Deinstitutionalization
Contact:
Ranita
Wilks
Independent Living
Skills/Peer Counseling Specialist, ext. 115
rwilks@independenceinc.org
De-institutionalization is a core service that reflects our values and belief that placement of people with disabilities in institutions or nursing homes is inappropriate. These segregated environments are far more costly than providing the same individuals with the services they need to live in integrated settings in their chosen communities.
Independence, Inc. provides services to assist a person with a disability make the transition from a nursing home or institution to a home of their choosing in the community. Some key services that contribute to successful moves out of a nursing home or institution to the community include: independent living skills (finding affordable and/or accessible housing, budgeting and transportation); access to personal care attendant services; and information about other community resources.
Money Follows the Person is a name of a state program that contributes a person's move from a nursing home or institution to a home in the community. Contact Independence, Inc. for more information or to request services.
We advocate each year for state funding for the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Medicaid waivers, which are more cost effective than nursing homes, institutions, and are consistent with the Supreme Court's L.C. v. Olmstead decision. These programs are called Medicaid waivers because if a person with a disability qualifies for nursing home placement, they can choose to "waive" their right to a nursing home or institution and instead receive personal care attendant service in a more integrated setting in their own home in the community.
