii) the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Department of Human Services to collaborate to review coverage and billing requirements for substance use prevention and recovery and mental health services with the goal of identifying disparities and streamlining coverage and billing requirements to reduce the administrative burden for providers and medical assistance beneficiaries. Effective January 1, 2026.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that the Department of Healthcare and Family Services may provide medical assistance coverage to persons who are foreign-born victims of human trafficking, torture, or other serious crimes, and their derivative family members, if such persons meet certain residency and income requirements and meet one of the following conditions: (i) have filed an application for asylum status that is pending with the appropriate federal agency or have a pending appeal of such an application; (ii) are receiving services through a federally funded treatment center; (iii) have filed an application for T nonimmigrant status; (iv) have filed an application for U nonimmigrant status; or (v) have filed as a derivative family member of a T or U nonimmigrant status applicant. Removes language conditioning medical assistance eligibility for such persons on their eligibility for benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Amends the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act. Provides that an employer shall provide 30 minutes of paid break time (rather than reasonable break time) to an employee who needs to express breast milk for her nursing infant child each time the employee has the need to express milk for one year after the child's birth. Provides that the employee may use other paid break time or meal time for any time needed in excess of 30 minutes. Provides that an employer shall provide paid break time (rather than reasonable break time) as needed by the employee unless to do so would create an undue hardship.

Amends the Reproductive Health Act. Provides that a health care professional who provides abortion-related care may submit to any governmental agency, person, business, or association a written request that the governmental agency, person, business, or association refrain from disclosing any personal information about the health care professional. Provides that if a governmental agency receives a written request from a health care professional, the governmental agency shall not publicly post or display publicly available content that includes any personal information of the health care professional. Exempts the personal information of the health care professional from the Freedom of Information Act. Provides that if a person, business, or association receives a written request from a health care professional, the person, business, or association shall refrain from publicly posting or displaying on the Internet publicly available content that includes the personal information of a health care professional. Provides that no person, business, or association shall solicit, sell, or trade any personal information of the health care professional with the intent to post an imminent or serious threat to the health and safety of the health care professional or the health care professional's immediate family. Allows a health care professional to bring an action against a governmental agency, person, business, or association, seeking injunctive or declaratory relief if a written request is violated. Provides that it is a Class 3 felony for any person to knowingly and publicly post on the Internet the personal information of a health care professional or the health care professional's immediate family if the person knows that publicly posting the personal information poses an imminent and serious threat to the health and safety of the health care professional or health care professional's immediate family, and the violation is a proximate cause of bodily injury or death of the health care professional or health care professional's immediate family member. Makes a conforming change in the Freedom of Information Act.

Amends the Interagency Children's Behavioral Health Services Act. Requires the Department of Human Services, in coordination with a statewide association representing a majority of hospitals, to establish and offer a voluntary training that will be recorded and made available on the Department's website to all hospital social workers, clinicians, and administrative staff to inform them of BEACON, a centralized resource for Illinois youth and families seeking services for behavioral health needs, with the goal of encouraging families to seek assistance through BEACON and the Interagency Children's Behavioral Health Services Team. Provides that the training shall include how families and hospital staff can access BEACON, the process once a case is entered into BEACON, and State and community programs accessible through BEACON. Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Requires a psychiatric hospital to contact a youth or the youth's parents, guardian, or caregiver about the BEACON portal (rather than the Family Support Program and the Specialized Family Support Program) prior to referring the youth to the Department of Children and Family Services because the youth was left at the psychiatric hospital beyond medical necessity. Amends the School Code. Requires the State Board of Education, in consultation with the Children's Behavioral Health Transformation Team in the Office of the Governor and relevant stakeholders, to report its work and make available resource materials, including model policies and guidance informed by a phased approach to implementing universal mental health screening in schools. Requires the State Board of Education to report its work by September 1, 2026. Provides that mental health screenings shall be offered by school districts to students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 12, at least once a year, beginning with the 2027-2028 school year.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that any person who is at least 18 years of age shall be qualified to provide community-based mental health services under the medical assistance program as a rehabilitative services associate or peer support worker if the person meets all other applicable eligibility requirements for certification. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to adopt rules to implement the amendatory Act.

Amends the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems Act. Creates the Emergency Medical Service Response Task Force to investigate and provide legislative and policy recommendations regarding slow and dangerous response times for ambulance and EMS services in parts of the State, in particular services in rural communities. Provides that the Emergency Medical Service Response Task Force shall address, study, and provide recommendations on any aspect of the response time crisis deemed appropriate by the Task Force, including the sustainability of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems in rural communities throughout the State; any regulatory or administrative burdens or staffing restrictions placed on providers that contribute to staffing issues or slow response times; revenue shortfalls that challenge the sustainability and survival of ambulance or emergency medical services; and the report, findings, and any recommendations of the EMT Training, Recruitment, and Retention Task Force. Sets forth provisions concerning the appointment of members. Requires members to convene at the call of the co-chairs for at least 6 meetings, and provides that members shall serve without compensation. Requires the Task Force to submit its final report containing legislative and policy decisions to the General Assembly and the Governor no later than September 1, 2026, and upon the submission of its final report, the Task Force shall be dissolved.