Signed by Governor Bruce Rauner

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that requires hospital nurses to complete annual training on how to respond to a sexual assault victim.

Highlights:

• Requires hospital nurses to complete 2 hours of training every year until January 1, 2021, and every 2 years thereafter, on how to respond to incoming patients who have been sexually assaulted (Sec. 5).

• Authorizes pediatric healthcare facilities to provide medical forensic services to sexual assault survivors under the age of 13 (Sec. 5).

• Requires hospitals and pediatric healthcare facilities to initiate medical forensic services within 90 minutes of a victim’s arrival (Sec. 5).

• Requires any facility that does not have the means to perform medical forensic services within 90 minutes of the patient’s arrival to arrange transportation of the patient to a facility that does (Sec. 5).

• Authorizes hospitals and pediatric facilities to issue a voucher to help a patient pay for ambulance fees, forensics services, laboratory tests, pharmaceuticals, and follow-up care provided as a result of sexual assault (Sec. 5).

• Requires hospitals and pediatric healthcare facilities to develop a billing protocol that ensures that no survivor of sexual assault is sent a bill for any medical forensic services (Sec. 6).

Full Bill Text