By Walter F. Roche Jr
A state run facility for those with developmental and intellectual
disabilities will close its doors next year under a plan to be submitted
for federal court approval later this month.
The plan, which would move some 96 residents to other facilities, would
permanently close the Greene Valley Developmental Center in Greeneville,
one of the last such facilities in the state.
Cara Kumari, spokeswoman for the state Department of Intellectual and
Developmental Disabilities said that the closure plans had been worked
out in lengthy negotiations with the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit
dating back more than a decade.
She said that the current residents will have the option of moving to
newer and smaller facilities or to receive care in their family homes.
The proposed closure date is June 30, 2016.
She said that transition plans for individual residents will be reviewed
by a quality monitoring panel and the residents will continue to be
monitored after relocation.
She stressed that the plan will not become binding unless it is approved by a federal judge.
"The goal is always to ensure people are being transitioned in the
safest manner possible," Kumari wrote in an email response to questions,
adding that the monitoring program will "ensure that people's needs are
being met within their new homes.
The state is also moving to close the Clover Bottom Developmental Center in Nashville.
Kumari said that if the plan is approved the only remaining such facility will be the 12 bed Harold Jordan Center in Nashville.
Full Article & Source:
TN Facility for Disabled to Close
1 comment:
It's so hard for people who have become accustomed to where they live (even if it's a facility) to move and adjust to new surroundings.
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