Ed Newsletter
LIGAS STUDY FINDS MASSIVE NON-COMPLIANCE . . .
20% RATE HIKE PROPOSED . . .
MOVING FROM HOME-BASED TO CILA . . .
And we have 14 new affiliates!
ED’s NEWSLETTER
No. 147 – March 13, 2020
McMANUS CONSULTING
DISABILITY SERVICES
847.256.0456, [email protected], Facebook, LinkedIn
MISSING THE BOAT ON LIGAS . . .
The State is failing across the board to comply with the mandates of the Ligas Consent Decree in its operation of the CILA program, according to a lengthy study conducted at the suggestion of Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman.
Court Monitor Ronnie Cohn assembled a team of 12 reviewers who fanned out across the state and interviewed 225 randomly selected CILA residents over a period of almost 10 months. The reviewers were trying to determine the adequacy of services being delivered to the individuals, using a monitoring tool comprised of 17 sections reflecting the various elements of services.
Cohn said each of the 17 sections included measures by which compliance was to be rated “met” or “not met”. The scoring reflected the number of individuals who received a “met” rating. In order to be determined in compliance within a given section, each measure needed to be rated 85% or above.
And not a single one of the 17 sections wound up with 85%!
Judge Coleman declared the State out of compliance with the consent decree in 2017, and Cohn said “much remains to be accomplished to bring the defendants into compliance.” But she added that there have been “significant efforts toward progress.” She said each individual and their agency will receive a “scorecard” to facilitate correcting deficiencies.
The results for the 17 sections: Person-centered planning, met with only 46% of the individuals; independent service coordination, 47%; safety, 83%; staff presence, conduct, competence, 77%; employment/day activities, integration, 31%; leisure, recreation, social relationships, 55%; personal funds management, 78%; transportation, 32%; health care, 79%; vision, hearing, 66%; PT/OT/speech, 30%; adaptive equipment, assistive technology, 60%; dietary supports, 71%; behavioral supports, 53%; mental health supports, 63%; protection from harm, 71%; rights and autonomy, 61%.
Among the specific findings:
--When ISCs drafted a personal plan, “the discovery tool was almost always just copied and pasted.”
--189 of the individuals were of working age; only 17 were engaged in supported or competitive employment.
--For the most part, homes were clean, well-stocked with food and well-maintained.
--Most individuals reviewed are in segregated facility-based programs. “Most have a history of production in contractual type work, although this work has declined and, in some cases, stopped altogether. These individuals continue to go to ‘work’ but in reality, days are spent indoors, in large, crowded rooms with little to do, just waiting for snack and lunch times.”
SEEMS LIKE A NEW DAY . . .
In recent weeks, I received two calls raising very serious issues, which were brought to the attention of two members of DHS Secretary Grace Hou’s executive team. One was a matter involving legal questions, which I referred to an attorney. He contacted the office of General Counsel John Schomberg, and the matter was resolved without any fuss. The other matter involved the office of Inspector General Peter Neumer, who was extremely cooperative in dealing with it.
I mention this because it is quite a contrast to some past administrations. We are inevitably going to have our differences, but it’s a pleasure working with these folks. Our thanks to the Pritzker administration, to Secretary Hou and to DDD Director Allison Stark.
DEALING WITH THE VIRUS . . .
Director Allison Stark issued a memo of guidance today to CILA and day program providers dealing with the coronavirus situation. A number of day programs have closed, and Allison announced that SODCs have stopped sending their individuals out to day programs. Questions can be addressed to Jennifer Gentile, Deputy Director of Clinical Services, [email protected].
THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE YOUR ISC . . .
A message from the Committee to Revise DHS’s Grantmaking Rule: Per yesterday’s special edition of the Newsletter, please contact the Joint Commission on Administrative Rules (JCAR) and your own state senator and state rep and urge them to insist that DHS’s proposed rule be amended to allow freedom of choice of ISCs/ISSAs and to prohibit competitive bidding for ISC/ISSA funding. See “Other Stuff” below for a brief report on one of the ISC lawsuits.
