HOSPITAL COLLECTION LIENS

Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB4461

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Full Text of HB4461

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HB4461 - 104th General Assembly

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HB4461 Enrolled
LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

AN ACT concerning regulation.

2

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3
represented in the General Assembly:

4

Section 5.
The Fair Patient Billing Act is amended by
5
changing Section 30 as follows:

6

(210 ILCS 88/30)
7

Sec. 30.
Pursuing collection action.
8

(a) Hospitals and their agents may pursue collection
9
action against an uninsured patient only if the following
10
conditions are met:
11

(1) The hospital has complied with the screening
12

requirements set forth in Section 16 and applied and
13

exhausted any discount available to a patient under
14

Section 10 of the Hospital Uninsured Patient Discount Act.
15

(2) The hospital has given the uninsured patient the
16

opportunity to:
17

(A) assess the accuracy of the bill;
18

(B) apply for financial assistance under the
19

hospital's financial assistance policy; and
20

(C) avail themselves of a reasonable payment plan.
21

(3) If the uninsured patient has indicated an
22

inability to pay the full amount of the debt in one
23

payment, the hospital has offered the patient a reasonable

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

payment plan. The hospital may require the uninsured
2

patient to provide reasonable verification of his or her
3

inability to pay the full amount of the debt in one
4

payment.
5

(4) To the extent the hospital provides financial
6

assistance and the circumstances of the uninsured patient
7

suggest the potential for eligibility for charity care,
8

the uninsured patient has been given at least 90 days
9

following the date of discharge or receipt of outpatient
10

care to submit an application for financial assistance and
11

shall be provided assistance with the application in
12

compliance with subsection (a) of Section 16 and Section
13

27.
14

(5) If the uninsured patient has agreed to a
15

reasonable payment plan with the hospital, and the patient
16

has failed to make payments in accordance with that
17

reasonable payment plan.
18

(6) If the uninsured patient informs the hospital that
19

he or she has applied for health care coverage under a
20

public health insurance program (and there is a reasonable
21

basis to believe that the patient will qualify for such
22

program) but the patient's application is denied.
23

(a-5) A hospital shall proactively offer information on
24
charity care options available to uninsured patients,
25
regardless of their immigration status or residency.
26

(b) A hospital may not refer a bill, or portion thereof, to

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1
a collection agency or attorney for collection action against
2
the insured patient, without first ensuring compliance with
3
Section 16 and offering the patient the opportunity to request
4
a reasonable payment plan for the amount personally owed by
5
the patient. Such an opportunity shall be made available for
6
the 90 days following the date of the initial bill. If the
7
insured patient requests a reasonable payment plan, but fails
8
to agree to a plan within 90 days of the request, the hospital
9
may proceed with collection action against the patient.
10

(c) No collection agency, law firm, or individual may
11
initiate legal action for non-payment of a hospital bill
12
against a patient without the written approval of an
13
authorized hospital employee who reasonably believes that the
14
conditions for pursuing collection action under this Section
15
have been met.
16

(c-5) For any legal action initiated against a patient for
17
unpaid medical debt, a hospital may not file for or be granted
18
a lien upon that patient's primary residence.

19

(d) Nothing in this Section prohibits a hospital from
20
engaging an outside third party agency, firm, or individual to
21
manage the process of implementing the hospital's financial
22
assistance and reasonable payment plan programs and policies
23
so long as such agency, firm, or individual is contractually
24
bound to comply with the terms of this Act.
25
(Source: P.A. 102-504, eff. 12-1-21; 103-323, eff. 1-1-24
.)

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

Section 10.
The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by
2
changing Section 12-101 as follows:

3

(735 ILCS 5/12-101)

(from Ch. 110, par. 12-101)
4

Sec. 12-101.
Lien of judgment.
With respect to the
5
creation of liens on real estate by judgments, all real estate
6
in the State of Illinois is divided into 2 classes.
7

The first class consists of all real property, the title
8
to which is registered under "An Act concerning land titles",
9
approved May 1, 1897, as amended.
10

The second class consists of all real property not
11
registered under "An Act concerning land titles".
12

As to real estate in class one, a judgment is a lien on the
13
real estate of the person against whom it is entered for the
14
same period as in class two, when Section 85 of "An Act
15
concerning land titles", has been complied with.
16

As to real estate included within class two, a judgment is
17
a lien on the real estate of the person against whom it is
18
entered in any county in this State, including the county in
19
which it is entered, only from the time a transcript,
20
certified copy or memorandum of the judgment is filed in the
21
office of the recorder in the county in which the real estate
22
is located. The lien may be foreclosed by an action brought in
23
the name of the judgment creditor or its assignee of record
24
under Article XV in the same manner as a mortgage of real
25
property, except that the redemption period shall be 6 months

