ASK Resource Center Policy Page

Reverse Institutional Bias
With Community Based Services And Support For People With Disabilities

Iowa Human Needs Advocates supports the notion that people with disabilities and their families are best served within their own communities in a nurturing environment.

Discussion

All people deserve nurturing, safe, and supportive educational, living, recreational and employment environments where they and their families are valued and treated with respect and dignity.  High expectations supported by continuing quality services lead to best outcome for people with disabilities.  Persons with disabilities with long term care needs and their family caregivers should be supported across the lifespan in ways that respond to their individual needs and promote self-determination.  Reverse Iowa ’s current institutional bias by fully supporting The Olmstead decision with systems change designed to mandate a priority for programming and funding that support choice, flexibility and individualized support and services for persons with disabilities and their families

Policy Recommendations

• Eliminate use of Child in Need of Assistance (CINA) procedure to secure resources and support for child with emotional, behavioral or developmental disabilities.
• Establish individual, annual budget funding-ensuring that dollars follow the individual, not the institution, that they be served in the Least Restricted Environment (LRE) of their choice, as supported in the Olmstead decision.
• Support the restructure efforts of the Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, Mental Retardation and Brain Injury (MH/DD/MR/BI) Commissions Children’s redesign.

Jule L. Reynolds, Disabilities Advocate
Director: ASK Resource Center