Disabled Adults Can't Wait Forever

Here's another story about New Jersey's long waiting list for placements for adults with disabilities like me. The post is almost a year old but the story remains the same: Most young adults in New Jersey are forced to choose between living at home indefinitely, despite the burden it places on their families and the enriching life it denies them, or to go into a hospital-like institution that falls very short of meeting the state's goal (and the court's demand) that we receive the least restrictive care possible.

New Jersey's official goal for disabled clients, established years ago, is that they be placed in the least restrictive setting compatible with their disabilities. For most, that would be a supervised group home, housing six to eight people. For a more independent person, it could be a supervised apartment.

In other words, we want the disabled to live as full and free a life as they can without endangering them by forcing them to do things they cannot, which can mean anything from caring for their hygienic needs to fixing their meals or taking the bus to a job.

...But that scenario became a reality for only 28 adults last year.

For the rest, click here.