(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) In opening remarks at a conference on employment opportunities for the developmentally disabled late last year, Department of Developmental Services Commissioner Elin Howe gave what appears to be an … [Read more...]
Opaque Massachusetts budget process hides state’s real priorities
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) In a preview this week of the Fiscal 2018 state budget, the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center points out a key shortcoming in the budget process. That process is not transparent, the … [Read more...]
DDS upholds complete ban on family contact with developmentally disabled woman…Case shows why voters feel abandoned by the political system
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) After a "careful review" that did not happen to include interviews with at least two of the three principals in the case, the Department of Developmental Services has upheld an indefinite ban on all … [Read more...]
Court statements show DDS employees held a bias against family members seeking to visit Chelsea Barr
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) In statements made in a probate court hearing last year, an attorney for the Department of Developmental Services and two other DDS employees appeared to demonstrate a bias against the father and … [Read more...]
A gritty new book on a survivor of Belchertown State School
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) Donald Vitkus spent his childhood years in the 1950's at the Belchertown State School, one of the large institutions for people with developmental disabilities that used to be common in … [Read more...]
Father and sister banned from all contact with developmentally disabled woman because they cried when they saw her
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) Can it really happen in America that the state can take an individual into its custody, and then not even let that person’s family know where she or he is, for months on end? Yes, that is … [Read more...]
Guardianship under fire by the same groups that oppose congregate care and support privatization
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) Guardianship of persons with developmental disabilities is under fire in Massachusetts and elsewhere, and families could see their advocacy rights eroded as a result. One prominent threat to … [Read more...]
More than six months later, Andy McDonald still has no legal representation in his guardianship case (with update)
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) UPDATE: A new attorney for Andy McDonald will be appointed this week (the week of September 5) to represent him in his guardianship case, according to Mark Larsen, the director of the Mental Health … [Read more...]
Proposed changes to DDS behavioral and restraints regs would subtract protections, add vagueness
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blog) The Baker administration is proposing major changes to regulations governing behavior modification techniques and restraints that are used on persons with developmental disabilities. The Department … [Read more...]
Baker administration concedes some congregate care for the developmentally disabled is good, but will still largely prohibit it
(Cross-posted from The COFAR Blogsite) In responses to comments made to a federally required plan for community-based care of the developmentally disabled, the Baker administration is conceding that not all congregate care is bad or … [Read more...]
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