DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH.

I. ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT.

1. Executive Officers.

A Director, an Assistant Director, and a Superintendent of Lodging House Inspection comprise the executive officers of the Department of Public Health. (Secs. 4 and 5, Code.)

2. Nonexecutive Officers.

The advisory functions of this department are exercised by five public health advisors. (Sec. 6, Code.)

3. Seal.

Departments are required to adopt and authenticate their acts by an official seal. (Sec. 19, Code.)

4. Central and Branch Offices.

Each department is required to maintain a central office at the Capitol. Branch offices for the conduct of a particular function of the department may be established and maintained at other places by the Director with the approval of the Governor. (Sec. 17, Code.)

5. Employees, Civil Service.

From those who are in the classified civil service of the State on July 1, 1917, in the office, board, commission or institution coming under the supervision and control of the department, each employee is to be assigned to a position in the department, having so far as possible duties equal to his former office or employment, provided no more are employed than are necessary to the proper performance of the functions of the department. (Sec. 24, Code.)

Departments have power, subject to civil service laws, to employ all other necessary employees and fix their compensation, when their compensation has not been theretofore determined by law. (Sec. 20, Code.)

6. Rules and Regulations.

It is the duty of the Director to prescribe rules and regulations for the government of his department, the conduct of its employees, the distribution and performance of its business and the custody, use and preservation of the property, records and documents. (Sec. 16, Code.)

7. Cooperation, Coordination and Efficiency.

The Director is to devise a practical system of cooperation and coordination of the work of the department to eliminate all duplication and overlapping of functions, and to economize, whenever practicable, in the use of quarters and equipment. With the consent of the superior officer of the employee, the Director may require an employee of another department to perform any duty that is required of his own employees. (Sec. 26, Code.)

8. Moneys, Disposition.

All State funds or moneys received by a department must be turned into the State treasury within ten days of receipt without any deduction whatsoever. (See 27, Code.)

9. Expenditures.

Departments are forbidden to make expenditures except in consequence of an appropriation duly made and upon the warrant of the Auditor of Public Accounts. (Sec. 27, Code.)

10. Reports.

In addition to the semi-annual and biennial reports provided for by the Constitution, the Director is required to make on or before December annually to the Governor, and whenever otherwise requested, written report concerning the condition, management and financial transactions of the depart(Sec. 25, Code.)

ment.

11. Generally.

II. POWERS AND DUTIES.1

The Department of Public Health is to

Have general supervision of the health and lives of the people of this State;

Advise relative to public water supplies, water purification works, sewerage systems, and sewerage treatment works;

Exercise supervision over water and sewerage nuisances and make and enforce rules and regulations relative to the same;

Conduct sanitary investigations when deemed necessary for the preservation and improvement of public health;

Investigate nuisances and questions affecting the security of life and health in any locality in the State;

Maintain chemical, bacteriological and biological laboratories;

Conduct examinations of milk, water, sewage, wastes and other substances;

Diagnose diseases when deemed necessary for the people's protec tion;

Purchase and distribute to citizens of the State, free of charge, diphtheria antitoxin, typhoid vaccine, smallpox vaccine and other recognized sera vaccines and prophylactics;

Obtain, collect and preserve useful information relative to mortality, morbidity disease and health;

Investigate the causes of diseases, especially the causes of mortality, the effect of localities and other conditions acting upon public health;

Keep informed of the work of local health officers and agencies; Assist local health authorities or agencies in the administration of health laws;

Promote the information of the general public in all health matters;

Enlist the cooperation of physicians' organizations and other health agencies in the improvement of health and sanitary conditions; Make sanitary, sewage, health and other inspections and examina tions for the charitable, penal and reformatory institutions and normal schools;

Inspect all hospitals, sanitary and other municipal institutions and report their conditions and needs to the authorities having juris tion;

Print, publish and distribute documents, reports, bulletins, certifi cates relating to the prevention of diseases, health and sanitary conditions;

And generally, exercise the rights, powers and duties vested by law in the former State Board of Health and its officers, except as to the practice of medicine, midwifery and the regulation and examination of embalmers, which are included in the duties and powers of the Department of Registration and Education. (Sec. 55, Code.) The former State Board of Health could discharge the duties of county and township boards of health in cases of their neglect and refusal to act in time of epidemics (County and Township Board of Health Act, Sec. 1). The Department of Public Health is required by the Public Health Districts Act to

Give notice and conduct competitive examinations for public health officers (Sec. 16).

