Illinois Compiled Statutes
Chapter 210 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND REGULATION
210 ILCS 170/ - Birth Center Licensing Act.

(210 ILCS 170/1)
Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Birth Center Licensing Act.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/5)
Sec. 5. Definitions. In this Act:
"Birth center" means a designated site, other than a hospital:
"Certified nurse midwife" means an advanced practice registered nurse licensed in Illinois under the Nurse Practice Act with full practice authority or who is delegated such authority as part of a written collaborative agreement with a physician who is associated with the birthing center or who has privileges at a nearby birthing hospital.
"Department" means the Illinois Department of Public Health.
"Hospital" does not include places where pregnant females are received, cared for, or treated during delivery if it is in a licensed birth center, nor include any facility required to be licensed as a birth center.
"Licensed certified professional midwife" means a person who has successfully met the requirements under Section 45 of the Licensed Certified Professional Midwife Practice Act and holds an active license to practice as a licensed certified professional midwife in Illinois.
"Physician" means a physician licensed to practice medicine in all its branches in Illinois.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21; 102-964, eff. 1-1-23; 102-1117, eff. 1-13-23.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/10)
Sec. 10. License required. Except as provided by this Act, no person shall open, manage, conduct, offer, maintain, or advertise as a birth center without a valid license issued by the Department. All birth centers in existence as of the effective date of this Act shall obtain a valid license to operate within 2 years after the adoption of rules by the Department to implement this Act under Section 60.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/15)
Sec. 15. Issuance and renewal of license.
(a) An applicant for a license under this Act shall submit an application on forms prescribed by the Department. Each application shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable license fee, as established by rule by the Department under Section 60.
(b) The Department may grant a temporary initial license to an applicant. A temporary initial license expires on the earlier of the date the Department denies the license or the date 6 months after the temporary initial license was issued.
(c) The Department shall issue a license under this Act if, after application, inspection, and investigation, it finds the applicant meets the requirements of this Act and the rules and standards adopted pursuant to this Act.
(d) A license is renewable every year upon submission of: (i) the renewal application and fee and (ii) a report on a form prescribed by the Department that includes information related to quality of care at a birth center. The report must be in the form and documented by evidence as required by the Department by rule under Section 60.


(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/17)
Sec. 17. Certificate of need; licenses.
(a) A birth center shall obtain a certificate of need from the Health Facilities and Services Review Board under the Health Facilities Planning Act before receiving a license by the Department under this Act.
(b) If, after obtaining an initial certificate of need under subsection (a), a birth center seeks to increase the bed capacity of the birth center, the birth center must obtain a certificate of need from the Health Facilities and Services Review Board before increasing the bed capacity.
(c) A birth center in a medically underserved area, as determined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, shall receive priority in obtaining a certificate of need under this Section.


(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/20)
Sec. 20. Linkages.
(a) A birth center shall link and integrate its services with at least one birthing hospital with a minimum of a Level 1 perinatal designation.
(b) A birth center shall have an established agreement with a nearby receiving birthing hospital with policies and procedures for timely transfer of maternal and neonatal patients. The agreement shall include a determination of maternal and neonatal conditions necessitating consultation and referral. This should include plans
for communication with the receiving hospital before and after
transfer.


(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/25)
Sec. 25. Staffing.
(a) A birth center shall have a clinical director, who may be:
(b) The clinical director shall be responsible for:
(c) An obstetrician, family practitioner, certified nurse midwife, or licensed certified professional midwife shall attend each person in labor from the time of admission through birth and throughout the immediate postpartum period. Attendance may be delegated only to another physician, a certified nurse midwife, or a licensed certified professional midwife.
(d) A second staff person shall be present at each birth who:
(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21; 102-964, eff. 1-1-23.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/30)
Sec. 30. Minimum standards.
(a) The Department's rules adopted pursuant to Section 60 of this Act shall contain minimum standards to protect the health and safety of a patient of a birth center. In adopting rules for birth centers, the Department shall consider:
(b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to prohibit a facility licensed as a birth center from offering other reproductive health care subject to any applicable laws, rules, regulations, or licensing requirements for those services. In this subsection, "reproductive health care" has the same meaning as used in Section 1-10 of the Reproductive Health Act.
(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-1117, eff. 1-13-23.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/35)
Sec. 35. Quality of care. The Department's rules shall provide for a time period within which each birth center must become accredited by either the Commission for the Accreditation of Freestanding Birth Centers or The Joint Commission.
A birth center shall implement a quality improvement program consistent with the requirements of the accrediting body and is encouraged to participate in quality improvement projects implemented by the Department's Administrative Perinatal Centers and other Department-supported perinatal quality improvement projects. Clinicians, or their clinical representative, attending persons in labor at the birth center shall attend morbidity and mortality reviews that occur at the receiving birthing hospital on their patients, when invited, at a mutually agreeable time. This includes, but is not limited to, maternal and neonatal patients transferred to the receiving birthing hospital.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/40)
Sec. 40. Reimbursement requirements.
(a) A birth center shall seek certification under Titles XVIII and XIX of the federal Social Security Act.
(b) Reimbursement rates set by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services should be based on all types of medically necessary covered services provided to both the birthing person and the baby, including:
(c) A birth center shall provide charitable care consistent with that provided by comparable health care providers in the geographic area.
(d) A birth center may not discriminate against any patient requiring treatment because of the source of payment for services, including Medicare and Medicaid recipients.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/45)
Sec. 45. Reporting requirements. The Department shall by rule require each birth center to report information every year that is consistent with the birth center's license renewal schedule, which the Department shall make publicly available and which shall include the following:
(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/50)
Sec. 50. Training. A birth center shall, in consultation with the clinical director, establish and implement a policy to ensure appropriate training and competency of individuals employed within the birth center. The policy shall, at a minimum, define the acts and practices that are allowed or prohibited for such employees, establish how training will be conducted, and illustrate how initial competency will be established.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/55)
Sec. 55. Inspections; special inspections; reports.
(a) The Department, whenever it determines necessary, may conduct a
special inspection, survey, or evaluation of a birth center to assess
compliance with licensure requirements and standards or a plan of
correction submitted as a result of deficiencies cited by the
Department or an accrediting body.
(b) Upon the Department's completion of any special inspection, survey, or evaluation, the appropriate Department personnel who conducted the special inspection, survey, or evaluation shall submit a copy of his or her report to the licensee upon exiting the birth center, and shall submit the actual report to the appropriate regional office.
(c) The Department's report and any recommendation for action under this Act shall be sent to the Department's central office together with a plan of correction from the birth center.
(d) The plan of correction may contain related comments or documentation provided by the birth center that may refute findings in the report, explain extenuating circumstances that the birth center could not reasonably have prevented, or indicate methods and timetables for correction of deficiencies described in the report.
(e) A birth center has 10 days after the date of the Department's special inspection, survey, or evaluation to submit a plan of correction. The Department shall determine whether a birth center is in violation of this Section no later than 60 days after completion of each special inspection, survey, evaluation, or plan of correction.
(f) The Department shall maintain all special inspection, survey, or evaluation reports for at least 5 years in a manner accessible to the public.


(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/60)
Sec. 60. Rules.
(a) The Department shall adopt rules for the administration and enforcement of this Act.
(b) Rules adopted by the Department under this Act shall stipulate:
(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
(210 ILCS 170/99)
Sec. 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.

(Source: P.A. 102-518, eff. 8-20-21.)

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