OLYMPIA— The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) is committed to transforming client lives by providing support and fostering partnerships that empower our clients to live the lives they want. Throughout DSHS there are plans, supported by budget allocations, which support clients in community settings. Federal law also supports an individual’s right to live in an RHC if that is what they choose. Looking at where and how individuals with intellectual disabilities live in Washington, it is easy to see the DSHS, and state policy, commitment in action.
On July 20, DSHS received a letter from Disabilities Rights Washington (DRW). That letter made global statements such as “DSHS’s Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) has been unable to provide adequate community-based supported living services to individuals with developmental disabilities and high behavioral or medical support needs, and has no effectively working plan to do so.” The letter lacked comprehensive data to support these systemic allegations.
DSHS strongly disagrees with the allegations in the letter, and on Aug. 1 replied with an agreement to meet and discuss DRW’s concerns.
On Aug. 2, the DSHS Office of Communications learned from KING 5 reporter Susannah Frame that DRW was preparing to file a lawsuit against the agency for unnecessarily institutionalizing clients of DSHS’ Developmental Disabilities Administration. As of the writing of this statement, DSHS has not yet been served a copy of the lawsuit and cannot comment on it at this time.
What we can do is share some facts regarding how far DSHS has come in assisting clients to move out of the state’s four Residential Habilitation Centers (RHCs) and begin living their lives in the community:
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On July 1, 2016, DDA had nearly 44,000 enrolled clients, of whom only 726 lived in a residential habilitation center. DDA’s other clients—approximately 43,000 people—live outside an RHC.
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The number of individuals with an intellectual disability who live in an integrated community setting is higher than ever before, and the number is increasing year after year.
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Because of DDA’s commitment to helping all of its clients, including those with high needs live in the most integrated setting possible, the RHC population is presently the lowest it has been in Washington state history.
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In the 1970s, more than 4,000 people lived in Washington’s RHCs. DDA has worked steadily to promote safe, cost-effective alternatives to institutionalization that appeal to individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families. As a result, nearly 70 percent of DDA’s clients live with their own family and only 1.6 percent of DDA’s clients reside in an RHC.
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In the past decade, the number of people in an RHC has fallen from 951 to 726—a reduction of approximately 24 percent—and this trend is expected to continue as DDA continues building safe, supportive options for community living.
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DDA has partnered with community-based vendors to develop an integrated network of programs to help Washington residents with intellectual disabilities live the most integrated, independent lives possible.
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DDA has pioneered innovative solutions to serve the most complex clients in the most integrated settings possible. Examples include Community First Choice, state-operated living alternatives, the Individual and Family Services Program, and Roads to Community Living.
Because of the work that DDA has done to build supported employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual disabilities, Washington leads the nation in finding and maintaining meaningful employment, which in turn leads to fuller, more independent lives for individuals with an intellectual disability.