Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Per Section 8 of the Hospital Licensing Act - (g) The Department shall conduct an on-site inspection of the completed project no later than 15 business days after notification from the applicant that the project has been completed and all certifications required by the Department have been received and accepted by the Department. The Department may extend this deadline only if a federally mandated survey time frame takes precedence.

Per Section 3-202.5 of the Nursing Home Care Act - (g) The Department shall conduct an on-site inspection of the completed project no later than 30 days after notification from the applicant that the project has been completed and all certifications required by the Department have been received and accepted by the Department.

Per Section 8 of the Ambulatory Surgical Treatment Center Act - (g) The Department shall conduct an on-site inspection of the completed project no later than 30 days after notification from the applicant that the project has been completed and all certifications required by the Department have been received and accepted by the Department.

Yes, the Design and Construction Section allows the use of engineering judgments. For a copy of the Engineering Judgment policy, email dph.design.standards@illinois.gov.

We require one set of signed and sealed drawings and specifications by an architect/engineer licensed in the State of Illinois.  The expiration date of the individual’s license needs to be listed with the signature. This information is also included on the Project Submission form for the appropriate facility type.

The Department will accept an electronic seal as long as it contains the signature, seal and expiration date of the licensed individual.  The seal may appear on the cover sheet only if the cover sheet has an index of pages that are attached.

It depends.  For all areas where occupancy of a phase is being requested the Temporary Occupancy Policy certifications must be received and accepted.  Any patient or resident care areas require an inspection prior to   occupancy.  Non-patient or non-resident care areas may be granted temporary occupancy prior to inspection and those are reviewed on a case by case basis only after the certifications have been accepted.  In all cases, an occupancy letter must be issued before the facility may occupy.

You will receive a submission deemed complete letter with the IDPH project number issued and the date the submission was deemed complete. If it was a design development submission, you will calculate 30 days from the deemed complete date. If the submission was a working/construction drawing submission, you will calculate 60 days from the deemed complete date. This is when the Department is required to get the initial reviews completed. Plan reviews are completed in the order the submittals were deemed complete. No exceptions. To check the status of a plan review, allow 10 working days after the submittal was deemed complete. Then email dph.design.standards@illinois.gov to check the status.

After you have submitted the Temporary Occupancy Policy or your Final Occupancy Checklist Certifications for Request of Inspection, the Department reviews the submission for completeness. This includes the current forms from the Department’s web site, all certifications are properly signed, and the correct edition of requested NFPA forms. Once the submission is deemed complete, the certifications are reviewed. The Department has 45 days to review the certifications. Once they are deemed complete, they are scheduled in accordance with the mandated time frames for the facility type.