Nursing Home Reform in Illinois

Nursing Home Safety Task Force

On October 3, 2009, Governor Pat Quinn formed the Illinois Nursing Home Safety Task Force.  The Task Force was charged with addressing the serious issue of mixing populations of persons with mental illness with the elderly and other physically disabled. 

On February 19, 2010, the Task Force released its Final Report to the Governor.  The Final Report includes 38 recommendations applying to persons with mental illness that currently occupy nursing home beds. 

Three broad categories are used to organize the recommendations:

• Enhance Pre-Admission Screening and Background Check Process,
• Set and Enforce Higher Standards of Care, and
• Expand Home and Community-Based Residential and Service Options.

Task Force on Aggressive Timeline for Reform

Task Force chairperson Michael Gelder has set an aggressive timeline to achieve the proposed recommendations.  Nine “Immediate Implementation Workgroups” have been assigned to implement recommendations by April 30^th, 2010.  These workgroups will focus on areas including:

• Pre-Admission Screen and Resident Review (PASRR) enhancement,
• Criminal Background Checks,
• Psychotropic Drugs, and
• Supportive Housing Expansion.

Center for Long-Term Care Reform Influences Task Force

Illinois leads the nation in caring for persons with mental illness in nursing homes.  Health & Medicine’s Center for Long-Term Care Reform recently produced on the subject, looking historically at how Illinois finds itself in this current situation, “Illinois Nursing Homes as Care Providers for Mentally Ill: How Did We Get Here?”  The Center for Long-Term Care Reform has also researched the federal Pre-Admission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR) program and submitted a report on PASRR to the Task Force.

 

Recognition from Federal Government & Moving Forward

The Illinois Nursing Home Safety Task Force has done a great job at convening the major state departments and producing recommendations to reform the current system of nursing home referral, admission, and care.  There has been a lot of movement around nursing home reform since the inception of the Task Force:

• In a letter to chairperson Michael Gelder, Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez of the United States Department of Justice expressed praise for the reform the Task Force promises.
• A Chicago Tribune article publicized Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office and local police are performing unannounced visits and safety checks at troubled nursing facilities as a result of the Task Force.
• Multiple parties are drafting legislation for nursing home reform: the Nursing Home Safety Task Force, advocates for the elderly and mentally ill (AARP and others), and the nursing home industry.