Healthcare (Hospitals)

Creates the Safe Patient Limits Act. Provides the maximum number of patients that may be assigned to a registered nurse in specified situations. Provides that nothing shall preclude a facility from assigning fewer patients to a registered nurse than the limits provided in the Act. Provides that the maximum patient assignments may not be exceeded, regardless of the use and application of any patient acuity system. Requires the Department of Public Health to adopt rules governing the implementation and administration of the Act. Provides that all facilities shall adopt written policies and procedures for the training and orientation of nursing staff and that no registered nurse shall be assigned to a nursing unit or clinical area unless that nurse has, among other things, demonstrated competence in providing care in that area. Provides requirements for the Act's implementation. Establishes recordkeeping requirements. Provides rights and protections for nurses. Contains a severability provision and other provisions. Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Provides that a hospital shall not mandate that a registered professional nurse delegate nursing interventions. Makes changes concerning staffing plans. Amends the Nurse Practice Act. Requires the exercise of professional judgment by a direct care registered professional nurse in the performance of his or her scope of practice to be provided in the exclusive interests of the patient.

Amends the Nurse Practice Act. Provides that an individual licensed under this Section may apply for a program that provides a full tuition reimbursement to individuals who: (1) attended and graduated from an education program based in the State; and (2) commit to working in a safety-net hospital in the State for at least 5 years.

Creates the Facility Fee Transparency and Prevention Act. Prohibits a health care facility or health care provider from charging or collecting a facility fee for preventive services provided to a patient, regardless of whether the patient's insurance covers the preventive service. Provides that, for any health care service other than preventive services, a health care facility may not charge or collect a facility fee not covered by the patient's insurance unless the patient is provided with written notice, as specified, of the facility fee 7 days prior to the scheduled service, or as soon as possible for unscheduled or emergency services. Requires health care facilities or health care providers to notify patients in writing, as specified, of any new business relationship with, affiliation with, or acquisition by a hospital or health system. Provides that any health care facility or health care provider that violates the Act shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to $2,500 per violation, and all funds collected under the Act shall be deposited into the Facility Fee Reimbursement Fund. Provides that the Facility Fee Reimbursement Fund is created to reimburse patients who have provided sufficient evidence to the Department of Public Health that they were charged a facility fee not in accordance with the Act and to cover any administrative costs related to processing reimbursements. Grants the Department of Public Health authority to adopt rules to implement and enforce the Act. Amends the State Finance Act to make a conforming change. Effective January 1, 2026.

Amends the Hospital Provider Funding Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. In a provision requiring the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to create a pool of funding of at least $50,000,000 annually to be disbursed among safety-net hospitals that maintain perinatal designation from the Department of Public Health, provides that no safety-net hospital eligible for funds shall receive less than $5,000,000 annually.

Creates the Rural Hospital Task Force Act. Establishes the Rural Hospital Task Force within the Department of Public Health for the purpose of investigating the current state of rural hospitals and providing recommendations to prevent further closures of rural hospitals and to potentially expand rural hospital services. Provides that the Task Force shall convene to conduct business on at least 4 separate days. Requires the Department of Public Health to provide administrative and other support to the Task Force. Requires each agency and entity represented on the Task Force to share with the Task Force any data of the agency or entity necessary to achieve the purpose of the Task Force. Provides that all findings and recommendations made by the Task Force must be reported to the General Assembly before January 1, 2027. Provides that the Task Force is dissolved, and the Act is repealed, on January 1, 2027

Creates the Health Care Facility Fee Transparency Act. Sets forth provisions concerning notice requirements for a hospital or health system that charges a facility fee using a current procedural terminology evaluation code or assessment and management code for outpatient services provided at a hospital-based facility where a professional fee is also expected to be charged. Provides notice requirements for hospital-based facilities created or acquired through a business transaction. Establishes limitations on facility fees. Sets forth provisions concerning facility fee billing statements, reporting of facility fees charged by each hospital and health system, and enforcement of the Act by the Department of Public Health. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that it is an unlawful practice if, from the date of the transaction, a hospital, health system, or hospital-based facility does not wait at least 30 days after the written notice has been mailed to the patient or a copy of the notice has been filed with the Department of Public Health to collect a facility fee for services provided at a hospital-based facility.

Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Requires hospitals licensed under the Act to employ and schedule enough hospital workers to provide quality patient care and ensure patient safety. Establishes requirements concerning the reporting of staffing metrics for hospitals and the Department of Public Health. Sets forth provisions concerning competency validation credentials for each hospital worker hired; assignment despite objection forms and procedures; and an assignment despite objection resolution process. Provides that a hospital may not assign a certified nursing assistant or patient care technician to more than 7 patients at a time during a day or evening shift or more than 11 patients at a time during a night shift. Sets forth provisions concerning direct-care registered nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and deviations from the ratio; complaint procedures; the Department's duties concerning complaints; meal and rest periods; investigations for violating staffing requirements; penalties and violations; recordkeeping requirements of a hospital; and rulemaking by the Department.

Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Requires a hospital to provide a patient, within 30 days after discharge for labor and delivery services, an itemized list of each of the services for which the patient will be billed; the dollar amount owed by the patient for each service; the dollar amount paid by insurance for each service; and a checklist updating the patient or the patient's health care provider on what has or has not been paid.

Urges the Illinois General Assembly to reconsider the repeal of the 2013 Medicaid funding trigger law and to protect those who may be impacted by federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid funding cuts. Urges the Illinois General Assembly to take decisive budget actions in the healthcare arena and to aggressively advocate for Medicaid protection and expansion to ensure no vulnerable resident is left behind and no hospital, clinic, or emergency department is threatened out of existence.

Amends the Department of Insurance Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires the Department of Insurance to conduct a study to better understand the gaps in health insurance coverage for uninsured residents, including the reasons why individuals are uninsured and whether insured individuals are insured through an employer-sponsored plan or through the Illinois health insurance marketplace. Requires the Department to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly 12 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Amends the Hospital Licensing Act and the University of Illinois Hospital Act. Provides that hospitals licensed under the Act shall provide health insurance coverage to all of their workforce.