Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB1998 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1998 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Graciela Guzmn SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 740 ILCS 10/7.2a Amends the Illinois Antitrust Act. Requires the Attorney General to consent to covered transactions of health care facilities before a covered transaction may take effect. LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b A BILL FOR 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1998 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Graciela Guzmn SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 740 ILCS 10/7.2a 740 ILCS 10/7.2a Amends the Illinois Antitrust Act. Requires the Attorney General to consent to covered transactions of health care facilities before a covered transaction may take effect. LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b A BILL FOR
2	2	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1998 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Graciela Guzmn SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3	3	740 ILCS 10/7.2a 740 ILCS 10/7.2a
4	4	740 ILCS 10/7.2a
5	5	Amends the Illinois Antitrust Act. Requires the Attorney General to consent to covered transactions of health care facilities before a covered transaction may take effect.
6	6	LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
7	7	LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
8	8	A BILL FOR
9	9	SB1998LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b SB1998 LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
10	10	SB1998 LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
11	11	1 AN ACT concerning civil law.
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 5. The Illinois Antitrust Act is amended by
15	15	5 changing Section 7.2a as follows:
16	16	6 (740 ILCS 10/7.2a)
17	17	7 (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)
18	18	8 Sec. 7.2a. Notification to the Attorney General.
19	19	9 (a) As used in this Section:
20	20	10 "Acquisition" means an agreement, arrangement, or activity
21	21	11 the consummation of which results in a person acquiring
22	22	12 directly or indirectly the control of another person.
23	23	13 "Acquisition" includes the acquisition of voting securities
24	24	14 and noncorporate interests, such as assets, capital stock,
25	25	15 membership interests, or equity interests.
26	26	16 "Contracting affiliation" means the formation of a
27	27	17 relationship between 2 or more entities that permits the
28	28	18 entities to negotiate jointly with health carriers or
29	29	19 third-party administrators over rates for professional medical
30	30	20 services, or for one entity to negotiate on behalf of the other
31	31	21 entity with health carriers or third-party administrators over
32	32	22 rates for professional medical services. "Contracting
33	33	23 affiliation" does not include arrangements among entities
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37	37	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1998 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Graciela Guzmn SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
38	38	740 ILCS 10/7.2a 740 ILCS 10/7.2a
39	39	740 ILCS 10/7.2a
40	40	Amends the Illinois Antitrust Act. Requires the Attorney General to consent to covered transactions of health care facilities before a covered transaction may take effect.
41	41	LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
42	42	LRB104 09783 JRC 19849 b
43	43	A BILL FOR
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68	68	1 under common ownership.
69	69	2 "Covered transaction" means any merger, acquisition, or
70	70	3 contracting affiliation between 2 or more health care
71	71	4 facilities or provider organizations not previously under
72	72	5 common ownership or contracting affiliation.
73	73	6 "Health care facility" means the following facilities,
74	74	7 organizations, and related persons:
75	75	8 (1) An ambulatory surgical treatment center required
76	76	9 to be licensed under the Ambulatory Surgical Treatment
77	77	10 Center Act.
78	78	11 (2) An institution, place, building, or agency
79	79	12 required to be licensed under the Hospital Licensing Act.
80	80	13 (3) A hospital, ambulatory surgical treatment center,
81	81	14 or kidney disease treatment center maintained by the State
82	82	15 or any department or agency thereof.
83	83	16 (4) A kidney disease treatment center, including a
84	84	17 free-standing hemodialysis unit required to meet the
85	85	18 requirements of 42 CFR 494 in order to be certified for
86	86	19 participation in Medicare and Medicaid under Titles XVIII
87	87	20 and XIX of the federal Social Security Act of 1935.
88	88	21 (5) An institution, place, building, or room used for
89	89	22 the performance of outpatient surgical procedures that is
90	90	23 leased, owned, or operated by or on behalf of an
91	91	24 out-of-state facility.
92	92	25 (6) An institution, place, building, or room used for
93	93	26 provision of a health care category of service, as defined
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104	104	1 under the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Act,
105	105	2 including, but not limited to, cardiac catheterization and
106	106	3 open heart surgery.
