Illinois now holds assisted living homes to a higher standard when screening for Alzheimer’s

New screening rules took effect in January

Illinois now requires assisted living and shared housing facilities to use updated, expert-approved tools when they screen new residents for Alzheimer’s and dementia.

House Bill 3328 took effect on Jan. 1, 2026, after Gov. JB Pritzker signed it into law on Aug. 15, 2025.

The law amends the state’s Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act and changes the way facilities evaluate a person’s cognitive health before admission.

Old tool list got replaced

Illinois already required a physician assessment before someone could move into an assisted living or shared housing facility.

But the old rules locked providers into a specific list of cognitive screening tools written directly into state law.

That list included the Functional Activities Questionnaire, the Clock Drawing Test, and Functional Assessment Staging. HB 3328 scraps that fixed list.

Facilities now must use tools approved or recommended by recognized Alzheimer’s and dementia care experts.

Screening tools must keep up with science

The new law sets a higher bar for the tools themselves.

Each one must be validated for accurately identifying cognitive problems tied to Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Facilities also need to review and update their tools as clinical standards evolve.

That’s a big deal because it means the state no longer needs to pass a new law every time the science of dementia diagnosis moves forward. The standard adjusts on its own.

Old tools had grown outdated and costly

LeadingAge Illinois, an industry group that backed the bill, said the previous list of tools had fallen behind. Some of the old instruments were proprietary, which made them expensive for providers.

The new law lets facilities choose the most current and well-tested tools available. Instead of naming specific instruments, the law focuses on a quality standard.

That shift gives providers more flexibility while still protecting residents.

Lawmakers passed the bill unanimously

State Rep. Natalie Manley, a Democrat who chairs the House Health Care Availability and Accessibility Committee, sponsored the bill.

It cleared the Illinois House 114 to 0 and the Senate 58 to 0, with Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel sponsoring it on the Senate side. No organized opposition came up during the legislative process.

That kind of bipartisan support is rare, but senior care bills tend to draw broad agreement.

Pritzker signed several senior care bills

HB 3328 was not the only senior care bill Pritzker signed last August.

He also signed HB 1597, which strengthens protections against improper discharge of residents from assisted living facilities.

Another new law, HB 2179, now requires assisted living communities to report incidents that cause significant physical harm to a resident.

Together, these bills update Illinois rules on admissions, discharges, and safety reporting in one sweep.

Alzheimer’s affects thousands across Illinois

About 250,600 Illinois residents aged 65 and older live with Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association’s 2025 report.

An estimated 316,000 people across the state serve as unpaid family caregivers for loved ones with the disease. The statewide death rate from Alzheimer’s sits at about 32.6 per 100,000 people.

Illinois ranks among the top 10 states with the highest rates of the disease.

Millions of Americans live with the disease

The numbers stretch far beyond Illinois. Nationwide, an estimated 7.2 million Americans aged 65 and older live with Alzheimer’s.

That works out to about one in nine people in that age group. Deaths from the disease more than doubled between 2000 and 2022.

Total yearly care costs for people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias could reach about $384 billion in 2025, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Illinois led the nation on dementia training

Illinois has a track record on dementia policy. In 2022, it became the first state to require all healthcare workers with continuing education requirements to complete training on Alzheimer’s diagnosis and care.

The state’s Alzheimer’s Disease Plan dates back to 1987 and gets updated every three years.

Illinois also funds three Regional Alzheimer’s Disease Assistance Centers and runs a Supportive Living Program that offers Medicaid-funded dementia care as an alternative to nursing homes.

Families can ask about screening tools

If you’re placing a loved one in assisted living, the facility now must use up-to-date, expert-approved tools to evaluate cognitive health before admission.

The physician assessment must still happen within 120 days of admission and must cover physical, cognitive, and psychosocial condition. Annual reassessments are still required, or sooner if a resident’s health changes.

Families have the right to ask which tools a facility uses and whether they meet the new standard.

Physicians still run the assessments

The law does not create a brand-new screening requirement. It updates the tools used in an existing process.

A physician must still complete the assessment, and that has not changed. The admission and retention rules remain the same too.

Facilities still cannot admit or keep residents who need total help with two or more daily living activities, or who pose a danger to themselves or others.

State regulators will shape enforcement next

The Illinois Department of Public Health oversees licensing for assisted living and shared housing facilities.

How the department enforces the new tool standard, and which specific tools it approves, may become clearer through guidance or rulemaking later in 2026.

Advocates say early and accurate cognitive screening helps match residents to the right level of care. With Illinois’s Alzheimer’s population expected to keep growing, more policy updates could follow.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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