SEEKING 20% RATE INCREASE . . .
The legislative session is well under way, and our They Deserve More coalition of provider agencies is making a big ask: A 20% rate increase. The proposal, contained in Senate Bill 3269 and House Bill 5074, requires agencies to use at least three-quarters of the increase for DSP wages; the rest of the money can be used for administrative and operating costs.
Meanwhile, Gov. Pritzker showed leadership in his FY21 budget proposal last month, calling for a total DSP wage reimbursement increase of $1.50 an hour for providers. (But workers would still be paid barely more than the Chicago minimum wage (for now) and less than jobs in retail and warehousing.)
As we should all know by now, DSPs’ woefully inadequate wages have caused a severe staffing crisis. The State meets other obligations—funding jails, nurses, schools. Illinois needs to make people with disabilities a priority.
Sen. Heather Steans is sponsor of the Senate bill and Rep. Robyn Gabel introduced the House bill. (The bills are identical.) Please contact your senator and rep and ask them to co-sponsor the bills.
MOVING FROM HOME-BASED TO CILA . . .
We reported a year ago that the Division was developing a procedure to enable participants in the Home-Based program to switch to CILA if they need it. That got people pretty excited. A spokesman said DDD was in the process of drawing up a memo that would provide guidance on how it would work.
In May, DDD said it was meeting with plaintiffs’ attorneys in the Ligas Consent Decree to establish a process sometime before the end of the year. But that didn’t happen.
Now they have announced they will be collecting information between now and July “regarding the need of this population by requiring each individual, currently in services and on the PUNS list, to complete a form that will be provided by the Division. The form will let the Division know what changes the individual is likely to request and the timing of that change request. The form and an informational letter will be mailed in the coming weeks.
“Once the data has been collected, the Division will use this, in conjunction with other activities, to outline a process for service transitions.”
The original announcement last year came from IL Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities (IPADD) and it was confirmed by DDD. IPADD said the new policy is in line with federal guidance that once individuals are assessed as needing Medicaid Waiver services, they are entitled to enroll in any part of the Waiver. Both Home-Based and CILA are part of the Illinois Waiver.
STATE’S FINE OF DOYLE IS VACATED . . .
The Kane County Circuit Court has vacated a $154,000 fine imposed by the IL Executive Ethics Commission against Mark Doyle, who was Gov. Quinn’s point person in the closure of state institutions.
The commission last year found Doyle guilty of violating the State’s “revolving door” law, which prohibits former state employees from working for a company after having been involved in awarding a contract to the company. The company was Community Resource Associates (CRA), which carried out the closure of Jacksonville Developmental Center in 2012.
After Quinn left office in 2015, the State of Georgia contracted with a CRA subsidiary to perform similar services for them, and the CRA firm in turn contracted with an Illinois company to do the work. The Illinois company then hired Doyle and paid him $154,000 over a period of eight months. (We are not naming the company because they have not been accused of any wrongdoing.)
Judge Kevin Busch said since Doyle received no money directly from CRA, there was no violation.
“I find the factual determinations made by the EEC that Mr. Doyle accepted compensation for fees of service from CRA via (the other company) to be against the manifest weight of the evidence,” Busch said. “That's not what happened. And I find their legal conclusions that he violated the Ethics Act and that the arrangement was nothing more than a ‘pass-through’ as clearly erroneous.”
The commission is appealing.
IN OUR INBOX . . .
RESPONDING TO OUR JAN. 10 OPEN LETTER TO STATE OFFICIALS, ‘OUR DISABILITY SYSTEM IS IN CRISIS’:
HOUSE SPEAKER MADIGAN’s staff reported that he read through the letter and forwarded it to his budget negotiators. Newly elected SENATE PRESIDENT HARMON thanked us for the letter and also sent it to his budget and policy director. And Deputy Gov. Sol Flores thanked us on behalf of GOV. PRITZKER.
