Life-changing help
Governor, lawmakers move to provide for Virginians with developmental disabilities
Thousands of Virginians with developmental disabilities could — at long last — get potentially life-changing help from the state when the details of this year’s budget are settled.
The budget proposed by Republican
Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the one passed by the Democratic-controlled legislature agree on investing more than $300 million in the state’s system for working with children and adults with a range of developmental disabilities.
That amount would be enough to get much-needed help to about 3,440 Priority One applicants now on a waiting list. More than 15,000 people in three priority categories are waitlisted, some of them for several years already. Priority One includes those considered to have the highest level of need.
Virginia has much to make up for in its woeful history of taking care — or failing to take care — of those who need help because of one or more conditions that usually begin during their early development and last all their lives. Conditions such as autism spectrum disorders, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, vision or hearing problems, intellectual disabilities and language and learning disorders can affect how a person functions in everyday life as well as at school or possible work opportunities.
For a long time, the primary way of trying to help such people in most of the United States was to place them in institutions where they were removed from the rest of society. They interacted primarily with the institution’s staff and with people who shared their disabilities. Removed from the outside community, they had little chance of what we consider a “normal” life.
Gradually, things began to change. By the 1960s, group homes began offering alternatives to the larger institutions that were removed from mainstream society.
Then new federal civil rights laws began addressing the needs of disabled people. In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of people with disabilities to live within the larger community.
Unfortunately, Virginia was slow to
make the change. Conditions in the staterun institutions were so poor that the U.S. Department of Justice intervened, and a settlement in 2012 included closing facilities and monitoring to make sure treatment of people with disabilities complied with civil rights laws.
But things still moved slowly, as evidenced by nearly 15,000 people still seeking help. Families watch their children grow up, struggling to fit in, still waiting for the help the state is supposed to provide.
A primary goal of the state’s developmental disability waivers program is to help developmentally disabled people live lives as much like those of other people in the community as possible. The waivers can provide help in a variety of ways. For children, it can mean being able to live at home and attend public school while getting needed help.
Some people with disabilities can hold jobs if they can find the right sort of work and have the support they need. Some can live more or less independently, perhaps with modifications to make their homes safe and accessible, and with access to round-the-clock assistance should the need arise. Some need help modifying their behavior to fit in with the greater community.
Imagine the difference it can make in their lives if, despite disabilities, people can live in their own apartment, interact with people in the community and maybe even hold a job.
Before any of that can happen, these people must get the waivers.
Going forward, more will need to be done to make the system work better. In a recent guest column, Greg Persons, president of the board of directors of advocacy group The Arc of Virginia, points to a shortage of services to support individuals with disabilities who want to live on their own.
For now, though, it’s time to make sure the money to provide waivers to the people on that waiting list with the greatest needs is part of this year’s budget. Getting people with disabilities the help they need could make a tremendous difference in many lives.