Section 250.10  Purpose

 

a)         This Americans With Disabilities Act Grievance Procedure is established pursuant to the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 USC 12101 et seq.) and specifically Section 35.107 of the Title II regulations (28 CFR 35) requiring that a grievance procedure be established to resolve grievances asserted by qualified individuals with disabilities.  Should any individual desire to review the Act or its regulations to understand the rights, privileges and remedies afforded by it, they should contact the ADA Coordinator of the Department of Insurance.

 

b)         In general, the Act requires that each program, service and activity offered by the Department, when viewed in its entirety, be readily accessible to and usable by qualified individuals with disabilities.

 

c)         It is the Department's intention to foster open communication with all individuals requesting readily accessible programs, services and activities.  The Department encourages supervisors of programs, services and activities to respond to requests for reasonable accommodations before they become grievances.

 

(Source:  Amended at 39 Ill. Reg. 5618, effective March 30, 2015)

 

Section 250.20  Definitions

 

"Act" means the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 USC 12101 et seq.).

 

"ADA Coordinator" means the person appointed by the Director who is responsible for the coordination of efforts of the Department to comply with and carry out its responsibilities under Title II of the Act, including investigation of grievances filed by complainants.

 

"Complainant" means an individual with a disability who files a grievance with the Department pursuant to the provisions of this Part.

 

"Department" means the Illinois Department of Insurance.

 

"Director" means the Director of the Illinois Department of Insurance of the State of Illinois or anyone to whom the Director's responsibilities and authority are lawfully delegated.

 

"Grievance means any complaint under the Act by an individual with a disability who meets the essential eligibility requirements for participation in or receipt of the benefits of a program, activity or service offered by the Department, and believes he or she has been excluded from participation in or denied the benefits of any program, service or activity of the Department, or has been subject to discrimination by the Department.

 

"Grievance Form" means a Department created form (attached as Exhibit A) that, when completed by a complainant, includes, but is not limited to, the name, address and telephone number of the complainant; date of incidence; a short factual statement of the grievance; and the relief requested, if applicable.

 

"Procedure" means the Americans With Disabilities Act Grievance Procedure set forth in this Part.

 

(Source:  Amended at 39 Ill. Reg. 5618, effective March 30, 2015)

 

Section 250.30  Procedure

 

a)         Grievances must be submitted in accordance with and follow the procedures set forth in Section 250.40 and Section 250.50 of this Part.  It is mutually desirable and beneficial that grievances be satisfactorily resolved in a prompt manner.  Time limits established in this procedure are in calendar days, unless otherwise stated, and may be extended by mutual agreement in writing by the complainant and the reviewer at the ADA Coordinator and Final Levels.

 

b)         A complainant's failure to submit a grievance, or to submit or appeal it to the next level of procedure within the specified time limits, shall mean that the complainant has withdrawn the grievance or has accepted the last response given in the grievance procedure as the Department's last response.

 

c)         The Department shall, upon being informed of that individual's desire to file a formal grievance, instruct the individual how to receive a copy of this procedure and provide a Grievance Form.

 

(Source:  Amended at 36 Ill. Reg. 860, effective January 3, 2012)

 

Section 250.40  ADA Coordinator Level

 

a)         If an individual desires to file a formal written grievance, the individual shall promptly, but no later than 180 days after the alleged discrimination, submit the grievance to the ADA Coordinator in writing on the Grievance Form prescribed for that purpose.  The Grievance Form must be completed in full in order to receive proper consideration by the ADA Coordinator.

 

b)         Upon request, assistance shall be provided by the Department to complete the Grievance Form.

 

c)         The ADA Coordinator, or his or her representative, shall investigate the grievance and shall make reasonable efforts to resolve it.  The ADA Coordinator shall provide a written response to the complainant and the Director within 15 business days after receipt of the Grievance Form.

 

(Source:  Amended at 36 Ill. Reg. 860, effective January 3, 2012)

 

Section 250.50  Final Level

 

a)         If the grievance has not been resolved at the ADA Coordinator Level to the satisfaction of the complainant, the complainant may submit a copy of the Grievance Form and ADA Coordinator's response to the Director for final review.  The complainant shall submit these documents to the Director, together with a short written statement explaining the reason for dissatisfaction with the ADA Coordinator's written response, within 15 business days after receipt by the complainant of the ADA Coordinator's response.

