Planning Process

The path toward EngAging Illinois began in 2021, when the Health & Medicine Policy Research Group (HMPRG), a think tank in Chicago championing health equity, with support from the Chicago-based RRF Foundation for Aging and the Chicago Community Trust launched Illinois Aging Together, a coalition to spur the development of a multisector plan for our state.

This effort rallied support from hundreds of organizations and individuals from a wide variety of sectors, including many Area Agencies on Aging and partners from the aging and disability services network. Roundtable discussions in 2023 built consensus around the benefits of a plan that calls on local and state government to take an active role in:

• Helping older Illinoisans, their caregivers, and all of us as we age; and
• Improving equity and age-friendliness by modifying policies across the spectrum, from housing and transportation to financial protection and workforce development.

The momentum led Governor JB Pritzker to sign Executive Order 2024-02 on August 13, 2024. It called for the completion of a Multisector Plan for Aging by December 31, 2025, mandating “a comprehensive strategic plan that includes measurable outcomes for calendar years 2026 through 2036 with the goal of strengthening Illinois as an aging-friendly state.”

The order said the Plan should recommend actions that would:

• Address age-related demographic changes and their impact.
• Strengthen care infrastructure and support caregivers.
• Improve the quality, accessibility, and availability of long-term services and supports to better enable older persons to remain in their homes and communities.
• Protect financial security and prevent fraud and financial exploitation.
• Expand access to technology and bridge the digital divide.
• Advance health equity in the context of aging.

The order established two entities to undertake this planning effort:

• An Interagency Task Force, with representatives from 15 state agencies, to help coordinate the Plan’s goals and recommendations.
• A Community Advisory Council of 25 people appointed by the Governor to reflect the State’s geographic, racial, cultural, and socioeconomic diversity.

The Interagency Task Force and the Community Advisory Council conducted several meetings, including three joint public gatherings. IDoA and HMPRG convened nine public engagement sessions in late 2025 to solicit additional input on challenges facing older adults, discuss regional-specific needs and ideas, and hear from members of the public, older persons, caregivers, direct service providers, and policy advocates, with an emphasis on underrepresented and rural communities.

Three of these sessions were virtual; the others were held in Springfield, Chicago, Carbondale, East St. Louis, Lansing, and Rockford.

Participants highlighted many common challenges and opportunities across the state, often emphasizing the need for:

• Improved public transportation, more affordable and accessible housing;
• Enhanced caregiver support;
• Expanded community engagement and social connection opportunities;
• Better access to technology;
• Equitable health care for marginalized communities;
• Increased attention to the “forgotten middle” and those in need of more supports; and
• Easier access to food and financial security to ensure Illinoisans can age well.

This sustained, statewide listening process generated the four key areas on which the Multisector Plan should focus, as well as several hundred ideas for strategies and actions:

EngAging Illinois: A Comprehensive Plan for Aging Well was completed in December 2025 and announced in January 2026. Read the full plan.  

On May 20, 2026, the Governor signed Executive Order #2026-05 establishing the EngAging Illinois Multisector Plan for Aging Commission to “guide, coordinate, and oversee implementation of EngAging Illinois across State government and its partner organizations.” Read the release.