Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB0251 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB0251 Introduced 1/22/2025, by Sen. Cristina Castro SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act Creates the Operating Room Patient Safety Act. Provides that each surgical technologist hired or contracted by a health care facility on or after January 1, 2027 shall meet specified educational, certification, or experiential requirements. Provides that nothing in the Act prohibits an individual from performing surgical technology services if the individual is acting within the scope of the individual's license or registration or is a student or intern under the direct supervision of a licensed health care provider. LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b A BILL FOR 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB0251 Introduced 1/22/2025, by Sen. Cristina Castro SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act Creates the Operating Room Patient Safety Act. Provides that each surgical technologist hired or contracted by a health care facility on or after January 1, 2027 shall meet specified educational, certification, or experiential requirements. Provides that nothing in the Act prohibits an individual from performing surgical technology services if the individual is acting within the scope of the individual's license or registration or is a student or intern under the direct supervision of a licensed health care provider. LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b A BILL FOR
2	2	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB0251 Introduced 1/22/2025, by Sen. Cristina Castro SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3	3	New Act New Act
4	4	New Act
5	5	Creates the Operating Room Patient Safety Act. Provides that each surgical technologist hired or contracted by a health care facility on or after January 1, 2027 shall meet specified educational, certification, or experiential requirements. Provides that nothing in the Act prohibits an individual from performing surgical technology services if the individual is acting within the scope of the individual's license or registration or is a student or intern under the direct supervision of a licensed health care provider.
6	6	LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
7	7	LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
8	8	A BILL FOR
9	9	SB0251LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b SB0251 LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
10	10	SB0251 LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
11	11	1 AN ACT concerning regulation.
12	12	2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
13	13	3 represented in the General Assembly:
14	14	4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
15	15	5 Operating Room Patient Safety Act.
16	16	6 Section 3. Purpose. It is the public policy of the State
17	17	7 that the State has a legitimate interest in ensuring that all
18	18	8 surgical procedures are performed to ensure maximum patient
19	19	9 safety. Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to:
20	20	10 (1) ensure that an operating room has been prepared by
21	21	11 qualified, trained professionals;
22	22	12 (2) ensure that surgical equipment and instruments are
23	23	13 properly sterilized and functioning safely;
24	24	14 (3) ensure that during surgical procedures, the
25	25	15 surgical team can rely on qualified, trained professionals
26	26	16 to ensure a sterile environment is maintained; and
27	27	17 (4) provide the surgical team with proper instruments
28	28	18 and supplies as requested.
29	29	19 Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
30	30	20 "Health care facility" means a facility regulated under
31	31	21 the Hospital Licensing Act, the Ambulatory Surgical Treatment
32	32	22 Center Act, or the University of Illinois Hospital Act.
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36	36	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB0251 Introduced 1/22/2025, by Sen. Cristina Castro SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
37	37	New Act New Act
38	38	New Act
39	39	Creates the Operating Room Patient Safety Act. Provides that each surgical technologist hired or contracted by a health care facility on or after January 1, 2027 shall meet specified educational, certification, or experiential requirements. Provides that nothing in the Act prohibits an individual from performing surgical technology services if the individual is acting within the scope of the individual's license or registration or is a student or intern under the direct supervision of a licensed health care provider.
40	40	LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
41	41	LRB104 03428 BAB 13451 b
42	42	A BILL FOR
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48	48	New Act
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67	67	1 "Health care facility" does not include a health care facility
68	68	2 that is a critical access hospital as designated by the
69	69	3 Department of Public Health in accordance with 42 CFR 485,
70	70	4 Subpart F, or a rural emergency hospital as defined under
71	71	5 subsection (kkk)(2) of Section 1861 of the federal Social
72	72	6 Security Act.
73	73	7 "Surgical technologist" means an individual who is
74	74	8 employed by or contracts with a health care facility to
75	75	9 perform surgical technology services and functions.
76	76	10 "Surgical technology services" means surgical patient care
77	77	11 including, but not limited to, one or more of the following:
78	78	12 (1) preparation of an operating room and the sterile
79	79	13 operating field for surgical procedures by ensuring that
80	80	14 surgical equipment is functioning properly and safely and
81	81	15 using sterile techniques to prepare surgical supplies
82	82	16 instruments and equipment;
83	83	17 (2) intraoperative anticipation and response to the
84	84	18 needs of surgeons, nurses, and other surgical team members
85	85	19 by monitoring the sterile operating field in an operating
86	86	20 room and providing the required instruments or supplies;
87	87	21 (3) performance of tasks at the sterile operating
88	88	22 field, as directed in an operating room setting,
89	89	23 including:
90	90	24 (A) passing surgical supplies, instruments, and
91	91	25 equipment directly to a health care provider;
92	92	26 (B) sponging or suctioning an operative site;
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103	103	1 (C) preparing and cutting suture material;
104	104	2 (D) transferring and irrigating with fluids;
105	105	3 (E) transferring, but not administering, drugs
106	106	4 within the sterile field; or
107	107	5 (F) handling surgical specimens.
108	108	6 Section 10. Requirements for surgical technologists. Each
109	109	7 surgical technologist hired or contracted by a health care
110	110	8 facility on or after January 1, 2027 shall meet one or more of
111	111	9 the following requirements:
112	112	10 (1) The surgical technologist has successfully
113	113	11 completed an educational program nationally accredited by
114	114	12 the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education
115	115	13 Programs or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education
116	116	14 Schools for surgical technologists and holds and maintains
117	117	15 certification as a surgical technologist from a national
118	118	16 certifying body that certifies surgical technologists.
119	119	17 (2) If the surgical technologist has successfully
120	120	18 completed the educational requirements under paragraph (1)
121	121	19 but has not, on the date the surgical technologist is
122	122	20 hired or enters into the contract with the health care
123	123	21 facility, obtained the national certification under
124	124	22 paragraph (1), the surgical technologist must obtain that
125	125	23 certification within 18 months after being hired or
126	126	24 entering into the contract.
127	127	25 (3) The surgical technologist is registered as a
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138	138	1 registered surgical technologist under the Registered
139	139	2 Surgical Assistant and Registered Surgical Technologist
140	140	3 Title Protection Act.
141	141	4 (4) The surgical technologist has successfully
142	142	5 completed a training program for surgical technology in
143	143	6 the armed forces of the United States or the United States
144	144	7 Public Health Service.
145	145	8 (5) The surgical technologist has engaged in the
146	146	9 practice of surgical technology at a hospital licensed
147	147	10 under the Hospital Licensing Act or an ambulatory surgical
148	148	11 treatment center licensed under the Ambulatory Surgical
149	149	12 Treatment Center Act before January 1, 2027.
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