SC: Sex Assault Scandal Breaks while State Increases Funding for Institutions

From Patricia Harrison (11/20/09):

At yesterday's South Carolina Department of Disabilities and Special Needs Commission meeting, a spokesperson objected to Whitten Center being referred to as an "institution."  She claimed that Whitten Center should be called a "Gated Community" instead - no joke, she really said that.

I am all for families having a choice of safe residential options, including well run ICF/MRs, but here's some history on this particular "gated community" and what South Carolina is doing to force people who have disabilities into facilities like this:

Here's a report at http://www.goupstate.com/article/20081121/ARTICLES/811211009?Title=Whitten-Center-liable-in-sex-assaults

Whitten Center liable in sex assaults

Caregiver pleaded guilty to attacking 3 mentally handicapped clients

By Robert W. Dalton

Published: Friday, November 21, 2008 at 3:15 a.m.

Officials at the Whitten Center didn't believe John Doe when he told them he was being sexually assaulted by Daniel Maxwell Bradley, a caregiver at the Clinton facility for the mentally handicapped. They said Doe had a history of making false claims against employees.

That all changed when the FBI came knocking at the door, and agents didn't come empty-handed. They had photographs, taken by Bradley and shared on the Internet, of the assaults.

Bradley eventually pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting three residents...

Just last week, CMS approved an increase in reimbursement rate beginning Jan 1, 2010 of 70% for respite services provided to waiver participants who "choose" to receive their respite services in ICF/MR's like Whitten.  SCDDSN and CMS eliminated an option, which cost less than 1/3 the daily rate of ICF/MR services, where waiver participants could receive respite services at home for less than $70 a day.  CMS approved the elimination of some home based services and the reduction of others that the State claimed were required due to budget reductions.  BUT SCDDSN transferred more than $31 million of funds generated by the Recovery Act (federal stimulus funds) to a rainy day fund in July and about half the stimulus funds they will receive this year will be transferred to that rainy day fund, while home based services are being slashed and more people will be forced into these "gated communities."  This change in the MR/RD Medicaid waiver was approved by CMS, despite the fact that they knew about the failure to use tens of milions of dollars allocated to provide services and the failure of the State Medicaid Agency to protect residents of residential programs from abuse, neglect and exploitation, which was reported by the SC Legislative Audit Council:
 
http://lac.sc.gov/Reports/2008/DDSN.htm
 
When one parent asked the Chairman of SCDDSN this summer to please prevent these cuts and to maintain her son's home based services, the Chairman compared the parent's request to her own son's request that Santa Clause bring him a four wheeler for Christmas:  "Somebody's got to pay for it" she told the parent.
 
And 2009 is the Year of Community Living?  If you're as appalled as I am about CMS approving these changes, please contact your representatives in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to share your opinions.  Ask them to require South Carolina to comply with Olmstead and to give the new director of SCDDSN the funds she needs (which are now sitting in a rainy day fund) to run the agency and to protect people like Billy from these "Gated Communities."

-Patricia L Harrison

Comments

[John E. Smith]

it's very important for staff in these places and who work with people with mental disabilites to report what and when they see "something". And for Managers to act! This nasty individual could have done this in any group home, in any person with MR's home, or just about anywhere, so before everyone goes off with statements that would lead to saying "institutionalization causes this" or "this is an argument against institutions" just hold your water. Sex abusers can find victims wherever they live. They know how to predate and target people.