Shutdown of New Jersey Centers Likely to Upset Lives of Most Vulnerable

by Pablo Ros  |  March 07, 2013

Despite all the odds against her, Catherine O’Brien, a resident of the Woodbridge Developmental Center in New Jersey, has made it this far.

The daughter of Donald and Virginia O’Brien, Catherine is in her 50s but functions at the level of a seven-month-old. She suffered severe brain damage at birth, cannot talk or verbally communicate her needs, is subject to seizures, requires a special diet, and must be transported in a wheelchair.

Yet despite all this, Catherine is “contented and happy” at the publicly run facility, according to her parents, who write: “She receives the best of care there. The professional doctors, nurses, social workers, therapists, personal care assistants and many other employees on staff provide a high quality of life for Cathy and all the residents.”

This is why it is so upsetting to the parents and guardians of the more than 700 residents at the Woodbridge and North Jersey developmental centers that state officials are trying to shut them down ever since a government-appointed task force last year decided so. It issued a legally binding recommendation for shutting down the facilities.

According to a survey in 2012, 96 percent of parents or guardians of the severely intellectually disabled individuals who live there oppose the closing and the transfer of their loved ones to privately run community homes.

But because of Gov. Chris Christie’s political agenda – with an emphasis on privatization, despite evidence that publicly run centers provide better care – the parents of Catherine and others may soon have to travel more than 100 miles to see them. This sudden change in the lives of individuals who lack the tools to understand the decisions made for them may prove to be extremely disruptive.

Catherine “is classified as not being a candidate for living in a community home by the professional staff inter-disciplinary team,” her parents write. “She becomes very upset by change and needs frequent contact with us to keep her stable and happy.”

Not only do the Woodbridge and North Jersey centers fulfill the needs of their residents, they are the only facilities of their kind in the northern part of the state. Privately run facilities often have little oversight and have been known to reap millions of dollars from Medicaid. And there are proven dangers to individuals who are transferred from developmental centers to community homes.

Today, the hopes of those affected by this short-sighted decision are pinned on legislation introduced recently by Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle that would keep at least one developmental center in each region of the state. Also, state Sen. Joseph Vitale plans to introduce legislation that would keep both centers open.

AFSCME is leading a coalition of families, friends and caregivers to keep all the state’s seven care centers open, “as a life-saving choice for our most severely intellectually disabled individuals and their families.” The group has a Facebook page.

Please help keep open the Woodbridge and North Jersey centers by signing this online petition.