TEXAS
Increased staffing is part of proposal, human services spokeswoman says.
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Texas officials have reached a tentative agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice on how to address problems the federal agency found at the state's 13 residential institutions for people with mental disabilities, a state official said.
A draft plan calls for improving psychiatric services, better monitoring residents' prescription drugs and enhancing staff training, said Stephanie Goodman, a spokeswoman for the Health and Human Services Commission. It would also lead to more staff members being hired, she said.
Goodman said she expects the two sides to reach an agreement "very soon," perhaps in the next few days, and that she doesn't expect the draft plan to change significantly.
"It's a pretty comprehensive agreement to look at how we improve the coordination of care of residents in state schools," she said. "It's very far-reaching."
In December, the Justice Department told Gov. Rick Perry in a letter that the institutions known as state schools fail to provide adequate care and protect residents from harm — failures it said were fatal in dozens of cases. Nearly 5,000 Texans live in state schools.
The state could face a lawsuit if it does not reach a settlement with the Justice Department.
The letter said that many of the problems stem from a high staff attrition rate and staff vacancies. Goodman said that under the tentative agreement, the state schools would increase staffing, but she did not say by how many people.
"The agreement sets standards for care, and it's up to the state to say how we would meet that standard," she said. To do so, "we do anticipate there will be increases in staffing."
For example, she said, for residents who require special eating accommodations — such as food being ground up before it's served — the settlement would require a treatment plan, regular assessments to ensure that the plan is being met and reviews to see whether changes are needed. To do that, state schools might need to hire more experts trained in assessing eating accommodations.
"In most cases, we have people who do that in our state schools today," Goodman said. "The question is: Do we have enough to not only do the initial plan but get it reviewed?"
She said a substantial number of staffers needed would be professionals such as psychologists and dentists.
Under the tentative agreement, Goodman said, independent monitors selected by the state and the Justice Department would review the state schools' performance and ensure that they are meeting the terms of the plan.
Goodman could not immediately provide a copy of the draft agreement Wednesday evening.
State Rep. Abel Herrero, D-Robstown, said he had a copy of the draft but that he could not discuss its details because he had signed a confidentiality agreement at the request of the attorney general's office.
The Legislature has to sign off on the settlement because it will likely require spending state dollars. Lawmakers are soon expected to propose a resolution approving the settlement.
Allison Castle, a spokeswoman for Perry, referred calls about the settlement to Attorney General Greg Abbott, whose spokesman, Jerry Strickland, said that "discussions are ongoing."
Goodman said the state already has begun to address problems identified by the Justice Department, such as reducing use of restraints.
"We weren't waiting for an agreement to start making changes," Goodman said. "I think the state schools today are significantly better" than in December.
But in March, Corpus Christi police said they obtained videos of employees at the state school there organizing fights among residents. Some of the videos became public this week and aired on local and national news.
Perry told reporters Tuesday that the fights are "not acceptable behavior in any environment but particularly in a place where you're supposed to be protecting citizens" of the state.
Herrero said Wednesday: "It shouldn't come down to the (Justice Department's) investigation or incidents that make national news for the state to realize it's failing in meeting the legal, ethical and moral obligations it has in caring for the state's most vulnerable population."
cmaclaggan@statesman.com; 445-3548
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