September 3, 2009
Thomas Suehs, Executive Commissioner
Health and Human Services Commission
4900 North Lamar BoulevardAustin, TX 78751-2316
Dear Executive Commissioner Suehs,
On behalf of Community Now! please accept our sincere congratulations on your recent promotion to Executive Commissioner for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. (HHSC) We look forward to working with you in your new position to develop a long range strategic plan to create a system that supports Texans with disabilities to live in their communities.
Community Now! is a statewide, volunteer, non-profit organization with a mission to support people with disabilities to live in community with the services and supports necessary to be successful. As you know, Texas continues to be the institution capitol of the United States with more people with intellectual disabilities residing in institutions than any other state. With almost 100,000 people with disabilities on waiting lists for community services, Texas continues to operate an unbalanced service system wasting hundreds of millions of tax dollars on archaic, dangerous institutions.
During the 80th Legislative Session, legislators allocated additional funds to comply with the Department of Justice Settlement with the Department of Aging and Disability Services. r However, history shows that institutions are not a safe environment no matter how much money is allocated. We are deeply distressed that the more horrific the reports of abuse and death at state institutions, the more that money is allocated to fix a system that is broken.
Clearly there is a vocal and active group of parents who insist that their choice to keep their adult loved ones in state institutions is honored. Clearly the voices of those parents and people with disabilities who choose to live in the community and languish on waiting lists are not being heard. Community Now! is represented by families who have seen their families destroyed because of their belief that their family member with a disability should live with their family. There are also people with disabilities who are active with Community Now! who are either waiting for their name to come up on an endless list or who are struggling to maintain their services because of an underfunded, poorly monitored community provider system.
Thomas Suehs, Executive Commissioner
Health and Human Services Commission
4900 North Lamar BoulevardAustin, TX 78751-2316
Dear Executive Commissioner Suehs,
On behalf of Community Now! please accept our sincere congratulations on your recent promotion to Executive Commissioner for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. (HHSC) We look forward to working with you in your new position to develop a long range strategic plan to create a system that supports Texans with disabilities to live in their communities.
Community Now! is a statewide, volunteer, non-profit organization with a mission to support people with disabilities to live in community with the services and supports necessary to be successful. As you know, Texas continues to be the institution capitol of the United States with more people with intellectual disabilities residing in institutions than any other state. With almost 100,000 people with disabilities on waiting lists for community services, Texas continues to operate an unbalanced service system wasting hundreds of millions of tax dollars on archaic, dangerous institutions.
During the 80th Legislative Session, legislators allocated additional funds to comply with the Department of Justice Settlement with the Department of Aging and Disability Services. r However, history shows that institutions are not a safe environment no matter how much money is allocated. We are deeply distressed that the more horrific the reports of abuse and death at state institutions, the more that money is allocated to fix a system that is broken.
Clearly there is a vocal and active group of parents who insist that their choice to keep their adult loved ones in state institutions is honored. Clearly the voices of those parents and people with disabilities who choose to live in the community and languish on waiting lists are not being heard. Community Now! is represented by families who have seen their families destroyed because of their belief that their family member with a disability should live with their family. There are also people with disabilities who are active with Community Now! who are either waiting for their name to come up on an endless list or who are struggling to maintain their services because of an underfunded, poorly monitored community provider system.
Our hope and sincere recommendation is that you will be able to lead a fundamental shift away from the institutional bias and take the leadership role with the Legislature and HHSC professionals to actively create and implement a plan of action that will judiciously get everyone out of institutions who want out and close the facilities no longer needed. Texas continues to band-aid a gushing artery which has brought our vulnerable citizens to a life that is full of violence, a life of frantic waiting, or a life of inadequate community services. None of these options are acceptable. None of them.
We need you to step up and let our legislators know that our current systems are failing, that Texas is grossly mismanaging money by attempting to fund a dual service delivery system. We need you with your sense of budget expertise and program cost analysis to communicate a vision that will utilize tax payer dollars wisely AND provide exceptional services for Texans with disabilities based on the real choices people are making. And people are not begging to go into institutions. They are willing to wait up to 10 years for a shot at their American Dream. 100,000 people are making this choice.
Soon, you will be making a decision about a new Commissioner for the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS). This leader is the pivotal person to lead these reform efforts. Those who represent Community Now! are weary, disappointed and frankly disgusted with the previous DADS administration. We as the consumers of DADS services have been admonished diminished, unwelcomed, ignored, retaliated against and patronized by the very leaders put in place to serve us. Our sincere hope is that all individuals who played a part of the past administration are terminated with all haste.
