Vicki's Comment: This is an excellent editoral written by Ken Ervin. Thank you Ken for finally letting the truth out. I was so angered by the falseness of the article that was written. I hope others will write to the Daily Mail as well.
Charleston Daily Mail
1001 Virginia Street, E.
Charleston, WV 25301-2835
Dear Editor:
I am writing this letter in response to the article published in the July 9, 2004 Charleston Daily Mail entitled, "Plan Outlines Treatment for Disabled." There are several points in this article that I must take issue with.
The Olmstead Decision is really about civil rights, not about treatment. The Olmstead Decision is based on Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA is a civil rights law which ensures access to community based services for qualified individuals with disabilities, which is our civil right.
The article mentions the fact that the first Olmstead Plan was not adopted, even though it was competed in December of 2000. It took the governor’s office two years to even initiate the development of a new plan. No explanation was ever given to why the initial plan was not adequate. During this time little or no action was taken.
The following points were highlighted in the plan according the article:
"Providing information to people with disabilities so they can make informed decisions." Center for Medicare/Medicaid Services data indicates that there are over two thousand West Virginians currently residing in nursing homes who say they want to return home. This includes seven people under the age of twenty-one.
"Identifying every person with a disability who lives in an institutional facility." West Virginia already knows the facilities where people have indicated a desire to go home. However, they have not given this list to community organizations that have the skills, knowledge and resources to assist those people to return home. This is already being done in other states; what are we waiting for?
"Creating a reasonable pace for transfers from hospitals to community care." Both programs which provide in-home care and support for individuals have long waiting lists. One waiting list is over a thousand people and has no less than a six-month wait to receive services which make the difference between staying home and being forced into a nursing facility. West Virginia refuses to make any effort to prioritize the list. Is six months a "reasonable pace?"
The primary mission of ADAPT WV is to create a long-term care system which respects the civil rights of citizens to live in the home of their choice. Over the past four years I’ve helped thirty people to get back to their own homes, dragging a broken system behind us. We need to stop talking about the institutions that we’ve closed and start worrying about the institutions that still exist. West Virginia still spends 64.2% of its Medicaid budget on nursing homes and facilities. We are not institution-free!
The handful of people we have been able to help pales in comparison to the number of people who give up or pass away waiting for the governor and other public officials to recognize the civil rights of 400,000 citizens with disabilities, who make up 22.5% of our state’s population. Those who have the power to make real change must realize that people are getting lost in the process. The lives of West Virginia citizens are at stake!
Sincerely,
Ken Ervin, ADAPT WV