Editorial: Community Care First

CHICAGO -- Three months ago, Gov. Pat Quinn unveiled a budget that made the tough choice to shut down a handful of government-run facilities around the state. He did it for good reason.
The facilities, including prisons and centers for the developmentally disabled, are unneeded and hugely expensive. The services they provide can be done much more efficiently, and their high cost puts a squeeze on funding available for other social services.
Now we're coming down to the final decisions in Springfield on state spending for the next fiscal year. The closing of the facilities are a bargaining chip.

Editorial: Placing People Ahead of Finances

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- We are firmly on record advocating that Illinois move away from its reliance on large institutions to house the developmentally disabled.
Housing people with developmental disabilities in large facilities is an antiquated, expensive and, most importantly, ineffective way of allowing the disabled to live the fullest and most productive lives possible. By and large, advocates for the developmentally disabled favor providing residential care in residential settings — group homes with six or fewer residents supervised by a properly trained staff.