FROM ELLEN GARBER BRONFELD of IPADD (on our Facebook page): “I am in complete agreement with Ed. We have a lot of work to do in order to meet the needs of our citizens with intellectual and developmental disabilities. My son Noah is one of the fortunate ones who has funding and is living the dream most parents wish for their children: a safe place to live with people they like, and a productive and joyful life. I continue to work to make that a reality for all in Illinois, who deserve no less.”
FROM PHIL CARMODY of Opportunity Knocks, a day program in River Forest: “A well-crafted letter. Thank you for carrying the flag onto the field.”
FROM TRACY MILLER: “Great letter. I am going to forward it to my legislators and to everyone I know, asking them to forward it. I can tell that you spent some time crafting this, and your passion is evident.”
FROM SHARON DRAZNER: “Thank you for expressing so well our frustration.”
FROM SHANNON LESLIE: “This is very upsetting and very sad for the individuals in need of help.”
FROM KATHY EFFLAND: “It just makes me sad how these wonderful individuals are treated in our society, and the families as well! The families are the unsung heroes. They deserve support and assistance to give their children as normal a life as possible. The State puts up all kinds of roadblocks to them just to save money. I wish the courts would actually have stood up for them but they too have failed miserably. So sad!”
FROM PHIL GIBBONEY, former DDD network facilitator: “Well said, Ed. You know this system exceedingly well and your advocacy is most important in order to turn heads towards making significant changes in support of individuals with I/DD and their families. Such changes with an accompanying priority action are long, long overdue for our most vulnerable Illinois citizens.”
FROM SUSAN HUDKINS: “Thank you. As usual, your words are so spot on, and I hope ‘they’ are listening.”
FROM MICHAEL WONDERLICH: “Great to see that you continue to nail the issue!”
COMMENT ON OUR SUPPORT OF BASING PUNS SELECTION ON NEED INSTEAD OF TIME ON LIST:
FROM MIKE BAKER: “I have very big issues with the comments about the PUNS list. Why should any family be penalized for being on top of things and getting their kids on PUNS early? I have tried to get everyone I see to sign up and many shrug it off and put it off.”
COMMENT ON ISC LITIGATION:
FROM JOYCE HELANDER, former exec director of Day One Network (on Linked In): “I appreciate your reports on the lawsuits by the ISCs emphasizing the importance of community input prior to actions by the State.”
COMMENTS . . .
Send me your opinions, suggestions, criticisms, or responses to articles. Also tips. I like feedback.
PEOPLE . . .
SUSAN KAUFMAN is the new CEO at Orchard Village, replacing Allison Stark, who was appointed director of DDD. Susan has been vice president, operations, for Bethesda Lutheran Communities for three years. Before that, she was vice president of program services at Clearbrook for 25 years.
MARK INGRUM is the new exec director at Riverside Foundation, replacing Debbie Rogers, who has retired. Mark has been employment opportunities manager at the Center for Enriched Living for 1 ? years. Before that, he was with Glenkirk for 17 years in various management positions. And GLORIA VAN HOF has been appointed associate director/administrator at Riverside.
LISA LEW has been hired as director of adult services at Keshet. Lisa has been manager of the Representative Payee Program at Equip for Equality for 1 ? years. Before that, she was with Clearbrook for 21 years and was the coordinator of the Home-Based Services Workgroup.
KAREN TAMLEY is the new CEO at Access Living, replacing Marca Bristo, who died in September. Karen has been commissioner of the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities in Chicago for 14 years. Before that, she worked at Access Living from 1996 to 2005 as Housing Policy Coordinator and Director of Programs.
TIM BAKER has been promoted to chief of community-based programs at Hope Institute. He also is co-director of the IL Crisis Prevention Network, which is operated by Hope and Trinity Services.
COMING UP . . .
The annual Arc convention has been rescheduled for June 11-12 in Lisle. Many other events have been called off because of the coronavirus situation.
OTHER STUFF . . .
