The Justice Department is suing the state of Florida for dumping kids with disabilities into nursing homes. Many of these kids have complex medical needs, which most nursing homes are ill-equipped to handle. The article also notes that Florida has turned down federal funds to keep people out of nursing homes. Florida has also made deep cuts to Medicaid home care payments rates.
Florida’s neglect and warehousing of kids with disabilities is further evidence of the need for stronger federal Medicaid policy on providing care in community settings. Two decades after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act and more than a decade after the Supreme Court’s landmark Olmstead decision, people with disabilities continue to face the threat of institutionalization. If the nation is ever going to live up to the ideals of integration expressed in those documents, the DOJ better be prepared to file many more lawsuits like this one.
Thanks to Adam for the link.