 

b)         The Director shall appoint a 3-member panel to review the grievance at the Final Level.  One member so appointed shall be designated chairman.

 

c)         The complainant shall be afforded an opportunity to appear before the panel.  The complainant shall have a right to appoint a representative to appear on his or her behalf.  The panel shall review the ADA Coordinator's written response and may conduct interviews and seek advice as it deems appropriate.

 

d)         Upon reaching a concurrence, the panel shall make recommendations in writing to the Director as to the proper resolution of the grievance.  All recommendations shall include reasons for the recommendations and shall bear the signatures of the concurring panel members.  A dissenting member of the panel may make a recommendation to the Director in writing and shall also sign the recommendation.

 

e)         Upon receipt of recommendations from the panel, the Director shall approve, disapprove or modify the panel recommendations, shall render a decision in writing, shall state the basis for the decision, and shall cause a copy of the decision to be served on the parties.  The Director's decision shall be final.  If the Director disapproves or modifies the panel's recommendations, the Director shall include written reasons for disapproval or modification.

 

f)         The Grievance Form, the ADA Coordinator's response, the statement of reasons for dissatisfaction, the recommendations of the panel and the decision of the Director shall be maintained in accordance with the State Records Act [5 ILCS 160] or as otherwise required by law.

 

(Source:  Amended at 36 Ill. Reg. 860, effective January 3, 2012)

 

Section 250.60  Accessibility

 

The Department shall ensure that all stages of the procedure are readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.

 

(Source:  Amended at 36 Ill. Reg. 860, effective January 3, 2012)

 

Section 250.70  Case-by-Case Resolution

 

Each grievance involves a unique set of factors that includes but is not limited to:  the specific nature of the disability; the essential eligibility requirements, the benefits to be derived, and the nature of the service, program or activity at issue; the health and safety of others; and whether an accommodation would constitute a fundamental alteration to the program, service or activity or undue hardship on the Department.  Accordingly, termination of a grievance at any level, whether through the granting of relief or otherwise, shall not constitute a precedent on which any other complainants should rely.

 

(Source:  Amended at 36 Ill. Reg. 860, effective January 3, 2012)

Section 250.EXHIBIT A   Grievance Form

 

Grievance

Discrimination Based on Disability

 

It is the policy of the Illinois Department of Insurance to provide assistance in filling out this form.  If assistance is needed, please ask:

 

ADA Coordinator – Department of Insurance

320 West Washington Street

Springfield IL  62767-0001

( 217 )782-4515 (Voice); (866)323-5321 (TDD)

 

Name:
Address:
City, State and Zip Code:
Telephone No.:
The Best Means and Time for Contacting:
Program, Service, or Activity to which Access was Denied or in which Alleged Discrimination
Occurred:
Date of Alleged Discrimination:
Nature of Alleged Discrimination:
(Attach additional sheets, if necessary.  If the grievance is based on a denial of requested reasonable modification, please fill out the back of this form.)

 

I certify that I am qualified or otherwise eligible to participate in the program, service or activity and the above statements are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

 

Signature

Date

Complainant/Authorized Agent

 

Please give to the ADA Coordinator at the address listed above.

 

For Office Use Only

 

Date Received:

By:

 

(BACK OF FORM)

 

Please fill out this part of the form if this grievance is based upon the denial of a requested reasonable modification.  A reasonable modification will be made to make programs, services and activities accessible.  Reasonable accommodations could include such things as providing auxiliary aides and devices and changing some policies and requirements to allow an individual with a disability to participate.  This portion of the form should be filled in to the extent you know the answers.  The form may be submitted even if this portion is incomplete.

 

Reasonable modification requested:

 

The date the reasonable modification was requested:

 

The person to whom the request was made:

 

The reason for denial:

 

Estimated cost of modification (if an assistive device, such as a TDD or optical reader, or commodity or service to which a cost is readily known):

 

Why is the requested modification necessary to use or participate in the program, service or activity?

 

Alternative accommodations that may provide accessibility:

 

Any other information you believe will aid in a fair resolution of this grievance:

 

(Source:  Amended at 39 Ill. Reg. 5618, effective March 30, 2015)