Residents’ families back living center

Re: May 24 article, “Austin state support- ed living center may not close as expected.”

Statesman stories about the Austin State Supported Living Center, like the one in the May 24 issue, emphasize criticism of the center by some, whereas only briefly mentioned is the praise of the care and services at the center by residents’ family members. Phrases like “much maligned in recent years” and “Justice Department said residents had died due to bad care” proliferate.

Advocates for “private” — for-profit — community group homes are quoted as saying the center has failed.

Is it not self-evident that if there was bad care at the center, family members would insist on moving their loved ones to another facility? They know better than anyone, including legislators who work to close the center without ever having set foot in one of the homes there, what kind of daily care the center provides — and they fight to keep it open.

Their assessment is testimony enough and other opinions, often questionably motivated, cannot deny its truth. SALLY FEUTZ, AUSTIN