Local legislators say they're fighting for Hab Center

In a move that Missouri Department of Mental Health spokesman Bob Bax called "part of the effort by the state to close a $500 million gap in the budget," the Missouri Department of Mental Health announced on Wednesday, March 31, that it plans to close the Nevada Habilitation Center by the year 2012.

"It is not official until passed by both houses and signed by the governor, but "It would not be prudent on our part to wait on that. We're proceeding as if in fact this will be passed," Bax noted.

State Representative Barney Fisher, R-District 125, says local legislators are fighting against the move, saying, "It's not just penny-wise and pound foolish. It's dollar dumb," declaring that he could come up with a long list of sound reasons not to close the facility. "This fight's just starting." Fisher said there was a "temporary victory" on Thursday after he made a case for keeping the center open to Senators David Pearce and Rob Mayer. The Senators agreed not to take any action on the issue until next week. "We have bought some time," Fisher said.

The Senate will decide on the budget next week Fisher said, but differences in the House and Senate versions of the budget will create a dialogue that will keep the issue alive. It's just not a simple issue, Fisher said. The residents in the Hab Center "are our most fragile in the state," he said.

Fisher went on to say that the Governor has to cut 2,000 state jobs to meet a constitutionally mandated balanced budget and the selection of which jobs to cut is critical. This may be asking for more expense in the long run, he said.

For more than 25 years the Nevada Habilitation Center has been one of the largest employers in Vernon County. It employs more than 300 state workers and provides quality, specialized care to more than 90 residents on its campus and currently serves the needs of 16 individuals in off campus state operated waiver programs.

A document provided by Bax indicates that the "Nevada Habilitation Center program will be transitioned from an ICF-MR funded program to a Medicaid Waiver funded program and the current, congregate living campus will be closed during the fiscal years 2011-2012."

Documents distributed to Hab Center employees state that "Converting to Waiver-funded services will require that all residents who remain in the NHC program be housed in Individualized Supported Living Settings."

The document goes on to say, "Nevada will develop additional state operated waiver services in the community to serve at least 40 individuals transitioning from the Nevada campus and preferably as many as 60 residents. State operated waiver services in Nevada will serve at least 56 individuals and continue to employ at least 168 of the 305 state employees in the Nevada community." The remaining individuals will be transitioned to other facilities in the state.

According to Bax, the transition will begin as early as July of this year in order to be completed by the target date.

Bax indicated that the first step in the process would be to contact and meet with families, guardians, employees and staff members to bring them up to date on the planned changes.

Nevada Habilitation Center superintendent Chris Baker echoed that sentiment saying that he planned to meet with his staff as soon as next week. "I am sure employees are concerned," he said. And Bax said, "Part of what we're looking at is for many employees to transition to ISLs." Both men said some layoffs would occur. The number is not certain, but 55 seems to be an estimate. Bax and Baker hoped that some of the employee questions would be answered by attrition rather than layoff. In other words, vacancies won't be filled when a worker retires or leaves for some other reason.

A document detailing the transition obtained from the Department of Mental Health states that the members of the NHC administrative staff will be authorized to move to "new state-operated Waiver ISL homes" and that "NHC employees will be offered positions in NHC operated ISLs and at SEMORS, Marshall or Higginsville Habilitation Center campuses."

Baker said, "In a technical sense the Hab Center is going to close, but patients will continue to be served."

He also said that he has to approach the situation as if it had already passed the House and Senate. He said, "I'm ramping things up, getting things in place." In creating a future plan of action, Baker said he wanted to "approach this thing in a sound manner."