Braddock Road Home to 200 Disabled People Will Close
Virginia, U.S. Department of Justice reach settlement that will shut four training centers and move most residents back into the community.
The Commonwealth of Virginia and the U.S. Department of Justice reached a settlement on Thursday in a three-year case that found Virginia is needlessly housing some individuals with disabilities in institutions.
Under the terms of the 10-year, $2 billion agreement, Virginia will close four of its five homes for the developmentally and intellectually disabled and instead provide services in local communities.
The agreement would close the Northern Virginia Training Center in Fairfax on Braddock Road by 2015. About 200 residents live at NVTC.
Southeastern Virginia Training Center in Chesapeake, a 75-bed center, would remain open.
"People with disabilities should be given the same opportunities to participate in community life as those without disabilities,” Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for the DOJ civil rights division, said in a statement. “This agreement will enable people in Virginia who have developmental disabilities to live successfully in their homes and communities.’’
The investigation found that Virginia violated federal law by housing so many disabled citizens in institutions. The settlement was filed with the U.S. District Court in Richmond after nearly a year of negotiations with the Justice Department.
The agreement is meant to provide better, more localized care for 5,000 Virginians with intellectual and development disabilities. It is estimated that more than 1,000 currently reside in five facilities in Virginia. The agreement mandates that Virginia provide nearly 4,200 waivers to pay for localized care, crisis management services, housing assistance and greater employment opportunities for those receiving treatment.
Of the $2 billion it will take to implement the settlement agreement, $935 million would come from the federal government. Officials estimate the money saved by closing the facilities will bring the state's total cost down to about $340 million over 10 years.
Sharon Bulova, chair of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, said the county has been preparing for this settlement for some time and is already looking into how it will affect local families.
"Today's settlement does not come as a surprise," she said in a statement. " We have already had some very preliminary discussions at the county level regarding the opportunities we may have for serving this population and for the future use of the NVTC grounds.
"We are committed to working with our partners in the Commonwealth, the Community Services Board, and others to ensure that residents of NVTC and their families who depend on the services it provides will be treated fairly, respectfully and with sensitivity," she said. "We support community-based care and hope the decision will be an opportunity to provide our residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities the care they need throughout Fairfax County. It is critical in this regard that sufficient funding is provided in order to make the transition successful. "
To read more details on the decision, read NBCWashington.
William Riker
12:24 am on Sunday, January 29, 2012
From NBCWashington:
"Negotiators tried to balance the wishes of families with loved ones in the facilities, many of which were opposed to their closure, and advocates who want them shut down more quickly and even more money put into localized services."
Who are these "advocates" that want NVTC shut down quickly? God forbid we should allow the patients and their families to decide to do what's best for themselves. These do-gooders who believe that Government Lawyers should force this down their throats are the real problem with most Government-funded social services. As someone whose children have volunteered at NVTC over the years, I can say with certainty that NVTC is a huge contributor to both its residents and the community, with exceptionally dedicated staff. Whatever Federal Law they are not following should be changed, using NVTC as a model for other states to follow. What's the real motivating force behind this persecution of NVTC????
Rick Hodges
6:41 pm on Sunday, January 29, 2012
The advocates are the majority of people in Virginia with disabilities and their families.
Nothing is being forced down anyone's throats. Community care is just as good, or better, than institutional care, even for those with severe disabilities. They have choices in the community - more than at a training center. That's why every state has decided to close its institutions, including Virginia. Our commonwealth just dragged its feet after making the same promise.
While 1,000 people are getting care in institutions, 6,000 or more are on waiting lists to get any kind of support at all! That's in part because institutional care costs so much more. This settlement requires a large increase in aid to those in the community so that both those coming out of institutions and those waiting for community care can get it.
Jody
3:30 pm on Sunday, January 29, 2012
This is big government at its worst. Why is the DOJ concerned with this? Is the federal government so flush with money that they think this is a good idea? These people aren't in prisons, they are in residential centers where trained staff can help them learn life and job skills. Maybe smaller centers spread out in more area would be better somehow, but it could be more isolating and will certainly require more staff and more expense. Why not give Virginia goals to work toward and reasonable timelines to make changes gradually if they prefer a different type of housing? A three year court battle resulting in a 2 BILLION DOLLAR agreement!!! Unbelievable. I hope our citizens (including those with disabilities) gasp when they read this, I did.
Rick Hodges
6:47 pm on Sunday, January 29, 2012
Since it costs nearly twice as much to support one person in an institution compared to serving him or her in the community, this will be a win for the taxpayers.
As for "residential centers where trained staff can help them learn life and job skills," well, that's what they'll get in the community too. They have funding for housing and trained staff and all those things, plus access to the community and the benefits its provides. They aren't going to be just released and forgotten, far from it. They will have a greater choice of how they want to live and the support to do it.
"Maybe smaller centers spread out in more area would be better somehow, but it could be more isolating and will certainly require more staff and more expense."
It's less isolating to live in the community than in an institution - that doesn't require explanation. As for more expense, as I mentioned, false. It is significantly cheaper to care for people in the community with the same level of care.