 Gov. Pat Quinn rang the bell in the fall when he announced
the closure of seven state facilities because of a lack of funds.
Two of the facilities care for people with developmentally
disabilities.
Quinn and lawmakers eventually found the cash to keep the
facilities open, with a promise to review how to save the state
money and improve care for patients.
Now with a budget address two weeks away, Quinn has announced
closing at least one facility for the developmentally disabled and a
state-run mental health facility, the Jacksonville Developmental
Center and Tinley Park Mental Health Center, respectively. Both were
targeted for closure by Quinn in the fall.
The two centers employ 546 people, most of whom are members of
the public-sector union American Federation of State, County and
Municipal Employees Council 31, or AFSCME.
AFSCME is fighting hard to keep those jobs, sending letters to
lawmakers and holding public protests. If the facilities close,
their residents will be moved to smaller, community care facilities,
staffed by employees who are likely members of the Service Employees
International Union, or SEIU, a private-sector union.
"You could end up with unions on both sides" of the fight, said
David Morrison, president of the Illinois Campaign for Political
Reform, a government watchdog group.
AFSCME represents about 5,000 people who work in state-run
developmental disability facilities, said Anders Lindall, AFSCME
spokesman.
Quinn promised not to close all the facilities, but he did say
his recent announcement was the first step in a larger plan. If just
half the centers close, that would mean 2,500 AFSCME members who are
out of a job.
Lindall said AFSCME’s resistance to closing the facilities is
more about getting the residents the best care possible than about
jobs or feuding with other unions.
"That’s what’s at stake. Are we going to do right by those
individuals and their families and their communities? The rest of it
is a distraction," Lindall said.
Calls to SEIU by Illinois Statehouse News were not returned.
Closing state facilities would divert a lot of money into the
private sector.
The state is giving former residents of centers for people with
developmental disabilities an average budget of $84,000 annually to
find a community care or home care provider, though that number
could swing wildly depending on how much care a person requires.
Most residents are eligible for Medicaid, meaning the federal
government will cover half of the $84,000. Residents will get that
budget for as long as they would have been in a state institution.
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The state is compiling a database, already available, that lists
service providers for residents and their families. Residents also
can shop outside that list.
The most recent figures for this year show nearly 2,000 residents
staying in state-run developmental disability centers, according to
the Illinois Department of Human Services. If half those patients
are moved out of the institutions, $84 million in taxpayer dollars
would pay for community care or home care as provided by the private
health care industry.
Lindall said AFSCME represents about 5,000 people in the
nonprofit health care sector. But that number is small compared with
the almost 40,000 members SEIU represents in the private health care
industry.
However, Quinn and AFSCME are on the outs, despite an influx of
cash during the gubernatorial election in 2010 from the public
union. Quinn has refused to give state employees a contracted
cost-of-living increase this year.
AFSCME gave Quinn nothing between Oct. 1, 2011, and Jan. 27,
2012, while SEIU dropped $50,000 into his campaign war chest during
that time period.
Quinn and his administration have repeatedly said that shutting
down the centers in Jacksonville, Tinley Park or elsewhere is about
providing quality care for patients, not just an issue of the bottom
line or campaign donations.
"The institutional approach is looking for beds and slots where
you can put people. We don’t look for beds and slots," said Brie
Callahan, a spokeswoman for Quinn. "Quality-of-life issues are
what’s driving this."
Closing Jacksonville and Tinley Park will save the state about
$20 million annually.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By ANDREW THOMASON]
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