Friday, August 23, 2013

Disabled Plaintiffs, State Reach Deal on Living Conditions


Thousands of Texans with disabilities housed in nursing homes without access to rehabilitative care could see improved living conditions under an interim agreement reached with the state on Monday.

The class action lawsuit, filed in 2010 by disability rights advocates and six institutionalized plaintiffs between the ages of 26 and 46, alleges that Gov. Rick Perry and state social services officials have violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide appropriate treatment to some 4,500 Texans living in nursing homes. 

Garth Corbett, a senior attorney with the watchdog group Disability Rights Texas and the lead attorney on the case, told the Tribune in 2010 that many of those individuals were receiving care for their disabilities at home or in the community but were mistakenly sent to nursing homes after being hospitalized for illness. Once there, he said, they were effectively trapped, since many did not have advocates or the capacity to argue for their own transfer.

Under the interim agreement, the state has committed to expanding community living options for people with intellectual disabilities; avoiding admitting individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities to a nursing facility if those people can safely live in the community instead; and devising educational activities to address community living options for affected individuals and their families. 

Full Article and Source:
Disabled Plaintiffs, State Reach Deal on Living Conditions

8 comments:

Thelma said...

Great news!
Maybe TX can lead the way here.

Anonymous said...

Too danged bad there had to be a showdown to get the deal.

4,500 people....

Anonymous said...

Great news, it the measure is "enforced". One must remember, that we have plenty of laws on the books, both state and federal, but the enforcement is lacking, due to clever legal maneuvering and fraud. EB

Anonymous said...

Since Govt. and the Judicial system have created this injustice, it is only fitting they begin to repeal this nation wide abuse of the elderly.

Ron Libert

lynn said...

Freedom is not free! It just looks so bad when we have to fight the justice system that created this injustice! So happy for those that will be able to live outside the walls of a nursing home!

Rudy said...

Implementation of the Americans With Disabilities Act, is a game of "Let's Make a Deal," paying lawyers to make a deal with the paid state Human Services and the paid Governor?
Does this sound a bit like a deal involving a human market?

Holly said...

Glad to see these folks are making some headway but there is still MUCH room for improvements. What about the elderly trapped in abusive guardianships and locked in a nursing home? Who speaks for them? Who protects them from guardian abusers? NO ONE!!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful News if inforced... This needs to be nationwide... Those with disabilities and the elderly must not be ABUSED!