Adult Home Residents Demand that the Governor Obey the Law

Residents of adult homes and advocates for independent living held a rally on November 24, 2009, outside Governor Paterson’s Manhattan office timed to coincide with a rally and press conference in Albany. They demanded that Paterson obey a court decision ordering him to move 4,300 residents out of adult homes and into community apartments with any needed supports. The order covers 28 adult homes that are particularly large and institutional; with more than 250 residents per facility. A resident attending the rally described his adult home as “a hellhole.”
The Governor has told the court that instead of moving 4,300 residents into real homes, the state will only move 1,000, and even this may not happen if the Legislature does not put money in the budget specifically for this purpose. He claims that the state has no money to move people out of these institutions, even though people with disabilities know that anytime people move from a restrictive institution back into the community, with appropriate supports, the state saves money.

The Department of Justice has intervened to tell the Governor to obey the law, citing failure to comply with the Supreme Court’s Olmstead decision since 2002 and echoing the sentiment of the crowd at the rally…the Paterson plan is too little and too late.