PRESIDENT’S NOTES

By Jana Cronin

“Thank you’s” are in order for NAMI DuPage’s hardworking staff and dedicated volunteers and special thanks to the Run for the Mind committee our executive director, Angela Adkins, the committee chairs, Mary Bazan, Andy Bazan and Tom Gerhardstein, and the entire committee. The Run/Walk was held on Saturday, September 18, and was once again a success due to the combined efforts of the committee, the NAMI staff, and the many volunteers. The day was cut short by a downpour, but the walkers and runners did manage to complete the course.

Landmark Agreement

On Thursday, September 30, U.S. District Judge William Hart approved a landmark agreement worked out by the State of Illinois and a coalition of legal services organizations that will enable thousands of people with mental illness who are currently living in large nursing homes to move into more appropriate community settings. The agreement settles the class action lawsuit of Williams vs. Quinn, filed by the ACLU in 2005. This agreement sets in motion a schedule for State officials to offer persons with mental illness the opportunity to move out of IMDs (Institutions for Mental Diseases) into less restrictive housing options appropriate to their disabilities. Under this agreement, every resident of an IMD will be offered an evaluation to determine whether he is eligible to live in a less restrictive setting and to determine what support services are needed for that individual to do well in the new environment. The evaluation is voluntary and a resident may choose to remain where he lives.

The next step will be to implement a specific plan to transition those individuals to new living arrangements. In his ruling, Judge Hart acknowledged that there were IMD residents and family members who opposed this settlement because they felt the agreement lacked details on how the new housing and services would be administered. Their fear was that the IMDs would be closed and the residents would be left without an alternative in place.

As a result of this settlement, nursing home residents have the opportunity to live in the community in supported housing; i.e., apartments or small group homes. An additional benefit is that because community-based housing and services are far less costly than IMDs, the State of Illinois will be able to save millions of dollars over the next few years.