Illinois Nursing Homes

Over 100,000 people live in longer nursing facilities in the State of Illinois.  Illinois is home to approximately 1,200 of these facilities.

Illinois’ Department of Public Health Agency is responsible for licensing, regulating and inspecting (annually) these facilities.   The Illinois Department of Public Health works with the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to certify these facilities for payment reimbursement programs through the federal government.

The Illinois Department of Public Health in a cooperative agreement with CMS, surveys each facility that receives funding through Medicaid and Medicare, to ensure that they are abiding by federal regulations.

The Department conducts annually, about 10,000 surveys which include: investigating complaints, inspecting the facilities, in addition to annual licensure inspections.

The Illinois Department of Public Health’s hotline handles approximately 19,000 calls a year.  More than 5000 complaints are handled by the Department’s staff as a result.

For more information about Illinois nursing homes including a listing of all nursing homes, information on selecting a nursing home, listing of nursing homes with pending disciplinary actions and a database by CMS for Medicare and Medicaid certified nursing homes, visit the Illinois Department of public Health nursing home web site http://www.idph.state.il.us/healthca/nursinghometestjava.htm.

Who regulates Illinois nursing homes?

Illinois’ nursing homes are regulated by several public and private state and federal agencies including the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

The IDPH ensures that Illinois’ nursing homes are in full compliance with mandatory state regulations.  In addition, nursing homes in Illinois who receive payments from Medicare and Medicaid, must meet federal regulations and certifications. The Illinois Department of Public Health in a cooperative agreement with CMS is responsible for ensuring that Illinois’ nursing homes are meeting these federal standards.

The Illinois Department of Public Health inspects, annually, approximately 1,300 nursing homes in on-site licensure inspections.

Known as surveys, these inspections are conducted to evaluate the nursing home, its equipment, its staff, its policies and procedures, its finances and to determine the fitness and adequacy of each facility.

Some Illinois nursing homes are members of the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).  The JCAHO conducts their own inspections for quality of service and performance.

Every nursing home survey or inspection in Illinois, is conducting by a team of surveyors.  Each team of surveyors is made up of a registered professional nurse (RN), a nutritionist and an environmental health practitioner.  Some inspections may also include other professionals such as a life safety code expert.  If there is a specific allegation or complaint,   then a professional with expertise in the area of the complaint may conduct the survey.

The inspection process generally takes three to four days to complete.  The surveyors inspect every aspect of the nursing home.  The nursing facility is assessed as to whether they are in compliance with over 1,500 state and federal standards.  The areas of inspection include resident rights, access to care, activities, assessment and care plans, health care and nutritional services, housekeeping, staffing, quality of care and quality assurance.

If one more violations are found the Illinois Department of Public Health requires that the facility submit a plan outlining the corrections which details how and when each deficiency will be corrected.  In some situations the IDPH may direct the facility with corrective measures of their own.  If the inspections find that a violation poses a serious health risk to residents or staff, the IDPH can demand that immediate action be taken to correct the violation.

In less serious situations, the IDPH will give a nursing home the opportunity to correct a deficiency without being fined or penalized.  If the IDPH finds that the deficiencies are serious enough,  they may impose a fine,   limit or stop admission to the facility,  appoint a IDPH manager to oversee operation,  issue a provisional license,  suspend or revoke a license or close a facility that is operating without a licenses.

The most common penalty assessed by the Illinois Department of Public Health is a monetary fine.  Usually in the amount of $10,000 per violation.  Fines for violating federal standards range from $50 to $10,00 per day.