We make the following recommendations to you and your search team as they consider the appointment of the next Commissioner at DADS:
We recommend that the next Commissioner is recruited from another state with a proven record of reforming long term care services. This is necessary as previous Commissioners and leadership have “grown up” in the failed Texas system and have little vision past these failures.
We recommend that the next Commissioner is a leader with the conviction to make recommendations to our legislators that serve the choices of the vast majority of Texans, which is community services, not institutional care.
We recommend that the next Commissioner actively seek out, recognize and welcome ALL consumers and family members of DADS services.
We recommend that the Commissioner seek creative ways to communicate with consumers and family members not only through traditional channels, but also through open, creative methods that build relationships based in trust rather than fear and admonishment.
We recommend that the Commissioner actively communicate the status of DADS progress in meeting the conditions of the DOJ settlement through public hearings and other methods that allow for feedback from consumers and families.
We recommend that DADS serve as a facilitator for the Promoting Independence Advisory Committee rather than control and manipulate the proceedings and outcomes of this critical committee born from the precepts of the Olmstead Act.
We recommend that the new DADS Commissioner immediately take action to hold key leadership accountable by terminating administrators at state institutions for people with intellectual disabilities as appropriate.
Our sincere hope is that your final decision for the new DADS Commissioner will bring to Texas a person with integrity, vision, who is proactive and will work hard every day to serve the people they are charged with to live a quality life in their community.
We look forward to further communication with you regarding our recommendations.
We need you to step up and let our legislators know that our current systems are failing, that Texas is grossly mismanaging money by attempting to fund a dual service delivery system. We need you with your sense of budget expertise and program cost analysis to communicate a vision that will utilize tax payer dollars wisely AND provide exceptional services for Texans with disabilities based on the real choices people are making. And people are not begging to go into institutions. They are willing to wait up to 10 years for a shot at their American Dream. 100,000 people are making this choice.
Soon, you will be making a decision about a new Commissioner for the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS). This leader is the pivotal person to lead these reform efforts. Those who represent Community Now! are weary, disappointed and frankly disgusted with the previous DADS administration. We as the consumers of DADS services have been admonished diminished, unwelcomed, ignored, retaliated against and patronized by the very leaders put in place to serve us. Our sincere hope is that all individuals who played a part of the past administration are terminated with all haste.
We make the following recommendations to you and your search team as they consider the appointment of the next Commissioner at DADS:
We recommend that the next Commissioner is recruited from another state with a proven record of reforming long term care services. This is necessary as previous Commissioners and leadership have “grown up” in the failed Texas system and have little vision past these failures.
We recommend that the next Commissioner is a leader with the conviction to make recommendations to our legislators that serve the choices of the vast majority of Texans, which is community services, not institutional care.
We recommend that the next Commissioner actively seek out, recognize and welcome ALL consumers and family members of DADS services.
We recommend that the Commissioner seek creative ways to communicate with consumers and family members not only through traditional channels, but also through open, creative methods that build relationships based in trust rather than fear and admonishment.
We recommend that the Commissioner actively communicate the status of DADS progress in meeting the conditions of the DOJ settlement through public hearings and other methods that allow for feedback from consumers and families.
We recommend that DADS serve as a facilitator for the Promoting Independence Advisory Committee rather than control and manipulate the proceedings and outcomes of this critical committee born from the precepts of the Olmstead Act.
We recommend that the new DADS Commissioner immediately take action to hold key leadership accountable by terminating administrators at state institutions for people with intellectual disabilities as appropriate.
Our sincere hope is that your final decision for the new DADS Commissioner will bring to Texas a person with integrity, vision, who is proactive and will work hard every day to serve the people they are charged with to live a quality life in their community.
We look forward to further communication with you regarding our recommendations.
Posts
Until the State, and DADS knows how to help, protect, and care for others, they cannot continue to create programs, much less run them. Right now, they have NO protective statutes that mandate safety for beneficiaries in home care under for-profit contractors - instead lives are in jeopardy in and out of Texas care!
ReplyDeleteNo program should be started, or continued until beneficiary safety, health, and well-being has been assurred. Sub-Contractors send too many people out to homes to assist the vulnerable populations who are job-hoppers, have medicocre work histories, steal, defraud, and harm with no recompense because DADS does not require these employees to be Bonded.