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Why it would be difficult to close Choate even if the state wanted to

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Illinois

* Tribune last week…

In a small southern Illinois town earlier this year, a 58-year-old employee at the Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center was accused of sexually assaulting a person with a “severe or profound intellectual disability.”

The victim, who was unable to give consent, was only identified in court records with the initials “E.K.” and the alleged assailant was later identified as a mental health technician at the 270-bed, state-run home who also was accused of a separate sexual assault of a girl under 13.

The shocking charges against Charles Mills this March were the latest in a string of scandals at Choate, a home in downstate Anna for people with developmental disabilities and mental illnesses, though few significant reforms at the home had been taken. […]

But some advocates for people with developmental disabilities question whether Pritzker’s reforms are enough and why Choate continues to operate. Experts who’ve studied and monitored residential services in Illinois and nationally say harmful conditions can flourish in large, state-run homes for people with developmental disabilities — of which Choate is one of seven in Illinois. Federally funded research shows 16 other states and the District of Columbia had “closed, downsized, privatized or converted” all of their similar facilities as of 2018.

* But here’s what’s happening nationally…

Disability service providers across the nation are overwhelmingly turning away new referrals, shutting down programs and services and struggling to maintain standards and there’s no relief in sight.

Findings released this month from a survey of 718 organizations serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities nationally show that providers are continuing to shrink more than two years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic set the beleaguered sector into a tailspin.

Of the providers surveyed, 83% said they are turning away new referrals, 63% indicated that they have discontinued programs and services and more than half said they’re considering further closures. Nearly all respondents said they’ve had trouble achieving quality standards. […]

And the problems are only expected to get worse. The survey found that 66% of providers anticipate more vacancies and higher turnover when COVID-19 relief funding runs out and other regulatory flexibilities associated with the public health emergency end.

The findings come just months after Congress failed to move forward despite more than a year of negotiation on an ambitious Biden administration plan to invest $400 billion to reinvigorate the nation’s home and community-based services system.

Also from the survey…

71% of Case Managers are Struggling to Find Available Providers

FACT: More than four in 10 respondents (42%) reported that they offer case management services in addition to long-term services and supports. Of those respondents, 71% indicated that it is difficult to connect families with services due to lack of available providers.

IMPACT: Case managers work with people with I/DD to coordinate services to meet their needs. Due to their role finding and managing availability of services, case managers are often in a unique position to assess accessibility of the provider network—suggesting there are now fewer services to be offered than before.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 9:48 am

Comments

As residents of Jacksonville, we call B.S. on the headline…Governor Pat Quinn did it pretty easy here in November 2012 - and the grounds here were in much better shape than they are at Choate.

Comment by WLDS News Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 10:20 am
I’d suggest not a closure but a move. There are other communities that can provide.

Comment by Lurker Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 10:31 am
Part of the difficulty is also the fact Choate is one of the few state ops. left that serves a DD and MI population. And, unless they have changed it, it has the only unit able to serve PICA clients, so No, it is not an easy closure.

Comment by Give Me A Break Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 10:35 am
I bring this up in every story about DCFS failing to place kids with significant psychiatric/psychological/behavioral needs. The services just aren’t there.

Not just Illinois, but nationwide, not enough Americans have prioritized care for their fellow American, and as a result… we just don’t do it. As a result there are insufficient resources for people who need them, of all ages.

Comment by Former DCFS Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 10:39 am
Mental health services are in a state of crisis nationwide due to lack of adequate funding, as was detailed in NYTimes and Washington Post articles w/i the past two weeks. Ironically, JFK led the move towards deinstitutionalization, but ethe funding never materialized, contributing in part to the homelessness problems we see today.

Comment by Ares Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 10:49 am
What the state should do is open a new facility closer to where people actually live.

Comment by Chicagonk Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 11:08 am
Ares…..agree. In the rush to close large facilities the states didn’t then make sure the funding and resources were there to make sure individual with disabilities receive the services they really need. As the Olmstead Ruling makes clear ….there will always be the need for large centers for those with the most severe behavioral and medical disabilities, but these services need to be good. There are some very good SODCs in Illinois, and they need to remain open. There are also some very good small group homes, but the state needs to adequately fund and staff all faciities for those with disabilities. As someone advocating for those with disabilities I receive numerous calls every month from families desperate for services.

Comment by Grateful Gail Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 12:10 pm
WLDS, your focus on the headline is goofy. Try to look at the story.

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 3:03 pm
I remember the Jacksonville closing.
State had massive budget issues.
Spending cuts were needed.
Area residents agreed: “We think the state spends too much money and needs to make cut.”
Quinn: “Ok.Here’s some cuts.”
Be careful what you ask for.
Because you might get it.

Comment by btowntruthfromforgottonia Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 3:15 pm
Or the closure of Howe and Tinley Park. Massive infrastructure sitting abandoned and deteriorating. Very sad.

Comment by Powerhouse Prowler Monday, Oct 24, 22 @ 6:22 pm