Sen. Jacqueline Y. Collins

Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Makes changes concerning veteran grants with regard to who qualifies for assistance, the type of assistance, notification to the postsecondary institution, and administration of the program. Makes changes concerning the Illinois National Guard grant program with regard to who is eligible for a grant and what the grant covers. Effective July 1, 2005.

Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. Deletes a provision allowing legally possessed firearms to be returned to a person that completes a sentence for a conviction on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge.

Amends the School Code. With respect to school districts other than Chicago, provides that early childhood education block grant funds shall be distributed through a grant approval process (instead of on a competitive basis). Makes changes regarding grants for preschool educational and related model research-training programs, model pilot early childhood parental training programs, and pilot programs concerning services to at-risk children and their families (including allowing grants to be provided to other entities besides school districts and providing that grants must be used to supplement, not supplant, funds received from any other source). Effective July 1, 2005.

Amends the State Commemorative Dates Act. Designates the month of November of each year as Alzheimer's Awareness Month.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. In provisions requiring an insurer that provides coverage for hospital or medical expenses under a group policy of accident and health insurance or health care plan to provide coverage under the policy for treatment of serious mental illness under the same terms and conditions as coverage for hospital or medical expenses related to other illnesses and diseases (commonly referred to as "mental health parity"), eliminates the December 31, 2005 sunset date that applies to those provisions. Effective immediately.

Amends the Abused and Neglected Long Term Care Facility Residents Reporting Act. Requires the Inspector General to immediately notify the Department of State Police or the appropriate law enforcement entity (now, only the Department of State Police) if the Inspector General determines that a possible criminal act has been committed or that special expertise is required in the investigation. Makes corresponding changes. Provides that the Department of State Police shall investigate any report from a State-operated facility (now, any report) indicating a possible murder, rape, or other felony. Effective immediately.

Amends the Military Code of Illinois. Provides that on or after July 1, 2006, if the Adjutant General determines that Illinois National Guard personnel are not available to perform military funeral honors, the Adjutant General may authorize another appropriate organization to provide one or more of its members to perform those honors and, subject to appropriations for that purpose, shall authorize the payment of a $100 stipend to the organization. Provides that the Code does not establish any entitlement to military funeral honors if the Adjutant General determines that such other appropriate personnel are not available to perform those honors or if adequate appropriated funds are not available. Effective July 1, 2006.

Creates the Health Care Setting Violence Prevention Act. Requires health care settings, including hospitals, mental health evaluation and treatment facilities, community mental health programs, home health agencies, and hospice programs, by July 1, 2006, to adopt and implement a plan to reasonably prevent and protect employees from violence at the setting. Requires a health care setting to file copies of its plan, and copies of changes to the plan, with the Department of Labor and the Department of Human Services. Requires a review of the plan at least once every 3 years. Requires health care settings to provide violence prevention training to employees by July 1, 2007. Requires health care settings to keep records of violent acts against an employee, a patient, or a visitor and to forward copies of such records to the Department of Labor and the Department of Human Services. Provides for enforcement of the Act by the Department of Labor, and authorizes the Director of Labor to issue an order for correction to a health care setting fixing a time for abatement of a violation. Amends the Illinois State Auditing Act. Requires that the Auditor General's audits of certain mental health and developmental disabilities facilities under the jurisdiction of the Department of Human Services include their records concerning reports of suspected abuse of facility staff by facility residents or patients. Effective immediately.

Amends the Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act. Provides that an applicant seeking licensure in more than one advanced practice nursing category need not possess multiple graduate degrees. Provides that applicants may be eligible for licenses for multiple advanced practice nurse licensure categories, provided that the applicant (i) has met the requirements for at least one specified advanced practice nursing specialty, (ii) possesses an additional graduate education that results in a certificate for another clinical advanced practice nurse category and that meets the requirements for the national certification from the appropriate nursing specialty, and (iii) holds a current national certification from the appropriate national certifying body for that additional advanced practice nursing category. Adds Schedule II controlled substances to the list of controlled substances that an advanced practice nurse must obtain a mid-level practitioner controlled substance license for in order to prescribe. Amends the Pharmacy Practice Act. Exempts the delegation of limited prescriptive authority regarding Schedule II controlled substances by a physician licensed to practice medicine in all its branches to a physician assistant from the Act. Amends the Physician Assistant Practice Act of 1987 to allow physicians assistants with delegated prescriptive authority to prescribe Schedule II controlled substances. Amends the Illinois Controlled Substances Act. Adds a physician assistant who issues a prescription for a Schedule II controlled substance to the definition of "prescriber". Adds Schedule II controlled substances to the list of controlled substances that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation must register licensed physician assistants and licensed advanced practice nurses to prescribe and dispense. Provides that when a person meeting certain requirements pleads guilty to or is found guilty of possession of a controlled or counterfeit substance, the court may require that person to refrain from having in his or her body the presence of certain illicit drugs, unless prescribed by a physician or an advanced practice nurse or physician assistant meeting certain requirements (now, only excepts those drugs prescribed by a physician). Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code provision regarding Illinois Fire Fighters' license plates. Provides that all moneys deposited into the Illinois Fire Fighters' Memorial Fund shall be used exclusively for the purposes listed in the Vehicle Code provision.