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Money not there yet for Olmstead Plan
Gov. Joe Manchin on Wednesday signed West Virginia's Olmstead PLan and pledged support to disabled West Virginians, but he would not promise money to carry out goals of the plan.
The plan is in response to the 1999 U.S. Supreme Court's Olmstead decision that, based on the Americans with Disabilities Act, requires states to care for elderly and disabled people in the community, not institutions, whenever possible.
About 10,000 West Virginias live in nursing homes. Federal surveys indicate at least 2,000 of those people would rather live in the community, said Ken Ervin, who organized the West Virginia chapter of Americans with Disabilities for Attendant Programs Today and is a member of the state's Olmstead Advisory Council.
Ervin and other advocates want Manchin to add $500,000 to his budget to carry out the Olmstead Plan.
Manchin said he and his staff were to begin working on their budget proposal Wednesday evening. "We will be looking at everything," is all he would commit to.
The money would help an existing network of social service agencies identify individuals who want to move out of nursing homes, eplain their options and provide grants to help them with the transition. Grants would pay for things like wheelchair ramps, security deposits on apartments and furniture.
"You gave somebody $700 or $800 and it changes their life," Ervin said.
"A lot of times when they become institutionalized they do lose everything," TinaMaher, the Olmstead coordinator in the Department of Health and Human Resources, said Wednesday in a meeting with Brian Kastick, Manchin's public policy director.
She asked for the money in next year's budget. Her DHHR superiors say there already is money in the department's budget and additional funding is not needed.
Maher and Ervin met with Kastick to explain that existing money can be used only to help certain groups of people, like those in state psychiatric hospitals, and there are others who cannot tap those funds.
Manchin said the state has a moral obligation to help people as the Olmstead Plan envisions and he is commited to carrying it out.
Ervin told Manchin, "We can't honor people's rights without resources... I hope you really do keep the promise and people's civil rights are respected."
Gov. Joe Manchin on Wednesday signed West Virginia's Olmstead PLan and pledged support to disabled West Virginians, but he would not promise money to carry out goals of the plan.
The plan is in response to the 1999 U.S. Supreme Court's Olmstead decision that, based on the Americans with Disabilities Act, requires states to care for elderly and disabled people in the community, not institutions, whenever possible.
About 10,000 West Virginias live in nursing homes. Federal surveys indicate at least 2,000 of those people would rather live in the community, said Ken Ervin, who organized the West Virginia chapter of Americans with Disabilities for Attendant Programs Today and is a member of the state's Olmstead Advisory Council.
Ervin and other advocates want Manchin to add $500,000 to his budget to carry out the Olmstead Plan.
Manchin said he and his staff were to begin working on their budget proposal Wednesday evening. "We will be looking at everything," is all he would commit to.
The money would help an existing network of social service agencies identify individuals who want to move out of nursing homes, eplain their options and provide grants to help them with the transition. Grants would pay for things like wheelchair ramps, security deposits on apartments and furniture.
"You gave somebody $700 or $800 and it changes their life," Ervin said.
"A lot of times when they become institutionalized they do lose everything," TinaMaher, the Olmstead coordinator in the Department of Health and Human Resources, said Wednesday in a meeting with Brian Kastick, Manchin's public policy director.
She asked for the money in next year's budget. Her DHHR superiors say there already is money in the department's budget and additional funding is not needed.
Maher and Ervin met with Kastick to explain that existing money can be used only to help certain groups of people, like those in state psychiatric hospitals, and there are others who cannot tap those funds.
Manchin said the state has a moral obligation to help people as the Olmstead Plan envisions and he is commited to carrying it out.
Ervin told Manchin, "We can't honor people's rights without resources... I hope you really do keep the promise and people's civil rights are respected."
