Bill Text: IL HB2511 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Reinserts the provisions of the introduced bill, except provides that for a person 12 years of age or older who is receiving or has received mental health services for an attempted suicide, the person's therapist may share mental health information with family members, friends, or others involved in the recipient's care, if the recipient agrees or does not object, and the information is relevant to the family member, friend, or caregiver's involvement with the recipient's healthcare or the payment for that care (rather than for a person 18 years of age or older who is receiving or has received mental health services for an attempted suicide, the person's therapist shall identify a family member or other person who shall consult with the therapist every 30 days following a suicide attempt for the period of one year that may be extended by the therapist based on need and that the therapist shall be responsible for consulting with the designated person about the progress of the person who is receiving mental health services toward restoration of mental health). Provides that the therapist must: (1) ask the recipient's permission to share relevant information with family members, friends, or other caregivers; (2) tell the recipient he or she plans to discuss the information, (3) give the recipient an opportunity to agree or object; or may infer from the circumstances, using professional judgment, that the recipient does not object, and (4) determine that the sharing of relevant information is in the recipient's best interest. Provides that the family, friends, or caregivers may consult with the therapist every 30 days following a suicide attempt for the period of one year. Provides that the period may be extended by the therapist based on need. Provides that the therapist shall be responsible for consulting with the designated person about the progress of the person who is receiving mental health services toward restoration of mental health. In the amendatory provisions of the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act, provides that the person designated by a therapist under the Suicide Prevention Act to be consulted on the progress of a recipient of mental health services who has attempted suicide may be consulted only to the extent the information is necessary for the family member, friend, or caregiver's involvement with the recipient's health care or the payment for that care and consistent with the therapist's professional judgment that the consultation is in the recipient's best interest.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-29 - House Committee Amendment No. 1 Rule 19(c) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB2511 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB2511-Introduced.html

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101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 HB2511 Introduced , by Rep. Deanne M. Mazzochi SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
New Act
740 ILCS 110/4 from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 804
Creates the Suicide Prevention Act. Provides that for a person 18 years of age or older who is receiving or has received mental health services for an attempted suicide, the person's therapist shall identify a family member or other person who shall consult with the therapist every 30 days following a suicide attempt for the period of one year. Provides that the period may be extended by the therapist based on need. Provides that the therapist shall be responsible for consulting with the designated person about the progress of the person who is receiving mental health services toward restoration of mental health. Provides that except as otherwise prohibited by the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, a therapist is not criminally or civilly liable for disclosing the recipient's therapy or for discussing the progress of the recipient toward mental health to a person designated under the Act. Defines various terms. Amends the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act to make conforming changes.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning suicide prevention.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Suicide Prevention Act.
Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
"Attempted suicide" means any act done with the intent to
commit suicide and that constitutes a substantial step toward
commission of suicide.
"Mental health services" means planned individualized
interventions intended to reduce or ameliorate mental illness
or the effects of mental illness through care, treatment,
counseling, rehabilitation, medical or psychiatric care, or
other supports provided to individuals with mental illness for
the purpose of enabling these individuals to increase their
self-determination and independence, obtain remunerative
employment, participate fully in all aspects of community life,
advocate for themselves, and achieve their fullest potential to
the greatest extent possible.
"Mental illness" means a mental, or emotional disorder that
substantially impairs a person's thought, perception of
reality, emotional process, judgment, behavior, or ability to
cope with the ordinary demands of life, but does not include a

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developmental disability, dementia or Alzheimer's disease
absent psychosis, a substance use disorder, or an abnormality
manifested only by repeated criminal or otherwise antisocial
conduct.
"Physician", "psychiatrist", "clinical psychologist",
"clinical professional counselor", and "clinical social
worker" have the meanings ascribed to them in the Mental Health
and Developmental Disabilities Code.
"Psychiatric nurse" means a registered nurse with a
master's degree in psychiatric nursing who has 3 years of
clinical training and experience in the evaluation and
treatment of mental illness that has been acquired subsequent
to any training and experience that constituted a part of the
degree program.
"Recipient" means a person who is receiving or has received
mental health services.
"Therapist" means a psychiatrist, physician, clinical
psychologist, clinical social worker, psychiatric nurse,
clinical professional counselor, or any other person providing
mental health services or any other person not prohibited by
law from providing those services or from holding himself or
herself out as a therapist if the recipient reasonably believes
that the person is permitted to do so. Therapist includes any
successor of the therapist.
Section 10. Suicide prevention. For a person 18 years of

