Assemblyman Phil Palmesano (R,C,I-Corning) joined his Assembly Minority colleagues this morning at a press conference in the Capitol to release their Assembly Minority Task Force on Protecting the Rights of People with Developmental Disabilities report. The “Championing Aid, Rights, Equality and Services (C.A.R.E.S.) Plan: A report on the Olmstead Decision & Its Impact on the State’s Developmental Disability Community” outlines challenges that this vulnerable population is facing and presents a series of recommendations for solving them.

The report was compiled by Task Force Chairman Assemblyman Clifford W. Crouch (R-Bainbridge). It included testimony from 11 community forums held across the entire state. Palmesano hosted one such forum in Corning with Assemblyman Chris Friend (R,C,I-Big Flats) and state Sen. Tom O’Mara (R,C,I-Big Flats).

“It is incredibly discouraging that protecting our most vulnerable New Yorkers has turned into a controversial issue. This is common sense. This time of year, in the context of the budget, we talk about things we can afford and things we can’t afford. Providing compassionate care, excellent services and improving the quality of life for our friends with developmental disabilities needs to be a top priority in this year’s budget, period,” said Palmesano.

Palmesano said there are serious problems with the state’s interpretation of the Olmstead Decision, a Supreme Court ruling with good intentions and a decidedly mixed track record. While it encourages community, residential and workforce integration for those with developmental disabilities, it has done so with too little regard for individuals who truly need residential care and function best in supportive workplace settings like sheltered workshops. In some cases, individuals and their families are not given a choice regarding changes to their care and service plans.

“We can’t have a narrow interpretation of the law, and we can’t pretend that a one-size fits-all approach is going to work for New Yorkers with developmental disabilities. It doesn’t work in education, and it doesn’t work when it comes to providing services to a population facing a broad range of needs and challenges,” said Palmesano. We need to protect these sheltered workshops, and we need more funding for these residential caregivers. In too many cases, aging parents are the only caregivers for their adult children. At our forums, we heard over and over again that they are fearful about what will happen to their children when they pass away. State government needs to step up to the plate with funding to protect our most vulnerable New Yorkers,” added Palmesano.

Some of the task force recommendations include:

• Ensuring that the state fully funds the mandated minimum wage increase for nonprofit service providers;
• Creating an online dashboard that alerts families when housing becomes available for those with developmental disabilities;
• Working with the attorney general on a wiser interpretation of the Olmstead Decision and crafting a plan that ensures individuals and their families can make important choices about their care while protecting federal funding that is based on strict compliance; and
• Creating a Bill of Rights for those with developmental disabilities.

Palmesano said fully funding the minimum wage increase for direct support workers who care for the developmentally disabled is critically important. Palmesano believes these workers deserve to earn a living wage.

“These nonprofit service providers are faced with rising labor costs, but they’re not a business that can simply raise their prices. They rely on reimbursements from Medicaid. We don’t want them to lay off talented and dedicated caregivers, and we don’t want them to have to cut vital, quality of life services for the developmentally disabled. I will be fighting for the needed funding to protect our most vulnerable New Yorkers,” said Palmesano.

Palmesano and the Assembly Minority Conference have been outspoken advocates for people with developmental disabilities. In 2013, the governor’s Executive Budget proposal slashed the OPWDD operating budget by $90 million. Palmesano and his colleagues restored the funding.