THE SETTINGS RULE: A new draft Transition Plan for the Settings Rule related to the Medicaid Waiver was released last month by the IL Dept. of Healthcare & Family Services. The settings rule was adopted by the federal government in 2014. It requires that any setting that provides Medicaid services demonstrate the characteristics of a community-based, rather than an institutional, setting. States that provide Medicaid services must ensure that their HCBS provider settings comply with the new regulations by March, 2022. This transition plan outlines Illinois’ assessment of its nine current Waiver programs (including I/DD) in relation to the new regulations and describes the State’s strategies to comply with the new rules. The 290-page plan can be found on the HFS website—search for “transition”.
‘AN UNMITIGATED DISASTER’: Three Independent Service Coordination agencies suing DHS in federal court have charged that last July’s restructuring of the ISC system was “an unmitigated disaster” that violated federal and state statutes. “State Defendants have never explained the rationale for the ISC Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to this Court or anyone else,” attorneys said in response to DHS’s motion to dismiss the suit. “The NOFO was an unmitigated disaster in both concept and execution. While the preliminary injunction was denied, the underlying allegations of legal misconduct are still ripe and are capable to repeating themselves because the ISC NOFO contemplates that the contracts will be renewed.”
The plaintiffs are Central IL Service Access, Western IL Service Coordination, DayOne Pact and three individuals. Their appeal was denied in October, but the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals sent the case back to the U.S. District Court in Springfield for further consideration.
THE CONSULTING PRACTICE . . .
WE’RE BACK!: Ellen and I escaped Chicago for the winter, but we kept all of you in our thoughts as we lay on the Hawaiian sand. (Honest!)
WE KEEP GROWING: I undertook a little recruiting campaign which turned out to be quite successful. Welcome to the following 14 organizations who have signed up as affiliates of McManus Consulting, which entitles them to unlimited phone consultations and frequent memos about the system in between newsletters:
ACCESS LIVING is the Center for Independent Living (CIL) that serves the City of Chicago. They describe themselves as “a local, disability consumer?controlled, cross?disability, nonresidential, private nonprofit.” They provide five core services: advocacy, independent living skills, transition support, peer support and referral. Karen Tamley is CEO and Amber Smock is director of advocacy.
ARTS OF LIFE is a day program for individuals with I/DD, specializing in art, with studios in Chicago and Glenview serving a total of 60 people (including our daughter Laura). Denise Fisher is the co-founder and exec director.
BETHESDA LUTHERAN COMMUNITIES operates CILAs in numerous northern Illinois communities and in Springfield. Illinois is one of 13 states served by Bethesda. Cathy Smith, based in Sycamore, is the director of their central region, which includes Illinois and Missouri.
CENTER FOR ENRICHED LIVING, headquartered in Riverwoods, operates two day programs as well as an employment program and numerous social activities. Participants in their Reach program spend 70% of their time out in the community. The Enriched Lifestyles for Adults (ELA) program is a collaboration with the Northern Suburban Special Rec Assn. Harriet Levy is the CEO.
CENTRAL ILLINOIS SERVICE ACCESS is an independent service coordination agency located in Lincoln. CISA provides ISC services in 17 counties. It also provides case coordination for participants in the brain injury program through the Div. of Rehab Services. Mary McGlauchlen is the ED. (CISA is the second ISC to sign up with us; Community Alternatives was the first.)
CHAMBERLIN LAW GROUP is an Oak Brook law firm headed by Darcy Chamberlin. It specializes in estate planning, special needs trusts, guardianships and other issues. Darcy is a member of the Special Needs Alliance; a former board member of Community Support Services in Brookfield; and former treasurer of the Illinois chapter of the Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES BOARD is an agency created by a referendum approved by county voters, authorizing a property tax levy to assist individuals with disabilities. It is known as a 377 board (House Bill 377 set up this system). There is also a mental health board in the county, known as a 708 board, and together they raise $6 million in property taxes, primarily distributed to service provider agencies. Lynn Canfield is the ED for both boards and Kim Bowdry is the associate director for the DD board.
GARDEN CENTER SERVICES, headquartered in Burbank, operates 10 CILAs, 1 15-person ICFDD, a day program and an employment program. Gerry Beagles is ED (he was my boss at DDD!) and Cindy Haworth is director of operations.