12. State Board of Health Act.

By the State Board of Health Act, the former State Board of Health was given authority to2

Declare, enforce, modify or relax quarantine;

Prescribe rules and regulations for sanitation;

Regulate transportation of the remains of deceased persons;

Investigate the cause of dangerously contagious or infectious diseases, especially when epidemic;

Take proper measurers to suppress dangerously contagious and infectious diseases that have become epidemic and when the local authorities have refused or neglected to act promptly and efficiently (Sec. 2);

Prepare forms for the record of births, marriages and deaths (Sec. 9). Under the Amendatory Act of April 21, 1899, the former State Board of Health was required to

Inspect all lodging-houses, boarding houses, taverns, inns and hotels in cities of 100,000 inhabitants or more to see that the provisions of said Act were complied with (Sec. 15);

Prepare and provide blanks for statements required to be filed under section 18 of said Act by landlords, proprietors, keepers and managers of lodging-houses, etc. (Sec. 18); and

Prescribe rules and regulations concerning the distribution and sale of diphtheria antitoxin (Sec. 20).

13. Vital Statistics Act.

The Vital Statistics Act required the former State Board of Health toPrepare and keep all of the original records relative to registration of births, stillbirths and deaths throughout the State (Sec. 1); Establish registration districts consisting of a city, village and incorporated town and a township in counties under township organization (excepting that portion of the township constituting a separate registration district), and a road district in counties not under township organization (excepting that portion of the road district constituting a separate registration district); Subdivide registration districts outside of cities, villages or incorporated towns of less than 100,000 population, or combine into one district two or more registration districts;

Appoint local registrars for each newly created district (Sec. 3); Require the making of postal card reports of births upon request of health officers (Sec. 12);

Prescribe the form of register or record to be kept by cemeteries or other place of disposition of a human body (Sec. 11);

2 Only such powers are here stated as are

not expressly covered by the Civil Administra

tive code.

Prescribe all forms of reports of births, stillbirths and deaths;

Print and supply all local registrars with a sufficient number of blank forms, except the short forms of postal cards for the report | ing of births;.

Prepare and issue detailed instructions to secure uniform enforcement of this Act;

Approve such blank forms of local authorities as are not inconsistent with the State forms and that are required to be used under ordinance;

Examine monthly certificates received from registrars;

Arrange, bind and permanently preserve said certificates;

Prepare and maintain comprehensive card-indexes of all registered births and deaths;

Publish annual report of births and deaths (Sec. 17);

Certify to each county clerk the number of births, stillbirths and deaths registered in the county, the names of persons entitled to the prescribed fees, and the statutory amount due each (Sec 19); Furnish certified copy of record of any birth, stillbirth or death to any applicant upon his request and payment of 50 cents fee (Sec. 20); and

Enforce the provisions of this Act and report violations to prosecuting attorneys or to proper State's attorneys (Sec. 22).

14. Ophthalmia Neonatorum Act.

The State Board of Health under the Ophthalmia Neonatorum Act is charged with the duty of

Providing all authorized obstetricians free of charge scientific prophylactic for ophthalmia neonatorum;

Publishing and distributing throughout the State and to physicians and midwives information concerning the dangers of ophthalmia neonatorum;

Preparing and furnishing free of charge to local health authorities appropriate blanks;

Reporting violations to proper prosecuting attorneys. (Sec. 4.)

15. Barbers' Act.

Under the Barbers' Act, the former State Board of Health was required to

Approve sanitation rules and regulations for barber shops adopted by the State Board of Barbers' Examiners. (Now the Department of Registration and Education) Sec. 11.

16. Lodging House Act.

By the Lodging House Act, the former State Board of Health was required to

Formulate sanitation rules for inns, hotels, or public lodging houses (Sec. 5);

Print and forward to each hotel, inn or public lodging house a sufficient number of copies of the Lodging House Act (Sec. 7).

17. Occupational Diseases Act.

The Occupational Diseases Act required the former State Board of Health to

Prepare and furnish blanks for physical examinations to detect occupational diseases (Sec. 4);

Transmit physical examination reports concerning occupational diseases to the Illinois Department of Factory Inspection (Sec. 5).

18. Rabies' Act.

By the Rabies' Act, the former State Board of Health was required to— Select an institution for the treatment of poor persons suffering from rabies (Sec. 1).

19. Nonexecutive Duties.

The general powers and duties of the advisory and nonexecutive officers are to

Consider and study the entire field of the particular department;
Advise the executive officers of the department upon their request;
Recommend policies and practices upon their own initiative;

Make recommendations and render advice to the Governor and to
the General Assembly;

Investigate the conduct of the work of the department;
Adopt rules;

Hold at least quarterly meetings;

Notify the Governor and the Director of the department of the time and place of all meetings, and permit them to be present; and Keep public minutes, to be filed with the Director. (Sec. 8, Code.)