Officials seek 'crystal clear' reasons for White Haven, Polk center closures

Oct. 22--HARRISBURG -- Questions about the philosophy and cost of treating Pennsylvanians with intellectual disabilities and autism were bandied about during a hearing Monday to delay the closings of the White Haven and Polk state centers.

State Rep. Gerald Mullery, D-119, Newport Twp., who proposed a moratorium on closing the centers, asked if it is "crystal clear" that the Wolf administration's decision to shut down the White Haven and Polk centers is philosophical and has nothing to do with the budget.

"Yes, philosophically, we want people to be in the community close to their families. That was the driving force," said Kristin Ahrens, deputy secretary of the Office of Developmental Programs, "but also budgetarily it is unstable to manage four centers."

"That's where you went too far. This has nothing to do with budget," Mullery replied during a hearing of the Human Services and Health committees in Harrisburg.

Ahrens testified that centers like White Haven and Polk in Venango County were the standard of care when they opened in the previous century. Now, about 700 people reside in centers, while 40,000 Pennsylvanians receive care at home or in community settings. As the census falls in centers, the cost of care per resident increases, Ahrens said when explaining why the administration wants to close White Haven and Polk within three years.

Sherri Landis of the Arc of Pennsylvania said for every person in a state center, there is a person who receives similar care in a community setting. She and others noted that Mullery's bill places a moratorium on closing centers until Pennsylvania provides community services for 13,000 residents on a waiting list, a need that Landis said would take billions of dollars to meet.

When Rep. Tarah Toohil, R-116, Butler Twp., asked the cost of providing care to those on the waiting list, Ahrens said the department could submit it later. Ahrens told Toohil that 5,200 people on the list are in crisis, meaning they need care within six months. But Ahrens said the department estimates just 20% of people with intellectual or developmental disabilities who need services have asked for them.

"It is definitely a very dynamic waiting list," Ahrens said.

Gary Blumenthal of InVision Human Services called funding inequalities highlighted by the waiting list "the elephant in the room."

With the state spending more to care for people in centers, "What are you saying to the families of the 13,000?" Blumenthal asked.

White Haven has 111 residents, and Polk 194.

Rep. David Zimmerman, a Republican, pointed out that private care facilities can be larger.

Two facilities in the 99th District that he represents in Lancaster County have more than 200 residents. Trying to imagine what care would be like without those facilities "gives me pause," Zimmerman said.

Bill Hill, a maintenance worker and union steward at White Haven, said some people thrive in community settings but some people need the care that his colleagues give around the clock at White Haven and Polk. For example, Hill said caregivers know "from a grimace" what a resident needs even if the resident can't talk.

"They see that individual every day. That can't happen anywhere else," Hill said.

He and William Bailey, a psychological support specialist at Polk, recommended opening state centers to people on the waiting list.

Filling empty beds in one building could double the population at Polk, said Bailey, pointing out, "At Polk, there are five buildings."

Ahrens pointed out that due to federal court rulings on deinstitutionalization, only a judge can admit a person to a state center.

Susan Jennings said her son, Joey, wasn't offered a spot in a state center. After entering community care, Joey was discharged from six group homes, over medicated and refused admission to two of the community providers whose representatives testified in favor of closing White Haven and Polk.

Then she learned about state centers, and "he was finally rescued by the White Haven Center and its staff."

Meanwhile, people older than her son who have lived at White Haven for 40 years face transfer trauma if required to go to another home.

Tammy Luce, a residential service aide and union representative at Polk, said workers and the surrounding community provide a home for the residents.

"I don't see what is so empowering about forcing them out of their home," Luce said. "We are their voice, and they are our hearts."

Human Services Chairman Gene DiGirolamo, R-18, Bucks County, said at the start of the hearing that, "Families should be the main people who should be making the decision for the loved ones" on where to live.

At the hearing's end, DiGirolamo said, "after what I've heard today" he would vote for the moratorium.

Contact the writer: kjackson@standardspeaker.com; 570-501-3587

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