IL HB6954

Secretary of the Department of Professional Regulation may immediately temporarily suspend a licensed health care worker's license without a hearing if they have been convicted of a forcible intentional felony or sexual crime against a patient, or are required to register as a sex offender, and the Secretary finds continuation in practice poses immediate danger to the public.

State's Attorney must notify the Department within 15 business days of filing criminal charges alleging a health care worker committed a forcible felony or sexual act against a patient, and the Secretary must issue an order requiring the worker to practice only with a chaperone during all patient encounters pending the criminal outcome.

A hearing on the suspended license must be convened by the appropriate licensing board within 15 days of summary suspension and completed without appreciable delay to determine whether to revoke, suspend, place on probation, or reinstate the license.

Any revocation or suspension for sex offender registration crimes is for a minimum of 5 years, and licensees may only be considered rehabilitated based on psychiatric certification, removal from sex offender registry, or vacation of conviction.

Discipline or administrative orders must be vacated and removed from records if criminal charges are dropped, the worker is acquitted, or any conviction is overturned, with confidentiality protections maintained except for law enforcement subpoenas and requests from other licensing authorities.