Disabled have right to appropriate services

I agree with Mrs. Cicarelli that the IDHS plan to cut 2.5 million hours of direct support professional care is a terrible blow to those individuals with developmental disabilities living in group homes. However, I take issue with several points which Mrs. Cicarelli makes in her letter.

1) There has been funding from the state for group homes as far back as 1990. My late husband served on the board for an agency running group homes for individuals with autism. The sad fact is that the funding was insufficient.

2) Abuse and neglect should never be tolerated in any setting. She specifically refers to incidents of abuse by staff in state operated developmental centers. The SODCs have an annual survey by the Illinois Department of Public Health. The Office of the Inspector General and the SODC’s internal investigators investigate any accusations of abuse and neglect. Staff are reassigned until these cases are resolved. Group homes do not have the same level of monitoring through annual surveys by an oversight agency. Abuse can and has occurred in them.

My son, who has severe autism, severe intellectual disabilities and intermittent explosive disorder lives in the Ann Kiley Center in Waukegan, due to the need for the services and support which he needs. Every group home we contacted rejected taking him in as a client due to his aggression. We are grateful for the care which he receives at the Center. All of the residents of the center have multiple, severe disabilities, and physical handicaps in some cases. Living in an intermediate care facility, like the SODCs, is an entitlement under Medicaid and the state Medicaid plan. Those who qualify for those services, have an enforceable right to these services.

I will continue to advocate for better care and the right of all developmentally disabled individuals, to live in the setting which best meets their needs.

Henrietta Reder

Wheeling