Please don’t slow down “Community First” with institution language in the budget.  Last year’s language will delay closure efforts.  As we reported above, Fernald is costing $1.3 Million per month. Imagine the impact that is having on difficult budget deliberations.  Imagine the impact on families in need.

Massachusetts still has 6 institutions: Templeton, Glavin, Monson, Fernald, Hogan and Wrentham while 11 other states have none (Michigan and Indiana just closed their last ones in the past 16 months.)   Due to historical delays, at Federal court and sometimes in the legislature, we are spending dollars on a number of institutions that are not needed.  Today’s delays are based on

The Arc State House/Policy page has a sub-page on “policy debates” (go to arcmass.org) and the link to Fernald closing has much information.  But here are a few facts to help:

  • Most of the New England states have closed its institutions, one other state has one institution
  • Research shows the trends toward community settings is past debate, see pages 16 & 43 here.
  • Research supports better outcomes in community settings over institutions   See here
  • Despite legal settlements, Massachusetts actually stalled behind other states between 2004-2006 in community I/DD services investment; we declined 2.8 percent when adjusted for inflation; while the country as a whole saw 3 percent growthduring that same period! (data from David Braddock, Richard Hemp, Mary C. Rizzolo, “The State of the States in Developmental Disabilities 2008.” Department of Psychiatry and Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities. The University of Colorado).

“The nation’s census of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities

living in state-operated institutions has declined steadily from the peak of about 195,000 persons in 1967, to 38,299 today. Forty states have closed or scheduled the closure of one or more of their institutions. Indiana, along with nine other states and D.C.–Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and  West Virginia–now operate no state-operated I/DD institutions”. [Michigan added to this list in 2010].  (Executive Summary of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Services in Indiana. By David Braddock, Ph.D. and Richard Hemp, M.A.)

Today we need the legislature fully behind us and avoiding any language that restricts Community First movement.  Please support Community First and community services!

 

 

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