Twin bills that would put a moratorium on closing Polk and White Haven state centers were approved Tuesday in two state legislative committees.
The House Health Committee and Senate Health and Human Services Committee voted to pass the bills.
The House panel voted 16-8 in favor of the measure with 14 Republicans and two Democrats voting yes. All eight no votes were cast by Democrats.
The next steps for the bills would be votes in the full House and Senate.
A group of four senators who requested that state Inspector General Bruce Beemer investigate the Department of Human Services’ (DHS) decision to close the centers released a joint statement after the Senate vote.
“Today’s action represents another step forward in protecting the people who live at White Haven and Polk State Centers, their families and the employees at the centers from this unilateral decision made by the Department of Human Services,” the statement said.
The group – made up of Scott Hutchinson of Oil City, Michele Brooks of Crawford County (chair of the Health and Human Services committee), and John Yudichak and Lisa Baker, who both represent parts of Luzerne County where White Haven State Center is located -have repeatedly questioned the motives of the DHS decision and the level of transparency the department has had during recent Senate and House hearings.
“The residents and families deserve full transparency, a well-thought-out plan and the active input of residents, families, staff and other affected individuals. We want to ensure that any future closures being considered by DHS are made in an open and transparent manner,” the senators said.
The bills, mirror images of one another, were introduced by Yudichak and state Rep. Gerald Mullery, who is also of Luzerne County. They are designed to halt the planned closure of the centers until a series of steps are taken.
Other steps include the creation of a Task Force on the Closure of State Centers, which would be comprised of the secretary of the Department of Human Services, one representative from each state facility, one representative from the governor’s office, the chair and minority chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee and House Human Services Committee, two family members of residents of state facilities and one representative of a nonprofit organization that serves as an advocate for those with intellectual disabilities.
The task force would be convene within 60 days of the completion of the first step and would then meet bi-weekly to perform a comprehensive evaluation of the state facilities.
The evaluation would look into the impact the center’s closure would have on residents of the facility and their families, all facility employees, the local economy surrounding the facility and the readiness of provider agencies in the region to expand the community-based residential infrastructure to support residents leaving the facilities.
The task force would then vote on the center’s closure.
If the task force votes yes, DHS would then take steps to begin the closure process at the two centers, including an independent appraisal of the properties, a historical report of the properties and the process DHS would utilize to transition residents.
