Healthy Illinois 2028

Pursuant to Illinois Public Act 102-0004, Illinois develops a state health assessment (SHA) and a state health improvement plan (SHIP) every five years. A collaborative public/private cross-agency effort, the SHA and SHIP assess and recommend priorities and strategies to improve the public health system and the health status of Illinoisans, to reduce health disparities and inequities, and to promote health equity.

Healthy Illinois 2028 comprises two statewide initiatives that together work to coordinate and to align plans, processes, and resources to facilitate health improvement and advance health equity throughout the state.

SHA is a systematic approach to accessing, to analyzing, and to using data to educate and to mobilize communities, to develop priorities, to garner resources, and to plan actions to improve the public’s health.

A SHIP is a five-year systematic plan to address issues identified in the SHA. Based on the SHA, the SHIP describes how the whole state public health system and the communities it serves will work together to improve the health of the population and advance health equity.

Healthy Illinois 2028 outlines the goals, objectives, and recommended strategies to improve the health of Illinois residents and to advance health equity specifically in the priority areas identified in the SHA: chronic disease, COVID-19 and emerging diseases, maternal and infant health, mental health and substance use disorder, and racism as a public health crisis.

The SHIP builds on the work of the SHA by providing a blueprint to address the crosscutting issues of health inequities-including access to health care and wrap-around services, physical and built environment, public health system infrastructure, racial equity, and social and structural determinants of health-in addition to the state’s health priorities that emerged from the SHA. The SHIP should guide overarching statewide goals and objectives that organizations can adopt to align their work.

This plan is a dynamic document that is expected to be updated and refined as Illinois begins implementation. The SHIP’s creation was led by the Illinois Department of Public Health, but its success is dependent on all health partners-navigating and implementing these goals, objectives, and recommended strategies together to achieve better health outcomes for our residents.

Healthy Illinois 2028 represents a coordinated, aligned approach to lead health improvement and improve health equity. With a five-year timeline, the success of the overall initiative would lead to improvements in the social and structural determinants of health, the public health system infrastructure, and improvements in specific health priorities that would benefit all Illinoisans.

The Healthy Illinois 2028 initiative is supported by a SHA/SHIP Partnership, which was appointed in 2020 by IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra in consultation with Gov. JB Pritzker. The partnership was charged with the following:

1. Collaborate with IDPH and the consultant team to develop a comprehensive, equity-driven SHA/SHIP that includes data-driven strategic priorities to advance health equity in Illinois
2. Develop and implement an actionable plan with measurable objectives, owners, and timelines
3. Collaborate on the implementation of the plan and help facilitate its implementation through December 2027

Partnership members represent organizations from numerous sectors and agencies, including state agencies, health care, local public health departments, insurance agencies, education, health care associations, and other entities as representatives of a holistic public health system in Illinois. Partnership members supported the assessment phase, identification of priorities, and development of the action plan.

These priorities were collaboratively developed and supported throughout the community and stakeholder engagement processes that contributed to the Healthy Illinois 2028 initiatives. The primary goals for each priority area are outlined in the table below.

Stakeholders in the broad networks that make up the Illinois public health system are encouraged to use this SHIP as a blueprint of overarching statewide goals and objectives that their organizations can adopt to align with and to build upon their existing work. The recommended strategies may provide guidance as they seek ways to approach similar goals and objectives.

The SHIP is a living document and is intended to be monitored and built upon throughout the duration of its implementation. IDPH and the other members of the SHA/SHIP Partnership look forward to working with its partners in health improvement and advancing health equity across the state as we strive to achieve the goals and objectives of Healthy Illinois 2028.

Three virtual public hearings were held November 28, 29, and 30, 2023 where Illinoisans from across the state and representing a variety of disciplines and backgrounds had the opportunity to offer comments on the State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP).

As the next phase of the State Health Assessment (SHA)/SHIP process begins, the ideas and recommendations voiced by the public will be shared with the action teams as they work to develop and to implement actionable plans to advance the goals of the five SHIP priorities and the crosscutting issues to improve the health and wellbeing of all Illinoisans.

Disclaimer: The statewide hearings were scheduled for three hours each day, but testimony from witnesses did not always fill the allotted time. The recordings have been edited only to remove extended periods of silence when there was no testimony.

• Healthy Illinois 2028 Summary
• Healthy Illinois 2028 Key Highlights
• State Health Improvement Plan
• State Health Assessment
• Forces of Change Assessment Report
  
• Health Equity Capacity Assessment Report
• Community Health Status Assessment Report
• Community Engagement Report