BillTrack50 logo
Free Signup Login
Bill

Bill > SB0021

IL SB0021

IL SB0021
HOSPITAL STAFFING LEVELS

summary

Introduced
01/13/2025
In Committee
01/13/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead

Introduced Session

104th General Assembly

Bill Summary

Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Defines "hospital worker" as any person who receives an hourly wage, directly or indirectly via a subcontractor, from a hospital licensed under the Act. In provisions concerning limitations on mandated overtime and requiring rest periods for nurses, replaces "nurse" with "hospital worker". Requires additional hospital staffing information to be reported to the Department of Public Health, including any and all staffing matrices, staffing metrics, and underlying materials used to determine the metrics. Provides that the Department shall produce an annual report based on staffing disclosures and make recommendations for minimum staffing standards for hospital workers in each hospital unit. Requires hospitals to conduct a competency validation for each hospital worker hired, as a condition of employment, within the first month of employment and at no cost to the new hire. Provides that each hospital worker's competency validation must be submitted to the Department within 2 weeks after the hospital worker's start date. Establishes ongoing verification requirements for each hospital worker, and requires hospitals to submit a list of all competent employees currently employed at the end of each calendar year. Requires the Department to maintain, and make available to the public, a registry of all competent employees, including the hospital worker's name, address, contact information, and current employer. Provides that hospital employers that fail to comply with the competency validations requirements shall receive a fine equal to 0.1% of annual revenue reported during the most recently completed fiscal year each day until the hospital complies. Sets forth provisions concerning a hospital's requirements regarding assignment despite objection forms, a resolution process under the Department for assignment despite objection for certain hospital workers, and a fine for hospitals that fail to honor the assignment despite objection process. Makes other changes.

AI Summary

This bill amends the Hospital Licensing Act to expand worker protections and reporting requirements for hospitals. The bill broadens the definition of "hospital worker" to include all hourly wage employees, not just nurses, and introduces several key provisions. Hospitals will now be required to conduct a competency validation for each new hospital worker within their first month of employment, verifying their ability to perform job duties safely. Hospitals must submit documentation of these validations to the Department of Public Health and maintain ongoing verification of worker competency. The bill also creates an "assignment despite objection" process, allowing workers to formally object to unsafe working conditions by filing a standardized form that shifts liability to the hospital. Hospitals must develop a resolution process for these objections, either through collective bargaining or via a Department-defined process. Additionally, hospitals must now report comprehensive staffing metrics to the Department annually, which will then produce a report and make recommendations for minimum staffing standards in each hospital unit. Hospitals that fail to comply with these requirements may face significant financial penalties, such as fines of 0.1% of their annual revenue per day of non-compliance. The bill aims to improve patient care, worker safety, and transparency in hospital staffing practices, with particular attention to lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sponsors (8)

Last Action

Added as Co-Sponsor Sen. Emil Jones, III (on 04/01/2026)

bill text

bill summary

Loading...

bill summary

Loading...
Loading...