107	107	4 With the exception of those health care facilities
108	108	5 specifically included in this Section, nothing in this Section
109	109	6 shall be intended to include facilities operated as a part of
110	110	7 the practice of a physician or other licensed health care
111	111	8 professional, whether practicing in his or her individual
112	112	9 capacity or within the legal structure of any partnership,
113	113	10 medical or professional corporation, or unincorporated medical
114	114	11 or professional group. Further, this Section shall not apply
115	115	12 to physicians or other licensed health care professional's
116	116	13 practices where such practices are carried out in a portion of
117	117	14 a health care facility under contract with such health care
118	118	15 facility by a physician or by other licensed health care
119	119	16 professionals, whether practicing in his or her individual
120	120	17 capacity or within the legal structure of any partnership,
121	121	18 medical or professional corporation, or unincorporated medical
122	122	19 or professional groups, unless the entity constructs,
123	123	20 modifies, or establishes a health care facility as
124	124	21 specifically defined in this Section.
125	125	22 "Health care services revenue" means the total revenue
126	126	23 received for health care services in the previous 12 months.
127	127	24 "Health carriers" has the meaning given to that term in
128	128	25 Section 10 of the Health Carrier External Review Act.
129	129	26 "Hedge fund" means a pool of funds managed by investors
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140	140	1 for the purpose of earning a return on those funds, regardless
141	141	2 of the strategies used to manage the funds. "Hedge fund"
142	142	3 includes, but is not limited to, a pool of funds managed or
143	143	4 controlled by private limited partnerships. "Hedge fund" does
144	144	5 not include:
145	145	6 (1) Natural persons or other entities that contribute,
146	146	7 or promise to contribute, funds to the hedge fund, but
147	147	8 otherwise do not participate in the management of the
148	148	9 hedge fund or the fund's assets, or in any change in
149	149	10 control of the hedge fund or the fund's assets.
150	150	11 (2) Entities that solely provide or manage debt
151	151	12 financing secured in whole or in part by the assets of a
152	152	13 health care facility, including, but not limited to, banks
153	153	14 and credit unions, commercial real estate lenders, bond
154	154	15 underwriters, and trustees.
155	155	16 "Illinois health care entity" means a health care facility
156	156	17 or provider organization that has an office in or is doing
157	157	18 business in this State.
158	158	19 "Merger" means the consolidation of 2 or more
159	159	20 organizations, including 2 or more organizations joining
160	160	21 through a common parent organization or 2 or more
161	161	22 organizations forming a new organization, but does not include
162	162	23 a corporate reorganization.
163	163	24 "Out-of-state health care entity" means a health care
164	164	25 facility or provider organization that is not headquartered in
165	165	26 this State and does not do business in this State.
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176	176	1 "Private equity group" means an investor or group of
177	177	2 investors who primarily engage in the raising or returning of
178	178	3 capital and who invests, develops, or disposes of specified
179	179	4 assets. "Private equity group" does not include natural
180	180	5 persons or other entities that contribute or promise to
181	181	6 contribute funds to the private equity group, but otherwise do
182	182	7 not participate in the management of the private equity group
183	183	8 or the group's assets, or in any change in control of the
184	184	9 private equity group or the group's assets manner, including,
185	185	10 but not limited to, lease, transfer, exchange, option, receipt
186	186	11 of a conveyance, creation of a joint venture, or any other
187	187	12 manner of purchase, by a private equity group or hedge fund of
188	188	13 a material amount of the assets or operations, or a change of
189	189	14 control, of a health care facility in this State.
190	190	15 "Provider organization" means a corporation, partnership,
191	191	16 business trust, association, or organized group of persons,
192	192	17 whether incorporated or not, which is in the business of
193	193	18 health care delivery or management and that represents 20 or
194	194	19 more health care providers in contracting with health carriers
195	195	20 or third-party administrators for the payment of health care
196	196	21 services. "Provider organization" includes physician
197	197	22 organizations, physician-hospital organizations, independent
198	198	23 practice associations, provider networks, and accountable care
199	199	24 organizations.
200	200	25 "Third-party administrator" means an entity that
201	201	26 administers payments for health care services on behalf of a
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212	212	1 client in exchange for an administrative fee.
