103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB3571 Introduced , by Rep. Lakesia Collins SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act Creates the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program Act. Provides that beginning on or before 6 months after the effective date of the Act, the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program is created, which shall be administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Provides that the program shall provide loan repayment assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible hospice and palliative professionals practicing in a community-based hospice agency that provides services in the State. Provides that each year, the Commission shall receive and consider applications for loan repayment assistance under this Act. Makes provisions concerning grant awards; eligibility requirements; and other matters. Provides that the Commission shall administer the program and shall adopt rules not inconsistent with the Act for the program's effective implementation. Provides that the Act is inoperative 10 years on and after the effective date. Effective immediately. LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB3571 Introduced , by Rep. Lakesia Collins SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act Creates the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program Act. Provides that beginning on or before 6 months after the effective date of the Act, the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program is created, which shall be administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Provides that the program shall provide loan repayment assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible hospice and palliative professionals practicing in a community-based hospice agency that provides services in the State. Provides that each year, the Commission shall receive and consider applications for loan repayment assistance under this Act. Makes provisions concerning grant awards; eligibility requirements; and other matters. Provides that the Commission shall administer the program and shall adopt rules not inconsistent with the Act for the program's effective implementation. Provides that the Act is inoperative 10 years on and after the effective date. Effective immediately. LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB3571 Introduced , by Rep. Lakesia Collins SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act New Act Creates the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program Act. Provides that beginning on or before 6 months after the effective date of the Act, the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program is created, which shall be administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Provides that the program shall provide loan repayment assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible hospice and palliative professionals practicing in a community-based hospice agency that provides services in the State. Provides that each year, the Commission shall receive and consider applications for loan repayment assistance under this Act. Makes provisions concerning grant awards; eligibility requirements; and other matters. Provides that the Commission shall administer the program and shall adopt rules not inconsistent with the Act for the program's effective implementation. Provides that the Act is inoperative 10 years on and after the effective date. Effective immediately. LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b A BILL FOR HB3571LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 AN ACT concerning health. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 5 Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan 6 Repayment Program Act. 7 Section 5. Purpose. The purpose of the Community Hospice 8 and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program is to 9 help licensed hospice and palliative care providers recruit 10 and retain qualified professionals and address this State's 11 community-based hospice and palliative care workforce 12 shortage. The goal of the program is to reduce disparities in 13 access to critical health services for people with serious 14 illness or near the end of life. 15 Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: 16 "Commission" means the Illinois Student Assistance 17 Commission. 18 "Physician" means a person licensed by this State to 19 practice medicine in all its branches and includes any person 20 holding a temporary license, as provided in the Medical 21 Practice Act of 1987. 22 "Program" means the Community Hospice and Palliative Care 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB3571 Introduced , by Rep. Lakesia Collins SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act New Act Creates the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program Act. Provides that beginning on or before 6 months after the effective date of the Act, the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment Program is created, which shall be administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Provides that the program shall provide loan repayment assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible hospice and palliative professionals practicing in a community-based hospice agency that provides services in the State. Provides that each year, the Commission shall receive and consider applications for loan repayment assistance under this Act. Makes provisions concerning grant awards; eligibility requirements; and other matters. Provides that the Commission shall administer the program and shall adopt rules not inconsistent with the Act for the program's effective implementation. Provides that the Act is inoperative 10 years on and after the effective date. Effective immediately. LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b A BILL FOR New Act LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571- 2 -LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 2 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 2 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 Professional Loan Repayment Program. 2 "Hospice agency" means a public agency or private 3 organization or a subdivision of either that is primarily 4 engaged in providing comprehensive hospice services as defined 5 in the Hospice Program Licensing Act and meets the minimum 6 standards for certification under the Medicare program set 7 forth in the Conditions of Participation in 42 CFR 482 but is 8 not required to be Medicare-certified. 