RHC Packet

Washington Federation of State Employees We are the safety net. WFSE / AFSCME Council 28 1212 Jefferson Street SE #300, Olympia WA 98501 800-562-6002 360-352-7603 www.wfse.org Oppose Residential Habilitation Center (RHC) closures. 1.) Closing RHCs will endanger and displace some of our states most vulnerable citizens. Frances Haddon Morgan Center (FHMC) in Bremerton serves autistic people. Providers in the community are not trained for this population. CDC states one in 97 males are bo rn with autism now. When Fircrest School in Shoreline do wnsized, six (6) people died and another five (5) sued the State for “trans fer trauma.” A six-figure settlement was negotiated for these people. The high turnover (see also Handout #1) of providers challenges the ability to provide safe, quality care. The consultant’s report (Pg. 3.40) states “clinical and program expertise is concen- trated at the RHCs and generally not available to people and families in need in the community.” The cons ultant’s s tudy does not include the cost to provide true comparable care in the community. This study states “The current supported living provider network and county programs requires substantial refinancing and increased capacity in order to support people leaving the RHCs in equal or better fashion.” (Pg. 3.7) “Regional case managers and providers depend on RHCs for back up support, the amount and availability of current community resources appears insufficient to meet emerging needs.” (Pg. 3.40) 2.) The consultant’s recommendation costs money in the short term. OFM states that it will cost an additional $2 million in FY 2009-10 and $6.9 million in FY 2011-13 to continue closure of Rainier School in Buckley. It cost the State $10 million to move 61 people out of Fircrest in 2003-05. National study by Mitchell Braddock and Hemp of University of Illinois, Chicago, also stated “that the cost of care is the same regardless of the setting.” The 2006 Residential Study by JLARC s tates this as well. TURNOVER RATES RHC’s 5% annually King Co. Urban Non-Urban Boarding Homes 67% 86% 61% Adult Family Homes 58% 80% 95% Nursing Homes 47% 65% 50% Group Homes 45% 44% 47% Supported Living 41% 51% 52%

RHC Packet

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