213	213	2 (b) Health care facilities or provider organizations that
214	214	3 are party to a covered transaction shall provide notice of
215	215	4 such transaction to the Attorney General no later than 30 days
216	216	5 prior to the transaction closing or effective date of the
217	217	6 transaction.
218	218	7 Covered transactions between an Illinois health care
219	219	8 entity and an out-of-state health care entity must provide
220	220	9 notice under this subsection where the out-of-state entity
221	221	10 generates $10,000,000 or more in annual revenue from patients
222	222	11 residing in this State.
223	223	12 (c) The written notice provided by the parties under
224	224	13 subsection (b) shall be provided as follows:
225	225	14 (1) For any health care facility or provider
226	226	15 organization that is a party to a covered transaction and
227	227	16 files a premerger notification with the Federal Trade
228	228	17 Commission or the United States Department of Justice, in
229	229	18 compliance with the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
230	230	19 Improvements Act of 1976, 15 U.S.C. 18a, the notice
231	231	20 requirement is satisfied by providing a copy of such
232	232	21 filing to the Attorney General at the same time as it is
233	233	22 provided to the federal government.
234	234	23 (2) For any health care facility that is a party to a
235	235	24 covered transaction that is not described in paragraph
236	236	25 (1), the notice requirement is satisfied when the
237	237	26 healthcare facility files an application for a change of
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248	248	1 ownership with the Health Facilities and Services Review
249	249	2 Board, in compliance with the Illinois Health Facilities
250	250	3 Planning Act. The Health Facilities and Services Review
251	251	4 Board shall provide a copy of such filing to the Attorney
252	252	5 General at the same time as it is provided to the
253	253	6 applicable State legislators under subsection (a) of
254	254	7 Section 8.5 of the Illinois Health Facilities Planning
255	255	8 Act.
256	256	9 (3) For any health care facility or provider
257	257	10 organization that is a party to a covered transaction that
258	258	11 is not described in paragraph (1) or (2), written notice
259	259	12 provided by the parties must include:
260	260	13 (A) the names of the parties and their current
261	261	14 business address;
262	262	15 (B) identification of all locations where health
263	263	16 care services are currently provided by each party;
264	264	17 (C) a brief description of the nature and purpose
265	265	18 of the proposed transaction; and
266	266	19 (D) the anticipated effective date of the proposed
267	267	20 transaction.
268	268	21 Nothing in this subsection prohibits the parties to a
269	269	22 covered transaction from voluntarily providing additional
270	270	23 information to the Attorney General.
271	271	24 (d) The Attorney General may make any requests for
272	272	25 additional information from the parties that is relevant to
273	273	26 its investigation of the covered transaction within 30 days of
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284	284	1 the date notice is received under subsections (b) and (c). If
285	285	2 the Attorney General requests additional information, the
286	286	3 covered transaction may not proceed until 30 days after the
287	287	4 parties have substantially complied with the request. Any
288	288	5 subsequent request for additional information by the Attorney
289	289	6 General shall not further delay the covered transaction from
290	290	7 proceeding. Nothing in this Section precludes the Attorney
291	291	8 General from conducting an investigation or enforcing State or
292	292	9 federal antitrust laws at a later date.
293	293	10 (d-1) The Attorney General must provide written consent to
294	294	11 a covered transaction before it may take effect if a private
295	295	12 equity group or hedge fund provides any financing to the
296	296	13 covered transaction.
297	297	14 (e) Any health care facility or provider organization that
298	298	15 fails to comply with any provision of this Section is subject
299	299	16 to a civil penalty of not more than $500 per day for each day
300	300	17 during which the health care facility or provider organization
301	301	18 is in violation of this Section.
302	302	19 Whenever the Attorney General has reason to believe that a
303	303	20 health care facility or provider organization has engaged in
304	304	21 or is engaging in a covered transaction without complying with
305	305	22 the provisions of this Section, the Attorney General may apply
306	306	23 for and obtain, in an action in the Circuit Court of Sangamon
307	307	24 or Cook County, a temporary restraining order or injunction,
308	308	25 or both, prohibiting the health care facility or provider
309	309	26 organization from continuing its noncompliance or doing any
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