Family members of mentally retarded people living in state group homes called on Gov. John G. Rowland this week to stop plans to privatize some of the facilities.
About 35 people delivered more than 4,500 signatures to the Republican governor’s office on Monday.
Helen Politi of Bridgeport said her 52-year-old daughter, Cheryl Holst, would be devastated if a private agency suddenly took over her Stratford group home. She said Holst is comfortable with the state workers at her home and doesn’t like change.
“This is a very bad idea. You are breaking up homes of our children,” Politi said.
The state Department of Mental Retardation announced plans last month to turn 30 state-run group homes over to private agencies. DMR said the privatization initiative happened in part because a number of agency employees took the early retirement option offered as part of a state deficit-reduction plan in February.
The agency already relies on a number of private nonprofit agencies to run group homes.
‘Like Family’
Marc Ryan, the governor’s budget chief, said the privatization would save the state $10,000 to $20,000 per client a year. The bid process should be completed by the end of the year.
Linda Kautzner of Seymour said she worries that her 42-year-old brother Ricky’s group home might be the next one pegged for privatization. Kautzner said her brother, who suffers from cerebral palsy and severe mental retardation, has lived there for 20 years. He cannot speak, instead using a form of sign language to communicate.
“The staff members at his group home are like family to him,” Kautzner said. “They know him better than I do.”
The New England Health Care Employees Union, District 1199, helped to organize Monday’s news conference. Rowland said the anger over the privatization plan comes more from union concerns, because non-union workers are employed by some of the private agencies.
But District 1199 said their concern isn’t job protection, because current union staff at the group homes would be transferred to other state jobs.
“The union issue has nothing to do with these families wanting stability and consistency for the people they love,” said Sen. Edith Prague, D-Columbia, co-chairwoman of the Legislature’s Labor Committee. “These families don’t want all kinds of strangers coming in day after day.” (AP)
