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A BRIEF HISTORY OF SUPPORTIVE HOUSING
A Brief History of Supportive Housing
For almost 40 years, residential services provided in the community have been the preferred residential option rather than living within large institutional settings. The trends have increasingly supported smaller and more personalized settings while living as independently as possible with assistance. In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed in the Olmstead v. L.C decision that as established in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), people could not be required to live in institutional settings if a less restrictive alternative could meet their needs.
According to the University of Colorado’s State of the States in Developmental Disabilities Project, New Jersey was one of six states in the country operating the largest number of state- RUN INSTITUTIONS "RADDOCK 4HE 2ESEARCH AND 4RAINING Center of Community Living at the University of Minnesota has several publications that review the research studies regarding individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD) living meaningful lives in their communities. In New Jersey, educational efforts prepare individuals leaving institutional settings for community living by talking with peers who have successfully completed such transitions. New Jersey has made progress to increase opportunities to live in communities and reduce the number of people living in state-operated developmental centers and psychiatric hospitals. This is a welcome trend from both quality of life and financial perspectives. A research brief on costs and outcomes of community services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities revealed that the cost of institutional care far exceeds that of supplying similar supports within community settings (Stancliffe & Lakin, 2004). States typically spend significantly more money supporting institutions and community residences than they provide to family support services. Yet, most individuals receiving services live in their family home. Fortunately, a shift is underway across the country to provide families with more funding and the flexibility to utilize resources as they see fit. Individuals and their families, given more control through individual-directed services with individual budgets, are better satisfied with the services that THEY RECEIVE ,AKIN ET AL
THE IMPACT OF THE 1999 OLMSTEAD SUPREME COURT DECISION In a landmark interpretation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Supreme Court decided that people with disabilities have a right to receive care in the most integrated setting. Unnecessary institutionalization violates the ADA. Every state is implementing plans to meet the mandates of this Olmstead decision. People living in developmental centers who choose to leave are transitioning into community placements. A lawsuit settlement between Disability Rights New Jersey and the NJ Department of Human Services mandates that anyone who meets the Olmstead criteria (initially estimated to be 600 residents) must move from the state’s (then) seven institutional facilities into integrated settings by 2017 to comply with the Supreme Court’s decision. For more information visit WWWNJGOV HUMANSERVICESDDDPROGRAMSOLMSTEADOIPACHTML . The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) permit states to re-direct funding for institutional care to serve people in the most integrated settings in the community through the process of a “waiver.” To date, the state has transitioned individuals from developmental centers each year into homes in the community thereby meeting the state’s legal obligation. For more information visit WWWSTATENJUSHUMANSERVICESDDDDOCUMENTS $OCUMENTSFOR7EB$2.*V6ELEZ )) 3ETTLEMENT!GREEMENTPDF
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