HB4672 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 16322 HLH 29708 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB4672

Introduced 2/3/2026, by Rep. Yolonda Morris

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

30 ILCS 772/15
210 ILCS 45/3-202.05

Amends the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Act and the Nursing Home Care Act. Provides that funds generated from penalties imposed for non-compliance with minimum staffing standards shall be deposited into the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund. Sets forth requirements concerning the distribution of those moneys. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning finance.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Equity in Long-term Care Quality Act is amended by changing Section 15 as follows:

(30 ILCS 772/15)

Sec. 15. Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund.

(a) There is created in the State treasury a special fund to be known as the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund. Grants shall be funded using federal civil monetary penalties collected and deposited into the Long Term Care Monitor/Receiver Fund established under the Nursing Home Care Act. Subject to appropriation, moneys in the Fund shall be used to improve the quality of nursing home care in areas without access to high-quality long-term care. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall be deposited into the Fund.

(b) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (c), the The Department may use no more than 10% of the moneys deposited into the Fund in any year to administer the program established by the Fund and to implement the requirements of the Nursing Home Care Act with respect to distressed facilities.

(c) Any moneys generated from penalties imposed for non-compliance with minimum staffing standards under Section 3-202.05 of the Nursing Home Care Act shall be deposited into the Fund and, beginning in Fiscal Year 2027, shall be distributed as follows:

(1) $1,000,000 shall be used in each State fiscal year by the Department of Public Health to administer the staffing fines established under Section 3-202.05 of the Nursing Home Care Act;

(2) $2,000,000 shall, in each State fiscal year, be ordered transferred by the State Comptroller and transferred by the State Treasurer from the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund to the Public Aid Recoveries Trust Fund to be used by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to conduct minimum data set and other audits of facilities licensed under the Nursing Home Care Act;

(3) $2,000,000 shall be used in each State fiscal year by the Department of Public Health to administer the identified offenders and other safety activities; and

(4) 50% of the remainder of the moneys deposited under this subsection (c) after the allocations under items (1) through (3) have been completed shall, in each fiscal year, be ordered transferred by the State Comptroller and transferred by the State Treasurer from the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund to the Common School Fund to be used by the State Board of Education for vocational training of certified nurse assistants at the secondary level of education; and

(5) 50% of the remainder of the moneys deposited under this subsection (c) after the allocations under items (1) through (3) have been completed shall, in each fiscal year, be ordered transferred by the State Comptroller and transferred by the State Treasurer from the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund to the Education Assistance Fund to be used by the Board of Higher Education for nursing scholarships at the post-secondary level of education.

(Source: P.A. 96-1372, eff. 7-29-10.)

Section 10. The Nursing Home Care Act is amended by changing Section 3-202.05 as follows:

(210 ILCS 45/3-202.05)

Sec. 3-202.05. Staffing ratios effective July 1, 2010 and thereafter.

(a) For the purpose of computing staff to resident ratios, direct care staff shall include:

(1) registered nurses;

(2) licensed practical nurses;

(3) certified nurse assistants;

(4) psychiatric services rehabilitation aides;

(5) rehabilitation and therapy aides;

(6) psychiatric services rehabilitation coordinators;

(7) assistant directors of nursing;

(8) 50% of the Director of Nurses' time; and

(9) 30% of the Social Services Directors' time.

The Department shall, by rule, allow certain facilities subject to 77 Ill. Adm. Code 300.4000 and following (Subpart S) to utilize specialized clinical staff, as defined in rules, to count towards the staffing ratios.

Within 120 days of June 14, 2012 (the effective date of Public Act 97-689), the Department shall promulgate rules specific to the staffing requirements for facilities federally defined as Institutions for Mental Disease. These rules shall recognize the unique nature of individuals with chronic mental health conditions, shall include minimum requirements for specialized clinical staff, including clinical social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, and direct care staff set forth in paragraphs (4) through (6) and any other specialized staff which may be utilized and deemed necessary to count toward staffing ratios.

Within 120 days of June 14, 2012 (the effective date of Public Act 97-689), the Department shall promulgate rules specific to the staffing requirements for facilities licensed under the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013. These rules shall recognize the unique nature of individuals with chronic mental health conditions, shall include minimum requirements for specialized clinical staff, including clinical social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, and direct care staff set forth in paragraphs (4) through (6) and any other specialized staff which may be utilized and deemed necessary to count toward staffing ratios.

(a-5) The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' payroll-based journal job title codes, which correspond to the staff used for the staffing ratios in subsection (a), are as follows:

(1) Registered Nurse Director of Nursing, job title code 5.

(2) Registered Nurse with Administrative Duties, job title code 6.

(3) Registered Nurse, job title code 7.

(4) Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse with Administrative Duties, job title code 8.

(5) Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse, job title code 9.

(6) Certified Nurse Aide, job title code 10.

(7) Nurse Aide in Training, job title code 11.

(8) Medication Aide/Technician, job title code 12.

(9) Nurse Practitioner, job title code 13.

(10) Clinical Nurse Specialist, job title code 14.

(11) Occupational Therapist, job title code 18.

(12) Occupational Therapy Assistant, job title code 19.

(13) Occupational Therapy Aide, job title code 20.

(14) Physical Therapist, job title code 21.

(15) Physical Therapy Assistant, job title code 22.

(16) Physical Therapy Assistant, job title code 23.

(17) Respiratory Therapist, job title code 24.

(18) Respiratory Therapy Technician, job title code 25.

(19) Speech/Language Pathologist, job title code 26.

