New Requirements Enforced for Nursing Agencies in Illinois
New Requirements Enforced for Nursing Agencies in Illinois
With an increase in demand for nurses and certified nurse aides resulting from the global pandemic, many healthcare facilities have turned to meeting their staffing needs with temporary or contract employees through nursing agencies. Due to an overall lack of regulations, nurse staffing agencies have been able to operate without many of the same protections and standards that are required for other healthcare facilities.
As states work toward holding staffing agencies more accountable for their practices, the State of Illinois has recently released a set of new requirements for nursing agencies. Effective July 1, 2022, all nursing agencies in Illinois must meet these new requirements, ranging from pay reporting to updated non-compete provisions, which will ultimately help improve stability and transparency within the state’s healthcare industry.
Read on to learn more about the new requirements for Illinois nursing agencies and how it could affect your facility.
A Breakdown of the New Requirements
Public Act 102-0946 is a set of requirements that nursing agencies must meet in order to remain in compliance with the Illinois Department of Labor.
The following are the main provisions:
- Agencies must review the Health Care Worker Registry to ensure any certified nurse aide (CNA) is not ineligible for a position in the healthcare industry.
- Agencies must provide contracts beginning July 1, 2022 and beyond to the Illinois Department of Labor within five business days of their effective date. This is to be done through the Nurse Agency Licensing Act webpage. The following information must be included for each contract:
- Disclosure of all compensation and charges included in the contract
- A schedule of all hourly bill rates per category of employee
- A detailed description of all administrative charges
- A schedule of compensation rates per category of employee, including regular hourly pay rate, shift differential, weekend differential, hazard pay, charge nurse add-on, overtime, holiday pay, and travel pay
- Confirmation that the agency has verified that each nurse and CNA assigned to a healthcare facility is able to perform all duties within the scope of their license or certification
- Statement that 100% of the nurse or CNA’s hourly rate is paid to that employee
- Agencies are now required to submit detailed reports of employee pay, including but not limited to the dollar amount, date of services, and description of services.
- Agencies are no longer allowed to include non-compete clauses in their contracts.
- Agencies are no longer allowed to require compensation, such as buy-out fees or similar, as a result of a temporary employee being hired as a permanent employee at a healthcare facility.
Together, these regulations will help hold nursing agencies in Illinois accountable and provide healthcare employees with benefits including transparency and the option of pursuing full-time employment opportunities with one of their placements, without additional fees or consequences through the agency.
NurseDash Can Help Ease Staffing Struggles
These new regulations will ultimately improve the overall healthcare industry in Illinois, including the facility, nurses, and residents. However, it doesn’t address possible issues with high agency fees. Unfortunately, additional regulations, as discussed here, could lead to a further increase in staffing agency costs as a result of the added administrative work and requirements.
NurseDash offers a more cost-effective approach to your staffing solutions. Our healthcare marketplace helps facilities easily access a reliable and efficient pool of healthcare workers, all while avoiding the high fees often associated with traditional staffing agencies.
NurseDash can help make staffing struggles more manageable by providing a streamlined platform where facilities can fill shifts and nurses can choose the per diem or short-term assignments they want to work. In turn, facilities can benefit from adequate staffing levels and exceptional care—which ultimately has a positive effect on patient satisfaction.
Not only will facilities benefit from NurseDash’s rigorous background screenings, they can also be assured that all nurses hired through NurseDash maintain the proper licenses and credentials.
Facilities also don’t have to worry about increasing costs with NurseDash. Unlike traditional staffing agencies, NurseDash cuts out the middleman, which can help facilities save money. In fact, facilities that hire through NurseDash see a 30% cost savings on average when compared to traditional staffing agencies.
If you’re ready to benefit from faster and more cost-effective staffing solutions, contact the NurseDash team here.
