Disabled need housing help

Parent advocates in Illinois are proposing reforms to keep their adult children out of costly institutional care and in their own communities.

Illinois House Bill 5605, The Community Supported Living Arrangement Act, introduced in February by state Rep. Anne Stava, D-Naperville, was part of the House Human Services Committee’s May 13 subject-matter hearing. I attended this hearing, and I support the goals of this bill.

Current community-living options for adults with developmental disabilities largely depend on aging parent caregivers. People with high support needs often cannot access community living. At the hearing, three parents and a provider advocate gave oral testimony on how their children and clients have been turned away by agencies who provide community-living services due to their high support needs.

When implemented, this bill will bring together fragmented services with up to 24/7 supports in an individual’s own home. Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri and Wisconsin all offer this cost-effective service.

Illinoisans must come to terms with the future costs of placing people with disabilities in institutions, costing about $350,000 per year on average, plus the hidden costs of lawsuits and aging facilities, or making strategic investments now in growing viable community-based options. Illinois houses 1,400 people with disabilities in state institutions, and over 4,000 in private institutions called intermediate care facilities.

Please ask your state legislators to support HB 5605. More information is at supportthecomplex.org.

PAUL BLOBAUM

Mahomet