GATEWAY TO LEARNING runs a day program on the north side of Chicago and serves 80 individuals. Among other things, the agency has an extensive culinary arts program with 4 commercial kitchens, a bakery and a store-front cafe, Dorothy’s Can-Do Bakery & Cafe. It is named after Dorothy Hough, co-founder of Gateway, who was ED for 28 years. The current director is Kathryn Lavin.
McHENRY COUNTY MENTAL HEALTH BOARD is a 708 board which operates similar to the one in Champaign County mentioned above. Its primary focus is mental health but a portion of its revenue is for individuals with I/DD. Their $10 million budget funded 30 agencies in FY19. Their ED is Scott Block.
MILESTONE INC. operates 30 CILAs in the Rockford area, plus a children’s home (Rocvale), an ICFDD (Elmwood Heights), and an extensive day program. Altogether, they serve 330 individuals. They also run a dental clinic which has served over 2,000 patients for the past 10 years. Shawn Way is the CEO.
RUBIN LAW is a law firm based in Buffalo Grove, founded by Brian Rubin. Brian’s son Mitchell is on the autism spectrum; his other son Benjamin is a partner in the firm. Their website says, ”Legal and future planning for our fellow Illinois families of individuals with special needs, including intellectual disabilities, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, and/or mental illness, is not one thing we do, it’s the only thing we do.” Brian is past president of the Special Needs Alliance and The Arc of Illinois and a member of the Guardianship & Advocacy Commission and the board of Clearbrook.
SHELTERED VILLAGE is an ICFDD located in Woodstock. It is licensed to serve 96 individuals, and it also operates a vocational training program, Rail Enterprises, serving the residents as well as individuals from the community. Bob Norris is the administrator.
WARREN ACHIEVEMENT CENTER operates a CILA program in Monmouth, Warren County, as well as a day program, Achievement Industries, serving 71 individuals. It also provides Self-Direction Assistance to individuals receiving Home-Based Services in Knox and Warren Counties. Rick Barnhill is CEO.
Other new affiliates previously reported: Monahan Law Group, Matt Cohen & Associates, Misericordia, Good Shepherd Manor, CCAR Industries.
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McManus Consulting was founded in 2011 by Ed McManus, who worked for the Dept. of Human Services for 18 years--as an attorney in the Office of Inspector General, state coordinator of the Home-Based Program and facilitator of the DDD North Suburban Network, and before that as a reporter and editor for the Chicago Tribune in Springfield and Chicago. We have provided services to more than 75 agencies, including staff training on how the system works and phone consultation on a retainer basis when issues arise. We also can arrange for consultations with families or provide pro bono assistance to them over the phone.
Ed's Newsletter is published approximately once a month. Its publication is made possible by the support of the following 51 affiliates who are on retainer: Access Living - Active Visions - A New Age Human Services - A+ Autism Solutions – Arts of Life - Aspire - At Home Mission - Avenues to Independence – Bethesda Lutheran Communities - CCAR Industries – Center for Enriched Living - Center for Independent Futures – Champaign County Developmental Disabilities Board - Clearbrook - Douglas Center - Encompass/Jewish United Fund - Friendship House - Garden Center Services - Gateway Services - Gateway to Learning - Glenkirk - Good Shepherd Manor - Helping Hand Center - Individual Advocacy Group - KCCDD/Knox County - Lambs Farm - Leeda Services - Little City - McHenry County Mental Health Board – Milestone - Misericordia - Mulford Homes/Diane Home Care - Pioneer Center for Human Services - Progressive Careers & Housing - Ray Graham Assn. - Rimland - Riverside Foundation - Royal Living Center - St. Coletta of WI - Sertoma Centre – Sheltered Village - Trinity Services - UCP Seguin – Warren Achievement Center - The Workshop/Galena.
Independent Service Coordination agencies: Central IL Service Access - Community Alternatives Unlimited.
Disability-related law firms: Chamberlin Law Group - Matt Cohen & Associates - Monahan Law Group - Rubin Law.