Eye On Illinois: Money isn’t a total fix to state’s woes, but often an essential element

Let’s run the numbers.

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman said Illinois can’t end disability services oversight from federal courts. (To read an overview from the Illinois Department of Human Services, visit tinyurl.com/LigasOverview.)

In short, many people with developmental disabilities would prefer to live in home-like settings. Not only does Illinois place most in public and private institutional settings, but, according to a Wednesday report, “over the past two years, Capitol News Illinois and ProPublica have exposed severe conditions, including extreme abuse and life-threatening neglect, in the state’s seven developmental centers. Some residents and their caregivers have sought to leave these facilities but told reporters they’ve been unable to find suitable group home placements due to a shortage of options that meet their specific medical and behavioral needs.”

In court, the state said it’s spent significantly on community-based care. Whereas there were about 13,500 people served in group and family homes in 2011, the 2023 count exceeded 23,000. It’s also increased wages for community-setting workers who help with tasks like bathing and eating. But we wouldn’t be losing in court if those efforts were enough. Staying out of legal trouble altogether is a superior goal.

My July 24 column on this topic concluded thusly: “It’s not that people don’t care, but caring alone doesn’t solve problems. Neither does money. True public service is sometimes an insurmountable obstacle.”

With that said – and with Coleman’s ruling making it clear Illinois isn’t nearly done with a journey that started with a July 2005 lawsuit – it would be interesting to at least see an informed estimate on how much it would take to at least solve the parts of the equation that require money.

What are the capital costs of building enough facilities to give everyone a choice of where to live? How much would it cost, in salary and benefits, to fully staff each such facility without relying on overtime wages?

Obviously, some actuarial work would be involved, as we can’t guess how long everyone will stay alive or predict (with complete accuracy) exactly in which ZIP code to locate all these buildings, but that kind of informed guessing is standard procedure in the public and private sectors. Illinois has an entire Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability!

The point is to put on the table a price tag that would allow everyone involved to have at least halfway serious conversations about whether we’re willing (or able) to dedicate the kind of resources to have a legitimate chance of adequately serving this population.

Like most public service challenges, money won’t entirely solve this problem. But good intentions won’t do it alone, so let’s run the numbers and have a real discussion.

• Scott T. Holland writes about state government issues for Shaw Local News Network. Follow him on X @sth749. He can be reached at sholland@shawmedia.com.