9 Section 15. Community Hospice and Palliative Care 10 Professional Loan Repayment Program. Beginning on or before 6 11 months after the effective date of this Act, the Community 12 Hospice and Palliative Care Professional Loan Repayment 13 Program is created, which shall be administered by the 14 Commission. The program shall provide loan repayment 15 assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible hospice and 16 palliative professionals practicing in a community-based 17 hospice agency that provides services in the State. 18 Section 20. Applications. Each year, the Commission shall 19 receive and consider applications for loan repayment 20 assistance under this Act. All applications must be submitted 21 to the Commission in a form and manner prescribed by the 22 Commission. Applicants must submit any supporting documents 23 deemed necessary by the Commission at the time of application. HB3571 - 2 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571- 3 -LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 3 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 3 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 Section 25. Award; maximum loan time; minimum and maximum 2 amount. Subject to appropriation, the Commission shall award a 3 grant to each qualified applicant for a maximum of 4 years. The 4 Commission shall encourage the recipient of a grant awarded 5 under this Act to use the grant award for payments towards the 6 recipient's educational loans. The yearly appropriation for 7 the program shall be divided in proportion to workforce 8 shortages, as determined by the Commission in consultation 9 with stakeholders, in the following professional groups: (i) 10 hospice and palliative care certified physicians; (ii) 11 advanced practice registered nurses; (iii) registered nurses; 12 (iv) licensed social workers; and (v) licensed practical 13 nurses. The minimum amount of any award shall not be less than 14 10% of the awardee's outstanding loan balance for that award 15 year. The maximum amount of any award shall not exceed 20% of 16 the awardee's outstanding loan balance for that award year. 17 Any unawarded funds allocated to a professional group shall be 18 distributed toward awards for a different professional group 19 at the discretion of the Commission and based on workforce 20 demand. 21 Section 30. Eligibility; work requirement. 22 (a) To be eligible for assistance under the program, the 23 Commission must find that the applicant satisfies all of the 24 following the applicant: 25 (1) is a United States citizen or an eligible HB3571 - 3 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571- 4 -LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 4 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 4 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 noncitizen; 2 (2) is a resident of this State: 3 (3) has worked for at least 12 consecutive months as a 4 hospice and palliative professional in a community-based 5 hospice agency in this State; 6 (4) is a borrower with an outstanding balance due on 7 an educational loan; and 8 (5) has not defaulted on an educational loan. 9 (b) The Commission may grant preference to a previous 10 recipient of a grant under the program, provided that the 11 recipient continues to meet the eligibility requirements under 12 this Section. 13 (c) A recipient of a grant under the program must complete 14 a separate 12-month period working in a community-based 15 hospice program in this State for each grant that they are 16 awarded. 17 (d) If an appropriation for this program for a given 18 fiscal year is insufficient to provide grants to all qualified 19 applicants, the Commission shall allocate the appropriation in 20 accordance with this subsection. If funds are insufficient to 21 provide all qualified applicants with a grant as authorized by 22 this Section, the Commission shall allocate the available 23 grant funds for that fiscal year to qualified applicants who 24 submit a complete application on or before a date specified by 25 the Commission, based on the following order of priority: 26 (1) first, to new, qualified applicants or previous, HB3571 - 4 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571- 5 -LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 5 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 5 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 qualified recipients of a grant who are members of a 2 racial minority as defined in subsection (e); and 3 (2) second, to other new, qualified applicants or 4 previous, qualified recipients of a grant in accordance 5 with this Section. 6 (e) Racial minorities are underrepresented as 7 community-based hospice and palliative care, interdisciplinary 8 healthcare providers in the State, and the General Assembly 9 finds that it is in the interest of this State to provide them 10 priority consideration for programs that encourage racial 11 minorities participation in this field. A workforce that is 12 more reflective of the seriously ill population in a minority 13 community can improve utilization of hospice and palliative 14 care services which will address inequities to health outcomes 15 for this population. Therefore, the Commission shall give 16 priority to those applicants who are members of a racial 17 minority. As used in this subsection, "racial minority" means 18 a person who is a citizen of the United States or a lawful 19 permanent resident alien of the United States and who is: 20 (1) Black, or a person having origins in any of the 21 black racial groups in Africa; 22 (2) Hispanic, or a person of Spanish or Portuguese 23 culture with origins in Mexico, South or Central America, 24 or the Caribbean Islands, regardless of race; 25 (3) Asian American, or a person having origins in any 26 of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, HB3571 - 5 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571- 6 -LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 6 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b HB3571 - 6 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b 1 the Indian Subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands; or 2 (4) American Indian or Alaskan Native, or a person 3 having origins in any of the original peoples of North 4 America. 5 Section 35. Administration; rules. The Commission shall 6 administer the program and shall adopt rules not inconsistent 7 with this Act for the program's effective implementation. 8 Section 40. Act inoperative. Notwithstanding any other 9 provision of law, this Act is inoperative 10 years on and after 10 the effective date. 11 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 12 becoming law. HB3571 - 6 - LRB103 29393 CPF 55784 b