(20) Qualified Activities Professional, job title code 28.

(21) Other Activities Staff, job title code 29.

(22) Qualified Social Worker, job title code 30.

(23) Other Social Worker, job title code 31.

(24) Mental Health Service Worker, job title code 34.

For all job title codes in this subsection, 100% of the hours worked by the staff must be counted toward the staff-to-resident ratio, except job code title 5, which is limited to 50%, and job title codes 28, 30, and 31, which are limited to 30%.

(b) (Blank).

(b-5) For purposes of the minimum staffing ratios in this Section, all residents shall be classified as requiring either skilled care or intermediate care.

As used in this subsection:

"Intermediate care" means basic nursing care and other restorative services under periodic medical direction.

"Skilled care" means skilled nursing care, continuous skilled nursing observations, restorative nursing, and other services under professional direction with frequent medical supervision.

(c) Facilities shall notify the Department within 60 days after July 29, 2010 (the effective date of Public Act 96-1372), in a form and manner prescribed by the Department, of the staffing ratios in effect on July 29, 2010 (the effective date of Public Act 96-1372) for both intermediate and skilled care and the number of residents receiving each level of care.

(d)(1) (Blank).

(2) (Blank).

(3) (Blank).

(4) (Blank).

(5) Effective January 1, 2014, the minimum staffing ratios shall be increased to 3.8 hours of nursing and personal care each day for a resident needing skilled care and 2.5 hours of nursing and personal care each day for a resident needing intermediate care.

(e) Ninety days after June 14, 2012 (the effective date of Public Act 97-689), a minimum of 25% of nursing and personal care time shall be provided by licensed nurses, with at least 10% of nursing and personal care time provided by registered nurses. These minimum requirements shall remain in effect until an acuity based registered nurse requirement is promulgated by rule concurrent with the adoption of the Resource Utilization Group classification-based payment methodology, as provided in Section 5-5.2 of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Registered nurses and licensed practical nurses employed by a facility in excess of these requirements may be used to satisfy the remaining 75% of the nursing and personal care time requirements. Notwithstanding this subsection, no staffing requirement in statute in effect on June 14, 2012 (the effective date of Public Act 97-689) shall be reduced on account of this subsection.

(f) The Department shall submit proposed rules for adoption by January 1, 2020 establishing a system for determining compliance with minimum staffing set forth in this Section and the requirements of 77 Ill. Adm. Code 300.1230 adjusted for any waivers granted under Section 3-303.1. Compliance shall be determined quarterly by comparing the number of hours provided per resident per day using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' payroll-based journal and the facility's daily census, broken down by intermediate and skilled care as self-reported by the facility to the Department on a quarterly basis. The Department shall use the quarterly payroll-based journal and the self-reported census to calculate the number of hours provided per resident per day and compare this ratio to the minimum staffing standards required under this Section, as impacted by any waivers granted under Section 3-303.1. Discrepancies between job titles contained in this Section and the payroll-based journal shall be addressed by rule. The manner in which the Department requests payroll-based journal information to be submitted shall align with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' requirements that allow providers to submit the quarterly data in an aggregate manner.

(g) Monetary penalties for non-compliance. The Department shall submit proposed rules for adoption by January 1, 2020 establishing monetary penalties for facilities not in compliance with minimum staffing standards under this Section. Facilities shall be required to comply with the provisions of this subsection beginning January 1, 2025. No monetary penalty may be issued for noncompliance prior to the revised implementation date, which shall be January 1, 2025. If a facility is found to be noncompliant prior to the revised implementation date, the Department shall provide a written notice identifying the staffing deficiencies and require the facility to provide a sufficiently detailed correction plan that describes proposed and completed actions the facility will take or has taken, including hiring actions, to address the facility's failure to meet the statutory minimum staffing levels. Monetary penalties shall be imposed beginning no later than July 1, 2025, based on data for the quarter beginning January 1, 2025 through March 31, 2025 and quarterly thereafter. Monetary penalties shall be established based on a formula that calculates on a daily basis the cost of wages and benefits for the missing staffing hours. All notices of noncompliance shall include the computations used to determine noncompliance and establishing the variance between minimum staffing ratios and the Department's computations. The penalty for the first offense shall be 125% of the cost of wages and benefits for the missing staffing hours. The penalty shall increase to 150% of the cost of wages and benefits for the missing staffing hours for the second offense and 200% the cost of wages and benefits for the missing staffing hours for the third and all subsequent offenses. The penalty shall be imposed regardless of whether the facility has committed other violations of this Act during the same period that the staffing offense occurred. The penalty may not be waived, except where there is no more than a 10% deviation from the staffing requirements, in which case the facility shall not receive a violation or penalty. The Department is granted discretion to waive the violation and penalty when unforeseen circumstances have occurred that resulted in call-offs of scheduled staff. This provision shall be applied no more than 6 times per quarter. Nothing in this Section diminishes a facility's right to appeal the imposition of a monetary penalty. No facility may appeal a notice of noncompliance issued during the revised implementation period. The changes made to this subsection by this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly in regard to nursing home staffing fines shall apply to the July 1, 2025 fines based on data for the quarter beginning January 1, 2025 through March 31, 2025 and quarterly thereafter.

Moneys generated from the monetary penalties imposed on facilities that are not in compliance with minimum staffing standards under this subsection and rules adopted under this subsection shall be deposited into the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Fund and shall be used as provided in subsection (c) of Section 15 of the Equity in Long-term Care Quality Act.

(Source: P.A. 104-9, eff. 6-16-25.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.