SPRINGFIELD – In Illinois last year, an estimated 25,832 people experienced homelessness. State Senator Mary Edly-Allen worked alongside State Representative Lindsey LaPointe to champion a new law that will increase the accessibility of resources available to help homeless individuals.

“People experiencing homelessness are often in and out of emergency rooms. Hospital staff, like social workers, are usually under-equipped to connect our unhoused neighbors to services. It is difficult to find resources and we do not have enough emergency shelters to meet the needs,” said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “This law solves one of those problems — by providing clear information online on how to begin the process to access shelter and services.”

House Bill 3761 directs the Illinois Department of Human Services’ Office to Prevent and End Homelessness to post information on their website on how a hospital or health care provider can connect a patient who is experiencing homelessness with shelter and support services for each of the 19 continuums of care in the state.

A continuum of care (CoC) is a regional or local planning body mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that coordinates homelessness services and funding for families and individuals. Resources provided include permanent or transitional housing, and rental assistance with the goal of moving people experiencing homelessness into stable, long-term housing.

Under the new law, information has to be added onto the website by Jan. 31, 2026 and updated every July and January thereafter. This must include every CoC’s phone number, email address, physical address, primary homeless service agencies, and any other information necessary for someone to begin accessing shelter or other services.

"Although we have been building up our homeless service system in Illinois, we still have a long way to go. In suburban Cook County, it takes a single adult with no children an average of 117 days to access shelter and the ‘front door’ to shelter is often complicated and unclear,” said LaPointe (D-Chicago). “House Bill 3761 requires the Office to Prevent and End Homelessness to post updated public information on how one would begin to access homeless services across Illinois. This is particularly helpful for health care settings, as people experiencing homelessness often cycle through hospitals and emergency rooms and are currently missing opportunities for support and service connection."

House Bill 3761 was signed into law on Friday and goes into effect Jan. 1, 2026.