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Public Act 102-0352 Public Act 0352 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
Public Act 102-0352 | HB3911 Enrolled | LRB102 17082 CPF 22511 b |
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| AN ACT concerning government.
| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| represented in the General Assembly:
| Section 5. The First Responders Suicide Prevention Act is | amended by adding Section 40 as follows: | (5 ILCS 840/40 new) | Sec. 40. Task Force recommendations. | (a) Task Force members shall recommend that agencies and | organizations guarantee access to mental health and wellness | services, including, but not limited to, peer support programs | and providing ongoing education related to the ever-evolving | concept of mental health wellness. These recommendations could | be accomplished by: | (1) Revising agencies' and organizations' employee | assistance programs (EAPs). | (2) Urging health care providers to replace outdated | healthcare plans and include more progressive options | catering to the needs and disproportionate risks | shouldered by our first responders. | (3) Allocating funding or resources for public service | announcements (PSA) and messaging campaigns aimed at | raising awareness of available assistance options. | (4) Encouraging agencies and organizations to attach |
| lists of all available resources to training manuals and | continuing education requirements. | (b) Task Force members shall recommend agencies and | organizations sponsor or facilitate first responders with | specialized training in the areas of psychological fitness, | depressive disorders, early detection, and mitigation best | practices. Such trainings could be accomplished by: | (1) Assigning, appointing, or designating one member | of an agency or organization to attend specialized | training(s) sponsored by an accredited agency, | association, or organization recognized in their fields of | study. | (2) Seeking sponsorships or conducting fund-raisers, | to host annual or semiannual on-site visits from qualified | clinicians or physicians to provide early detection | training techniques, or to provide regular access to | mental health professionals. | (3) Requiring a minimum number of hours of disorders | and wellness training be incorporated into reoccurring, | annual or biannual training standards, examinations, and | curriculums, taking into close consideration respective | agency or organization size, frequency and number of all | current federal and state mandatory examinations and | trainings expected respectively. | (4) Not underestimating the crucial importance of a | balanced diet, sleep, mindfulness-based stress reduction |
| techniques, moderate and vigorous intensity activities, | and recreational hobbies, which have been scientifically | proven to play a major role in brain health and mental | wellness. | (c) Task Force members shall recommend that administrators | and leadership personnel solicit training services from | evidence-based, data driven organizations. Organizations with | personnel trained on the analytical review and interpretation | of specific fields related to the nature of first responders' | exploits, such as PTSD, substance abuse, chronic state of | duress. Task Force members shall further recommend funding for | expansion and messaging campaigns of preliminary | self-diagnosing technologies like the one described above. | These objectives could be met by: | (1) Contacting an accredited agency, association, or | organization recognized in the field or fields of specific | study. Unbeknownst to the majority, many of the agencies | and organizations listed above receive grants and | allocations to assist communities with the very issues | being discussed in this Section. | (2) Normalizing help-seeking behaviors for both first | responders and their families through regular messaging | and peer support outreach, beginning with academy | curricula and continuing education throughout individuals' | careers. | (3) Funding and implementing PSA campaigns that |
| provide clear and concise calls to action about mental | health and wellness, resiliency, help-seeking, treatment | and recovery. | (4) Promoting and raising awareness of non-for-profit | organizations currently available to assist individuals in | search of care and treatment. Organizations have intuitive | user-friendly sites, most of which have mobile | applications, so first responders can access at a moment's | notice. However, because of limited funds, these | organizations have a challenging time of getting the word | out there about their existence. | (5) Expanding Family and Medical Leave Act protections | for individuals voluntarily seeking preventative | treatment. | (6) Promoting and ensuring complete patient | confidentiality protections. | (d) Task Force members shall recommend that agencies and | organizations incorporate the following training components | into already existing modules and educational curriculums. | Doing so could be done by: | (1) Bolstering academy and school curricula by | requiring depressive disorder training catered to PTSD, | substance abuse, and early detection techniques training, | taking into close consideration respective agency or | organization size, and the frequency and number of all | current federal and state mandatory examinations and |
| trainings expected respectively. | (2) Continuing to allocate or match federal and state | funds to maintain Mobil Training Units (MTUs). | (3) Incorporating a state certificate for peer support | training into already exiting statewide curriculums and | mandatory examinations, annual State Fire Marshal | examinations, and physical fitness examinations. The | subject matter of the certificate should have an emphasis | on mental health and wellness, as well as familiarization | with topics ranging from clinical social work, clinical | psychology, clinical behaviorist, and clinical psychiatry. | (4) Incorporating and performing statewide mental | health check-ins during the same times as already mandated | trainings. These checks are not to be compared or used as | measures of fitness for duty evaluations or structured | psychological examinations. | (5) Recommending comprehensive and evidence-based | training on the importance of preventative measures on the | topics of sleep, nutrition, mindfulness, and physical | movement. | (6) Law enforcement agencies should provide training | on the Firearm Owner's Identification Card Act, including | seeking relief from the Illinois State Police under | Section 10 of the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act | and a FOID card being a continued condition of employment | under Section 7.2 of the Uniform Peace Officers' |
Effective Date: 6/1/2022
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