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age or older who is receiving or has received mental health
services for an attempted suicide, the person's therapist shall
identify a family member or other person who shall consult with
the therapist every 30 days following a suicide attempt for the
period of one year. The period may be extended by the therapist
based on need. The therapist shall be responsible for
consulting with the designated person about the progress of the
person who is receiving mental health services toward
restoration of mental health.
Section 15. Immunity of therapist from criminal or civil
liability. Except as otherwise prohibited by the federal Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, a
therapist is not criminally or civilly liable for disclosing
the recipient's therapy or for discussing the progress of the
recipient toward mental health to a person designated under
Section 10.
Section 105. The Mental Health and Developmental
Disabilities Confidentiality Act is amended by changing
Section 4 as follows:
(740 ILCS 110/4) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 804)
Sec. 4. (a) The following persons shall be entitled, upon
request, to inspect and copy a recipient's record or any part
thereof:

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(1) the parent or guardian of a recipient who is under
12 years of age;
(2) the recipient if he is 12 years of age or older;
(3) the parent or guardian of a recipient who is at
least 12 but under 18 years, if the recipient is informed
and does not object or if the therapist does not find that
there are compelling reasons for denying the access. The
parent or guardian who is denied access by either the
recipient or the therapist may petition a court for access
to the record. Nothing in this paragraph is intended to
prohibit the parent or guardian of a recipient who is at
least 12 but under 18 years from requesting and receiving
the following information: current physical and mental
condition, diagnosis, treatment needs, services provided,
and services needed, including medication, if any;
(4) the guardian of a recipient who is 18 years or
older;
(5) an attorney or guardian ad litem who represents a
minor 12 years of age or older in any judicial or
administrative proceeding, provided that the court or
administrative hearing officer has entered an order
granting the attorney this right;
(6) an agent appointed under a recipient's power of
attorney for health care or for property, when the power of
attorney authorizes the access;
(7) an attorney-in-fact appointed under the Mental

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Health Treatment Preference Declaration Act; or
(8) any person in whose care and custody the recipient
has been placed pursuant to Section 3-811 of the Mental
Health and Developmental Disabilities Code; or
(9) any person designated by a therapist under Section
10 of the Suicide Prevention Act to be consulted on the
progress of a recipient of mental health services who has
attempted suicide.
(b) Assistance in interpreting the record may be provided
without charge and shall be provided if the person inspecting
the record is under 18 years of age. However, access may in no
way be denied or limited if the person inspecting the record
refuses the assistance. A reasonable fee may be charged for
duplication of a record. However, when requested to do so in
writing by any indigent recipient, the custodian of the records
shall provide at no charge to the recipient, or to the
Guardianship and Advocacy Commission, the agency designated by
the Governor under Section 1 of the Protection and Advocacy for
Persons with Developmental Disabilities Act or to any other
not-for-profit agency whose primary purpose is to provide free
legal services or advocacy for the indigent and who has
received written authorization from the recipient under
Section 5 of this Act to receive his records, one copy of any
records in its possession whose disclosure is authorized under
this Act.
(c) Any person entitled to access to a record under this

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Section may submit a written statement concerning any disputed
or new information, which statement shall be entered into the
record. Whenever any disputed part of a record is disclosed,
any submitted statement relating thereto shall accompany the
disclosed part. Additionally, any person entitled to access may
request modification of any part of the record which he
believes is incorrect or misleading. If the request is refused,
the person may seek a court order to compel modification.
(d) Whenever access or modification is requested, the
request and any action taken thereon shall be noted in the
recipient's record.
(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15.)