Legislation prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic was recently signed into law. The bill was filed in response to the heartbreaking isolation that residents of long-term care facilities felt during the pandemic. It was sponsored in the spring by Senator Jil Tracy of Quincy.
“We were restricting visitors, but we realized that there were people dying alone and that there were young children who were placed in facilities because of their physical or mental restrictions and did not have the benefit of having access to a parent during that period of time.”
Under the new law… a statewide policy for visiting loved ones during public health emergencies will be established. It will let residents name an essential support person that would not be subject to visitation restrictions.
***Courtesy of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services***
