Ensuring Health for All Ages

Deliver highly coordinated care and services to individuals and caregivers by increasing collaboration and communication among health, social, and community long-term care services and supports organizations and providers. 

• Encourage the adoption of alternatives to the full revocation of rights for adults with age-related disabilities such as power of attorney, supported decision-making, etc. (Short-term)

• Explore and promote best practices and procedures for transitions between care settings and providers and involve caregivers in the process. (Mid-term)

• Promote expansion of the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program, offering comprehensive health services for older adults living in the community who would otherwise qualify to live in a nursing facility, to all regions of Illinois. (Mid-term) 

• Support individuals who are aging in prison by collaboratively working to develop residential units that are specific to individuals with dementia or in need of palliative care and long-term care and other aging-related high needs, and training security and nonmedical staff on how to work with individuals with dementia. (Long-term)

• Facilitate integrated, statewide referrals and bidirectional communication and service coordination among health, mental health, community (long-term care services and supports) and public health providers, including for those returning to the community from incarceration and explore the feasibility and interoperability of secure data sharing of health records across all care settings, respecting privacy laws. (Long-term) 

Ensure equitable, disability-inclusive, and affordable access to culturally attuned, high-quality healthcare as we age.

• Explore the expansion of services provided by Veteran Service Officers into non-VA facilities. (Short-term)

• Evaluate and if needed, update the various State Bills of Rights to ensure the rights and protections of older adults are clearly enumerated, with a special focus on older adult populations that are historically underserved and/or marginalized. (Short-term)

• Support goal-oriented care (e.g., healthcare power of attorney, financial power of attorney, Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST), and advanced directives) as tools to minimize the need for more intensive use strategies, such as plenary guardianship. (Short-term) 

• Increase availability and use of care delivery options including community venues for service delivery (e.g., pharmacies, mobile vans, community faith partners) and telehealth to connect older adults with health services. (Mid-term)

• Expand equitable access to health promotion opportunities, including programs focused on exercise, social engagement, healthy food, and cognitive stimulation activities for healthier brains and dementia prevention, particularly within marginalized populations. (Mid-term)

• Explore funding, coverage and access to routine and preventive health services in addition to behavioral health, and chronic disease management. (Mid-term)

• Build upon existing efforts to improve skilled nursing facility quality through enforcement of state and federal regulations, use of staffing ratios, career development and mentorship programs for certified nursing assistants, and strengthening the partnership between public health and the State Ombudsman. (Mid-term) 

• Address disparities in care access and quality for underserved populations across groups (race/LGBTQIA+/ disability/justice-involvement) and geographic zones (urban/suburban/rural). (Long-term)

• Use shared, evidence-based models to track health needs, including brain health, chronic conditions, and social supports. (Long-term)

• Coordinate the provision of hospice and palliative care in home and community-based service programs. (Longterm)

• Work to expand affordable health coverage for all older adults, including mid-income (“forgotten middle”) groups through expanded eligibility and innovative financing. (Long-term) 

Create seamless, person-centered, culturally attuned, trauma-informed care service navigation to meet the short- and long-term care needs of all of us as we age.

• Develop EngAge Central to serve as a centralized hub for resources and service navigation. (See Special Initiatives) (Short-term)

• Promote development of comprehensive, cross-agency referrals for streamlined service access. (Short-term)

• Expand use of Community Health Workers to deliver culturally and linguistically appropriate navigation support. (Mid-term) 

• Ensure access to personal health information through online portals, apps, and hotlines including user training or professional navigation assistance. (Mid-term)

• Combat ageism and ableism in healthcare and work to coordinate and align disability and aging services. (Longterm) 

Expand the recruitment, training, retention, and quality of a diverse health care workforce (including the geriatrics workforce) and augment the training of health and social service providers who interface with older adults and people with disabilities with knowledge and skills to address common conditions impacting older adults. 

• Promote geriatrics careers for students from diverse backgrounds at all levels (high school to medical school), prioritizing recruitment from diverse and underrepresented groups, especially rural communities by offering tuition reimbursement, higher wages, and other financial incentives. (Short-term)

• Increase training in geriatrics and aging and disability for all healthcare and aging service providers including topics of anti-ageism, anti-racism, LGBTQIA, caregiver communication, and motivational interviewing skills through online, in-person and hybrid training formats. (Mid-term)

• Integrate geriatrics and age-related topics (like dementia, behavioral care, falls prevention, social isolation, medication management, and nutrition) into all residency and certificate programs and advocate for more geriatrics-related residency and fellowship positions nationally. Explore restoration of longer geriatrics fellowship programs to support research. (Mid-term) 

• Support the expansion of Community Health Worker programs focused on geriatrics, with required aging certification. (Mid-term)

• Support retiring healthcare workers who wish to pursue part-time work helping to educate and train new healthcare workers, such as in nursing, where there is a shortage of faculty and preceptors. (Mid-term) 

Increase attention to the “4Ms” of age-friendly care — What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility – and increase the number of health care settings that are trained and receive designation in this model.

• Support 4Ms education across sectors and in the community so adults of all ages can attend to their own health and advocate for appropriate care in health systems. (Mid-term)

• Explore implementation of the 4Ms-Behavioral Health across mental health care settings. (Mid-term) 

Build the general population's awareness, knowledge, and skills about aging, the importance of early- and mid-life health, and the resources available to support people across the lifespan. 

• Increase statewide visibility of the Aging Network and its senior centers, adult day programs, and senior housing to connect Illinoisans with supports and services and partner with age-friendly and dementia-friendly communities on broader wellness initiatives. (Short-term)

• Expand access to multi-lingual, evidence-based health education and skills training in a variety of settings, methods, and community locations tailored to specific cultural and literacy needs. (Short-term)

• Support, promote, and expand existing public health and prevention efforts including: 

• DPH’s Healthy Illinois 2028, multi-faceted Dementia Program, Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program, and Wise Women initiative, as well as ongoing substance use, vaccine education, and suicide prevention efforts. 

• The Illinois Falls Prevention Coalition, an active multi-sector collaboration including state agencies IDoA and IDPH along with AAAs, Care Coordination Units, local public health departments, hospitals, universities, fire departments, older adults and more. (Short to Mid-term)

• Explore methods to recruit and train volunteers to assist with home tasks, deliver meals, transportation, friendly visiting, or provide dementia caregiver respite. (Mid-term)

• Expand intergenerational programs to build empathy and caregiving skills across the lifespan. (Mid-term) 

Support and expand the Brain Health Project launched by the Illinois Department of Public Health and enable Illinois to become the most brain healthy state in the U.S. 

• Identify, convene and facilitate collaboration between partners interested in brain health including advocacy organizations, academia, health and social service providers, local governments, and all who are committed to improving and preserving brain health and cognition. (Short-term)

• Collaborate with and align efforts with the IDPH State Dementia Program and the State of Illinois Alzheimer’s Disease Plan. (Short-term)

• Promote public education and increase awareness of brain health information and resources. (Short-term) 

• Promote brain health education for health, social service, and other service delivery providers including caregivers, Community Health Workers, and those in training to enter or reenter the workforce. (Mid-term)

• Promote the development of Memory Cafés and other innovative approaches to support brain health and cognition. (Mid-term)

• Work to translate existing research into policy, programs, and practice. (See Special Initiative 3: Academic Collaborative)  (Long-term)