News
State Must Increase Funding For Community Services, Say Advocates For Disabled
By Ryan Fennell
OAKHURST - Representatives of Easter Seals of New Jersey met with Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini (R-11) last Friday at their Oakhurst location to discuss "right-sizing" the system regarding individuals with developmental disabilities.
Easter Seals exists to help people with disabilities and special needs to live, learn, work, and play in their communities with equality, dignity, and independence according to Easter Seals of New Jersey President and CEO Brian Fitzgerald.
Easter Seals' concern is that, at present, the State of New Jersey is ranked 48th in community based services for special needs and disabled individuals relying primarily on institutions and developmental centers.
Easter Seals would like to see this trend reversed and is asking the state to place priority on transitioning individuals to the community by providing adequate services and downsize and move away from an institution-based system.
Recently funding to increase community services from $23 a day to $48 a day was denied by the state.
"The basic problem we face is that the state has only increased its contract by 1.2 percent while gas, food, and everything else is going up at a higher percentage. In essence there is no funding for the program, and we're struggling to keep all the services going," Fitzgerald said.
According to Vice President of Services of Easter Seals New Jersey Kathy Patrick, New Jersey has a significant investment in institutional programs but less so for community services.
"We appreciate the funding crisis," Patrick said. "It's just a matter of prioritizing where the funding should go."
According to Patrick eighty-one percent of the people in developmental centers have community placement as a goal and have received recommendations for placement.
"There is not funding for the community services," said Patrick. "Providers like us are ready and willing and our infrastructure has been built."
"Even by the state's own numbers it's more cost effective to serve people in the community than maintaining state institutions," Fitzgerald added. "Unfortunately right now the investment in services is reversed." According to Patrick, while individuals are being placed in communities the same numbers of people that are leaving institutions are entering them.
In 2007 101 individuals were admitted into developmental centers while 102 were transitioned into the community. Fifty-five of those that transitioned into the community died according to Easter Seals.
While people that are presently being discharged from institutions are receiving placement, individuals that have been on the waiting list for as many as six years are remaining on the list. Current graduates from day programs are also receiving placement, however, those that have graduated in the past remain on the waiting list. There are currently 8,000 individuals on the waiting list for community placement.
Assemblywoman Angelini said that she has been aware of a lot of the problems facing advocates for individuals with disabilities.
"I've certainly been an advocate of putting the cost of living increase back into the budget," Angelini said. "It's really something we need to keep an eye on, and I'm an advocate for the need for group homes (in the community)."
Easter Seals is also concerned with the probability of a shortage of labor in the near future to care for special needs or developmentally disabled individuals in institutions.
"It already exists in terms of seniors and the baby boomer generation that are going to need supportive services," Fitzgerald said. "We want the whole shift of care being delivered at home rather than in a hospital or nursing home situation."
Fitzgerald and Easter Seals is focusing its attention on new technologies that may allow for monitoring in homes without the need for continuous face-to-face care. "The current situation and possible shortage of labor along with the drive for more efficient cost of operation brings technology into play," Fitzgerald said. "The use of tele-medication and tele-social services, where people are monitored in their homes through different technologies so there are responses to those who need it rather than continual care."
Easter Seals also provides employment training for people with disabilities as well as low-income seniors according to Vice President of Employment Services Michael Ring.
"Employment training takes people off assistance roles and they become taxpayers," Ring said. "Plus their ability to socialize and their increase in self-esteem really is priceless. We are looking for more funding for these supportive services to help people become self-sufficient and be able to live in the community."
In order to maintain such a program there is a need for an increase in funding by $450,000 above the current budget according to Ring.
Ring also noted that there will be an additional need for such community-based services with disabled veterans returning home from the war.
According to Easter Seals there has not been an adequate increase for community-based providers that service over 500,000 people in 15 years.
"Easter Seals is a wonderful organization with an excellent reputation in the community and throughout the state," Angelini said. "They provide services for the most needy and I'm committed to helping them get what they need."
