Telecourt

GREAT NEWS!

This year IPS, along with the Illinois State Bar Association and the Illinois Hospital Association, introduced HB 5351.  This bill permits Circuit Courts to adopt rules permitting video conferencing of involuntary admission and involuntary treatment hearings.

Videoconferencing will decrease the cost, to hospitals, of hearings and, therefore, will diminish the incentive for hospitals to discharge patients rather than to proceed with petitioning the court for involuntary admission and/or treatment. 

In addition, telecourt will improve security both at the courthouse and the hospital. While the patient is at the courthouse there may be no back up security at the in-patient unit thereby creating a dangerous situation for the remaining staff and patients.  Furthermore, when hearings are held at the courthouse there is a risk of patients going AWOL or attempting elopement.  This risk is eliminated by having the hearing at the hospital in the locked unit.

On July 27, 2010, Governor Quinn signed this bill into law, Public Act 96-1321.  Click here to view the Bill.

IPS would like to thank the bill's House sponsor, Representative Patti Bellock and the Senate sponsors Senator Kirk Dillard and Senator A.J. Wilhelmi.  Also, IPS would like to thank John Potts, Molly Rockford and Brice Sheriff for their hard work in shepherding the bill through the legislative process to a successful conclusion.  Also, IPS would like to thank the Presiding Judge of the Cook County Civil Division, Judge Patrick McGann, for his support of this initiative. Finally, IPS would like to thank IPS President Jagannathan Srinivasaraghavan MD (Ashok Van MD), IPS Immediate Past President Dr. Lisa Rone and IPS Chair of the Government Affairs Committee Dr. Ken Busch for their support for this bill.