Illinois waiting list now 22,000 names long
January 27th, 2009From the [Chicago] Sun-Times News Group, Elmhurst:
Louie Herrera is one of some 22,000 people in Illinois with developmental disabilities who are on the state’s waiting list for services. Herrera graduates from high school soon, but he and his parents have been told that he won’t get services because he “didn’t meet the criteria for immediate funding: He’s not homeless and he hasn’t been abused or neglected.” An excerpt:
The funding simply doesn’t exist to cover the growing number of people in need, said Reta Hoskin, associate director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities in Illinois’ Department of Human Services.
“That’s typical across the nation,” Hoskin said.
… Parents and service providers are concerned that without continued development training, people with disabilities will have little more activity than sitting at home watching TV, and they could lose the skills acquired thus far.
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February 9th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
These pathetic responses from the Dept of DD people are exactly why Illinois is 50th out of 50 states in funding. They need to start coming up with solutions to this crisis -instead of just acknowledging that the problem exists. Maybe Governor Quinn should look at the current staff and make some changes – we need people who can think outside of the box and find a way to provide the funding. Even cutting in half the amount of home based support given to those fortunate enough to receive it currently will enable more on the waiting list to be served.