Parents, Guardians, Direct Caregivers and Elected Officials Speak Out Against Closure and Privatization of 23+ DDS Group Homes

Press conference at DDS Regional Office calls attention to disruption of care, services for more than 100 CT citizens with developmental disabilities who will lose long-term caregivers

EAST HARTFORD – Parents and guardians of clients who reside in group homes operated by the Department of Developmental Disabilities (DDS) gathered with direct caregivers for a press conference Tuesday, to bring renewed attention to the Rell administration’s call to close or privatize 23 state residential facilities. They were joined by Representative John Geragosian, House Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Representative David McCluskey and Representative Joan Lewis, who oppose the disruptive, destructive effects of closure or conversion on continuity and quality of care for more than 100 Connecticut citizens with developmental disabilities.

“I am outraged with this decision to disrupt the lives of profoundly developmentally challenged individuals,” said Patricia Bernat, house supervisor for a group home in Brooklyn, CT. “This move will have devastating results for all the residents.”

Sheila Small is the parent of Michael, 28, who has Downs Syndrome and resides in the Tunnel Road group home in Vernon, one of the facilities targeted for privatization. “The staff of Tunnel Road have been everything to my son. These supremely competent and loving folks have no equals,” Mrs. Small told reporters and legislators. “The proposed sale of Michael’s group home is selling peoples’ lives to strangers. Residents of the group home will go along with the furniture. This is not right and not moral – by any standards.”

On July 30, DDS announced that 17 publicly operated Community Living Arrangements (CLA’s, commonly called “group homes”) would be converted to operation by private providers. The Department has already put out a Request for Proposal (RFP) on its website, despite no legislative approval of the privatization effort. . An additional four group homes are slated to close within the next 60 days, including the Brooklyn facility, which is currently home to five DDS clients.

The announcement that 17 homes will be “converted” from public to privately-operated facilities comes at the same time that shortfalls in state funding for private providers of such services have caused many private agencies to cut staffing hours, close day programs, limit transportation and otherwise slash services. A recent survey by the Connecticut Community Providers Association revealed that 75% of the member agencies were not filling vacant positions, 60% were cutting staff, and 30% were reducing direct client services this fiscal year; 80% expected to cut staff and 63% to cut services over the next two years given the lack of funding support from the State.

“The immediate impact of these closures and conversions will be to hinder the State’s ability to make emergency placements, even as the waiting list for residential services gets longer and longer,” said Paul Fortier, Vice President of the state’s largest union of health care workers, District 1199. “Connecticut is once again breaking the promise to support these families and failing to carry out its self-proclaimed mission - respect and dignity for every person, whatever their disability or limitation in life.”