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1
from the date of sale and the real estate homestead exemption
2
under Section 12-901 shall apply. A judgment resulting from
3
the entry of an order requiring child support payments shall
4
be a lien upon the real estate of the person obligated to make
5
the child support payments, but shall not be enforceable in
6
any county of this State until a transcript, certified copy,
7
or memorandum of the lien is filed in the office of the
8
recorder in the county in which the real estate is located. Any
9
lien hereunder arising out of an order for support shall be a
10
lien only as to and from the time that an installment or
11
payment is due under the terms of the order. Further, the order
12
for support shall not be a lien on real estate to the extent of
13
payments made as evidenced by the records of the Clerk of the
14
Circuit Court or State agency receiving payments pursuant to
15
the order. In the event payments made pursuant to that order
16
are not paid to the Clerk of the Circuit Court or a State
17
agency, then each lien imposed by this Section may be released
18
in the following manner:

19

(a) A Notice of Filing and an affidavit stating that
20

all installments of child support required to be paid
21

pursuant to the order under which the lien or liens were
22

imposed have been paid shall be filed with the office of
23

recorder in each county in which each such lien appears of
24

record, together with proof of service of such notice and
25

affidavit upon the recipient of such payments.

26

(b) Service of such affidavit shall be by any means

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

authorized under Sections 2-203 and 2-208 of the Code of
2

Civil Procedure or under Supreme Court Rules 11 or 105(b).

3

(c) The Notice of Filing shall set forth the name and
4

address of the judgment debtor and the judgment creditor,
5

the court file number of the order giving rise to the
6

judgment and, in capital letters, the following statement:

7

YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED THAT ON (insert date) THE
8

ATTACHED AFFIDAVIT WAS FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE RECORDER
9

OF .... COUNTY, ILLINOIS, WHOSE ADDRESS IS ........,
10

ILLINOIS. IF, WITHIN 28 DAYS OF THE DATE OF THIS NOTICE,
11

YOU FAIL TO FILE AN AFFIDAVIT OBJECTING TO THE RELEASE OF
12

THE STATED JUDGMENT LIEN OR LIENS, IN THE ABOVE OFFICE,
13

SUCH JUDGMENT LIEN WILL BE DEEMED TO BE RELEASED AND NO
14

LONGER SUBJECT TO FORECLOSURE. THIS RELEASE OF LIEN WILL
15

NOT ACT AS A SATISFACTION OF SUCH JUDGMENT.

16

(d) If no affidavit objecting to the release of the
17

lien or liens is filed within 28 days of the Notice
18

described in paragraph (c) of this Section such lien or
19

liens shall be deemed to be released and no longer subject
20

to foreclosure.
21

A judgment is not a lien on real estate for longer than 7
22
years from the time it is entered or revived, unless the
23
judgment is revived within 7 years after its entry or last
24
revival and a new memorandum of judgment is recorded prior to
25
the judgment and its recorded memorandum of judgment becoming
26
dormant.

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

When a judgment is revived it is a lien on the real estate
2
of the person against whom it was entered in any county in this
3
State from the time a transcript, certified copy or memorandum
4
of the order of revival is filed in the office of the recorder
5
in the county in which the real estate is located.
6

A foreign judgment registered or filed pursuant to
7
Sections 12-630 through 12-672 of this Act is a lien upon the
8
real estate of the person against whom it was entered only from
9
the time (1) a copy of the affidavit required by Section 12-653
10
with a copy of the foreign judgment attached showing the
11
filing in a court of this State or (2) a transcript, certified
12
copy or memorandum of a final judgment of the court of this
13
State entered on an action to enforce a foreign judgment is
14
filed in the office of the recorder in the county in which the
15
real estate is located. However, no such judgment shall be a
16
lien on any real estate registered under "An Act concerning
17
land titles", as amended, until Section 85 of that Act has been
18
complied with.
19

The release of any transcript, certified copy or
20
memorandum of judgment or order of revival which has been
21
recorded shall be filed by the person receiving the release in
22
the office of the recorder in which such judgment or order has
23
been recorded.
24

Such release shall contain in legible letters a statement
25
as follows:

26

FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE OWNER, THIS RELEASE SHALL BE

HB4461 Enrolled
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LRB104 16887 BAB 30298 b
1

FILED WITH THE RECORDER OR THE REGISTRAR OF TITLES IN
2

WHOSE OFFICE THE LIEN WAS FILED.
3

The term "memorandum" as used in this Section means a
4
memorandum or copy of the judgment signed by a judge or a copy
5
attested by the clerk of the court entering it and showing the
6
court in which entered, date, amount, number of the case in
7
which it was entered, name of the party in whose favor and name
8
and last known address of the party against whom entered. If
9
the address of the party against whom the judgment was entered
10
is not known, the memorandum or copy of judgment shall so
11
state.
12

The term "memorandum" as used in this Section also means a
13
memorandum or copy of a child support order signed by a judge
14
or a copy attested by the clerk of the court entering it or a
15
copy attested by the administrative body entering it.
16

This Section shall not be construed as showing an
17
intention of the legislature to create a new classification of
18
real estate, but shall be construed as showing an intention of
19
the legislature to continue a classification already existing.
20

No judgment relating to unpaid medical debt may create a
21
lien on real property owned by the patient against whom the
22
judgment is entered that is the primary residence of the
23
patient.
24
(Source: P.A. 97-350, eff. 1-1-12; 98-557, eff. 1-1-14.)

25

Section 99.
Effective date.
This Act takes effect on
26
January 1, 2027.

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