State comments comments on Broome center closing

Personnel with the New York Office of People with Developmental Disabilities will field comments Tuesday on the impact of the planned closing of centers serving the developmentally disabled across the state.

The session is scheduled for 3 to 5 p.m.Tuesday at classroom six, on the second floor of the Broome Developmental Center, 249 Glenwood Road in the Town of Dickinson.

“Our region is at the center of this plan, and residents, their families and staff deserve an opportunity to voice their concerns locally,” said Assemblywoman Donna Lupado, D-Endwell. “I’ve heard from numerous people expressing concerns over the pace at which this closure is occurring.”

The Broome Developmental Center is scheduled to close next spring  Other similar state centers have already been closed or will be shuttered by the end of next year, leaving just two developmental centers in the state serving an estimated 150 people. Developmentally disabled people are being transitioned to group homes within the community rather than institutional settings.

Participants in the conference must register by noon Tuesday or by emailing transformation.panel@opwdd.ny.gov. Those who are unable to attend also can submit written testimony to the same address.

The public forum is designed to hear comments on how the agency can best serve the people with developmental disabilities as it expands the group home network, and reforming the system to meet future needs.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires the developmentally disabled to be integrated into the community. A 1999 Supreme Court ruling that determined segregating developmentally disabled in institutions was discriminatory sped up the need to close, and changes in Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement policies made it even more imminent.

Among the concerns of those now responsible for the population is that the developmentally disabled will be left without needed support going into the future.