NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Families of severely disabled residents worry the state wants to move their loved ones out of state-run community homes and into private care.
The residents — who have intellectual and developmental disabilities — have been in state care for decades, some having lived at Clover Bottom before it was closed.
This month the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities sent an unsigned letter to "Family Members and Conservators" stating it is "decommissioning" state-run homes that currently house adults.
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The letter said the state wants to use the homes to care for children in state custody with "significant medical needs," and it will begin looking for "transition opportunities for those we currently serve."
Dianne McVetty is a conservator for her brother, Clark, 62, who cannot speak and has been in state care for 45 years.
She was shocked when she received the letter.
"To me, they are destroying my brother's life," McVetty said.
Clark moved into a state-run community home nearly 10 years ago after the state closed Clover Bottom.
The community homes have around-the-clock medical care in a neighborhood setting.
Dianne said her brother has thrived and now goes to church and has a YMCA membership.
"They are evicting these people that lived in these homes for 10 years and that's not right. It's wrong," McVetty said.
The Department responded in a statement that "no one is being evicted from their homes."
"We are asking people living in our community homes to consider alternative placement," department officials said.
The department said there are more private options available for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities than for children. But family members who received the letters feel like their loved ones are being pushed out.
Becky Moss's daughter, Kelly, is partially paralyzed and unable to speak after a traumatic brain injury from a car wreck.
She has been in state care for 32 years and was also at Clover Bottom.
"It's not right to tear them out of what they've known after they have already been done that way," Moss said. "To split them up will be devastating to all of them."
The state operates 36 community homes with four beds in each for a total of nearly 150 beds statewide.
In a statement, the Department said it has begun working with the Department of Children's Services to care for kids "with complex medical needs" who "were being cared for in hospitals while waiting for long-term foster placements."
Last year, DCS started moving some of the kids out of hospitals into community homes.
Now the state wants "to serve more children."
In 2022, DCS Commissioner Margie Quin told Gov. Bill Lee about kids staying in hospitals for months because DCS had no place for them.
"These are youth that are extremely difficult to place," Quin said in 2022.
Our investigation exposed how a 10-year-old with Muscular Dystrophy lived for 103 days in the East Tennessee Children's Hospital because DCS could not find a place for him after his mother died and his father couldn't care for him.
Another DCS child stayed at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt for 270 days.
"I'm sympathetic to the issues children have. I'm very sympathetic," McVetty said.
But she does not believe her brother will get the same care in a private facility, which she says often has inconsistent staffing.
She and Becky Moss say their loved ones still have some of the same caregivers they had at Clover Bottom.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked, "You were told this would be Clark's forever home?"
"Yes. We were told that. I mean obviously after getting this letter I don't think that's the state's intent any longer," McVetty responded.
Becky Moss said, "They are human beings and they are being kicked to the curb again because they want that for something else."
They both question why the state doesn't build more homes - and say they've been told the homes are very expensive.
But they say it is wrong to solve this problem on the backs of their loved ones.
"It's like they are taking advantage of these people. That's how I feel," McVetty said.
The Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities declined an on-camera interview.
Letters to families from the state
Below are two statements the department sent along with the unsigned letter it sent to family members.
May 6 letter:
To Family Members and Conservators,
The Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (DIDD), in an effort to continue utilizing our resources to impact people living with I/DD across the lifespan, is making a change that will impact your loved one who currently lives in one of the state’s community homes, also known as the state-operated intermediate care facilities (ICF/IID).
DIDD has recently started caring for children in state custody with significant medical needs in our vacant community homes. These children were previously cared for in hospitals simply because a long-term foster placement was not available to meet their medical needs. Through the creation of these Tennessee Strong Family Homes, DIDD has been able to meet a critical need, one which is not available elsewhere within Tennessee. That need continues to grow, and we must evaluate how we are best using our resources to meet the needs of all the people we serve.
We are fortunate that DIDD has robust service options to provide for adults with complex medical and behavioral needs. This includes the choice of receiving services from a private intermediate care facility (ICF/IID) or through home and community-based services (HCBS). After a thorough evaluation, and with the understanding of a near decade long trend of reduced need for state run ICF/IID services, we have decided to begin the process of identifying potential transition opportunities for those we currently support and will move forward with decommissioning the state-run ICF/IIDs, known as the East, West and Middle Tennessee Homes. It is important to note that, in the event that no willing provider is available to offer a transition opportunity, DIDD will assure continuity of service is maintained until a viable transition opportunity is developed.
We will work with you and your loved one to review the options. All persons supported continue to have freedom of choice to select any available and willing HCBS waiver provider or a private ICF provider. In preparation for the process of identifying transition opportunities, the DIDD clinical and program teams have completed assessments of all persons who reside in ICFs with a focus on the individualized health and behavioral needs of each person. This information will help in identifying the best placement for privately provided services. In addition, DIDD is committed to developing a detailed, person-centered transition plan, cross training, and postplacement monitoring process. This is the same plan that was used to successfully transition people from the developmental centers, and DIDD staff have experience and expertise in carrying out these plans.
At the point at which you or your loved one is identified as a candidate for transition, a member of the DIDD Transition Unit will be contacting you to begin this process. We are looking forward to working with you to find a place that meets their individualized needs and supports them to live the life they envision for themselves.
May 14 statement from the department:
The department started serving children with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are in DCS custody in March 2023. These children have complex medical needs and were being cared for in hospitals while waiting for long-term foster placements. DIDD was able to use its state-operated former intermediate care facilities to meet this need and provide more appropriate placements for these children until a long-term placement could be identified. This program has been incredibly successful and provided children a home with trained staff and skilled nursing while allowing them to receive an education and engage in community activities.
There is a need to increase the capacity to serve more children across the state as placement options, especially for children with significant medical support needs, are very limited.
For adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, there is an array of services and supports available for them outside of state-operated care. These include home and community-based services through the state’s waivers for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities as well as private intermediate care facilities. It’s important for the department to direct its state-operated resources, both homes and staff, to meet urgent needs that cannot be provided elsewhere.
We have notified conservators of those currently living in the state-operated homes of the department’s intent to start assisting people and families with identifying private provider service options in their communities and of the support we are prepared to offer those transitioning to appropriate community or private ICF settings. Those transitioning will have the option to receive the same level and type of care they currently receive. They will also continue to have the freedom to choose from available service providers and settings.
The department has safely and successfully transitioned people over the course of 20 years out of the state’s now-closed developmental centers into community settings. Once chosen, these transitions will occur with the support and development of a thorough transition plan that includes cross-training and post-placement monitoring.
May 22 statement from the department:
No one is being evicted from their homes, and we have stated that in conversations with family members. What we are trying for to do, and what is stated in the letter, is create capacity for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities with complex medical needs who have little to no placement options outside of hospitals. In order to do that, we are asking people living in our community homes to consider alternative placement in the wide range of residential options available to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
