Panel to target backlog of disabled adults in need

Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News

Published June 30, 2007 at midnight

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At age 82, Margot Richard, whose health is declining and who has suffered a series of bone-breaking falls, now needs someone to look out for her.

Instead, the elderly Adams County mother still spends her days looking after her autistic 40-year-old son, Paul.

Margot Richard is among thousands of aging Colorado parents who live with the fear that they could die or fall ill, leaving their vulnerable, developmentally disabled adult children with no support because of state service backlogs requiring them to wait as long as 20 years.

"We certainly hope we can get some services for Paul before his mother is no longer able to take care of him," said Angela Richard, Margot's daughter-in-law.

"And there are a lot of (developmentally disabled) people in the same boat, living with these elderly parents. What's going to happen when that elderly parent has a stroke and can't get up any more?" she asked.

Now a special Colorado General Assembly committee is tasked with examining the cause of the mystery-shrouded state service waiting list and hopefully making the vital system deliver for those in need.

"There are serious issues facing over 3,000 adults with developmental disabilities and 4,000 families raising children in need of support," said Rep. Michael Garcia, D-Aurora, who sponsored the resolution that created the interim committee comprised of 10 state flawmakers, five from each chamber.

The committee will meet six times starting in mid-July. Its goals include giving parents more transparency about the confusing system of 20 regional agency boards that determine who receives $350 million in annual federal, state and local funding for an array of services for the developmentally disabled.

This can range from around- the-clock home care for the severely disabled to job training, housing assistance, adult diapers and nutritional drinks.

What confounds some family members is the lack of clear rules or accountability in the wait for services. Some regional agencies won't tell people where they are on the list or estimate how long they have to wait.

Angela Richard said two years years ago their regional agency, North Metro Community Services, told the family Paul could get day support services, like a workshop were he could learn basic job skills, in three to five years. The wait for more comprehensive services, like a residential home, was a decade.

"But that was two years ago and now they're still saying three to five years for day services," she said. "We pay taxes, and we don't have any services for Paul."

Service agencies say a funding shortage is driving the crisis.

"We have these enormous waiting lists and we have people in crisis constantly because resources have been stagnant for a long time," John Meeker, head of Developmental Pathways, said this year. The nonprofit agency serves the developmentally disabled in Arapahoe, Jefferson and part of Adams counties.

Fred DeCrescentis, director of the State Division for Developmental Disabilities, seconded Meeker's assessment.

"Resources can't keep up with the needs of individuals in need of service," DeCrescentis said, adding that the 20 community centers can offer care to just a handful of people each.

He said 1,212 individuals are on a waiting list for 24-hour care. The need for part-time care is even greater, DeCrescentis said. "If we had sufficient resources, we would have 2,038 people who would use these services."

One member of the interim committee will bring personal insights and questions to the table. Rep. John Soper, D-Thornton, cares for his developmentally disabled brother, who has been on a waiting list for services for the past 20 years.

"For some families it's a matter of getting through the red tape," Soper said. "The funding may be there but folks still have trouble actually getting the help they need."

Garcia wants to shine a light on the murky waiting game.

"The goals of the committee are to quickly understand the problems they face and solve them," he said. "Some families have been waiting for basic services for years and have been told they will have to wait several more. That is simply unacceptable."

gathrighta@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5486. Staff writer Justin Coons contributed to this story.

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