Bill Text: IL HR0042 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges the Illinois State Medical Society delegation to the American Medical Association to submit a resolution to the American Medical Association requesting that Policy H-275.970, Licensure Confidentiality, be amended.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2023-06-26 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HR0042 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2023-HR0042-Introduced.html
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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, There is an increasing number of physicians | ||||||
3 | experiencing burnout, a potential factor in the increased | ||||||
4 | rates of physicians having depression and committing suicide; | ||||||
5 | and
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6 | WHEREAS, Physicians who have or have had mental health | ||||||
7 | concerns may be reluctant to seek treatment as it may cause | ||||||
8 | difficulty in obtaining and/or renewing a medical license as | ||||||
9 | well as obtaining institutional privileges; and
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10 | WHEREAS, Physicians not receiving treatment for mental | ||||||
11 | health issues may pose harm to patients, and a lack of | ||||||
12 | treatment for mental health issues can contribute to untreated | ||||||
13 | burnout, depression, and increased rates of suicide; and
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14 | WHEREAS, Physicians have the right to obtain the same care | ||||||
15 | as patients without retribution and with respect for the | ||||||
16 | privacy of physicians' protected health information; and
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17 | WHEREAS, The American Psychiatric Association has found no | ||||||
18 | evidence that a physician who has been treated for a mental | ||||||
19 | illness is any more likely to harm a patient than a physician | ||||||
20 | with no mental health issues; and
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1 | WHEREAS, The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 | ||||||
2 | states that employers cannot discriminate against employees | ||||||
3 | based on mental or physical health; and
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4 | WHEREAS, The 2018 American Psychiatric Association | ||||||
5 | Position Statement on Inquiries About Diagnosis and Treatment | ||||||
6 | of Mental Disorders in Connection with Professional | ||||||
7 | Credentialing and Licensing recommends that medical licensing | ||||||
8 | bodies not ask applicants about prior diagnosis and treatment | ||||||
9 | of mental health disorders; and
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10 | WHEREAS, Per the 2018 American Psychiatric Association | ||||||
11 | Position Statement on Inquiries About Diagnosis and Treatment | ||||||
12 | of Mental Disorders in Connection with Professional | ||||||
13 | Credentialing and Licensing "Medical or hospital records | ||||||
14 | requested shall be by way of narrowly tailored requests and | ||||||
15 | releases that provide access only to information that is | ||||||
16 | reasonably needed to assess the applicant's fitness to | ||||||
17 | practice. All personal or health-related information shall be | ||||||
18 | kept strictly confidential and shall be accessed only by | ||||||
19 | individuals with a legitimate need for such access…Personal | ||||||
20 | health information collected by the board should be kept | ||||||
21 | confidential and should be destroyed after a reasonable period | ||||||
22 | of time"; and
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23 | WHEREAS, Many initial and renewal applications for medical |
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1 | licenses and associated applications and application reference | ||||||
2 | forms, medical specialty boards, and institutional privilege | ||||||
3 | and credential applications continue to include questions | ||||||
4 | about physicians' mental health, and physicians who disclose a | ||||||
5 | current or past mental health condition may be investigated or | ||||||
6 | sanctioned; and
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7 | WHEREAS, Those applications that continue to make | ||||||
8 | inquiries about a physician's mental health should use | ||||||
9 | language consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act, | ||||||
10 | which limits questions to whether the individual has a medical | ||||||
11 | condition that currently impacts his or her ability to | ||||||
12 | practice medicine; and
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13 | WHEREAS, American Medical Association Policy H-275.970 | ||||||
14 | addresses issues of potential discrimination and | ||||||
15 | confidentiality violations in the licensing, privileging and | ||||||
16 | credentialing processes; therefore, be it
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17 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
18 | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
19 | we urge the Illinois State Medical Society delegation to the | ||||||
20 | American Medical Association to submit a resolution to the | ||||||
21 | American Medical Association requesting that Policy H-275.970, | ||||||
22 | Licensure Confidentiality, be amended as follows: | ||||||
23 | "1. The AMA (a) encourages specialty boards, hospitals, |
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1 | and other organizations involved in credentialing and/or | ||||||
2 | privileging , as well as state licensing boards, to take all | ||||||
3 | necessary steps to assure the confidentiality of information | ||||||
4 | contained on application forms for credentials; (b) encourages | ||||||
5 | boards these entities to include in application forms only | ||||||
6 | requests for information that can reasonably be related to | ||||||
7 | medical practice; (c) encourages state licensing boards, | ||||||
8 | specialty boards, hospitals and other organizations involved | ||||||
9 | in credentialing and/or privileging to exclude from license | ||||||
10 | application forms information that refers to psychoanalysis, | ||||||
11 | counseling, or psychotherapy required or undertaken as part of | ||||||
12 | medical training; (d) encourages state medical societies and | ||||||
13 | specialty societies to join with the AMA in efforts to change | ||||||
14 | statutes and regulations to provide needed confidentiality for | ||||||
15 | information collected by licensing boards and related | ||||||
16 | organizations ; and (e) encourages state licensing boards , | ||||||
17 | specialty boards, hospitals and other organizations involved | ||||||
18 | in credentialing and/or privileging to require disclosure of | ||||||
19 | physical or mental health conditions only when a physician is | ||||||
20 | suffering from a condition that currently impairs his/her | ||||||
21 | judgment or that would otherwise adversely affect his/her | ||||||
22 | ability to practice medicine in a competent, ethical, and | ||||||
23 | professional manner, or when the physician presents a public | ||||||
24 | health danger. | ||||||
25 | 2. Our AMA will have all those state medical boards , | ||||||
26 | specialty boards, hospitals, and other organizations involved |
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1 | in credentialing/privileging that wish to retain questions | ||||||
2 | about the health of applicants on medical licensing | ||||||
3 | applications confirm the use of or will change by 2024 all | ||||||
4 | inquiries of the health of applicants to the language | ||||||
5 | recommended by the Federation of State Medical Boards that | ||||||
6 | reads, "Are you currently suffering from any condition for | ||||||
7 | which you are not being appropriately treated that impairs | ||||||
8 | your judgment or that would otherwise adversely affect your | ||||||
9 | ability to practice medicine in a competent, ethical and | ||||||
10 | professional manner? (Yes/No)." | ||||||
11 | 3. Our AMA will work with the Federation of State Medical | ||||||
12 | Boards, the American Hospital Association, the American Board | ||||||
13 | of Medical Specialties, and state medical societies to develop | ||||||
14 | policies and strategies to ensure that by 2024 all new and | ||||||
15 | renewal medical licensure and associated applications and | ||||||
16 | application reference forms, privileging, credentialing and | ||||||
17 | related applications and documentation will request or | ||||||
18 | disclose only information that is reasonably needed to address | ||||||
19 | the applicant's current fitness to practice medicine and | ||||||
20 | respect the privacy of physician's protected health | ||||||
21 | information. "; and be it further
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22 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
23 | delivered to the Illinois State Medical Society and the | ||||||
24 | American Medical Association.
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