Tillis Requests Special Session To Address PCS/Group Home Crisis

From The Arc of North Carolina

Tillis Requests Special Session To Address PCS/Group Home Crisis

Special Session first step to solve crisis before Holiday break   Speaker of the NC House Thom Tillis has formally requested that Governor Perdue convene a Special Session of the General Assembly in order to address the looming Personal Care Services (PCS) crisis that threatens the housing of thousands of people with disabilities living in group homes. The Arc of North Carolina is thrilled by this development and appreciates the Speaker's leadership on this issue and his continued dedication to North Carolinians with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The Arc will continue to keep you updated on the PCS/Group Home Crisis as it develops. Please check www.ArcNC.org for information as it happens. The Arc's advocacy staff is evaluating it's next steps in terms of advocacy. Look for an action alert next week. The letter from the Speaker's office is below. See a copy of the original here. --- Governor Perdue, As you know, the General Assembly appropriated $39.7 million in this year's budget to provide for temporary, short-term assistance to residents who would no longer be eligible to receive Medicaid State Plan Personal Care Services under the new eligibility criteria, effective January 1, 2013. The budget provision was drafted as a short-term measure to ensure the funds went to those affected residents who would be potentially discharged from their facility, but would not immediately have a safe community placement. This budget provision was intended to prevent the Department of Health & Human Services from using funds for administrative expenses, appeals, rent deposits, or other items, as requested by the Department during budget negotiations. The Blue Ribbon Commission was summarily tasked with developing long-term solutions to ensure Medicaid beneficiaries receive the services they need. The General Assembly has been working diligently over the last several weeks and months to determine solutions that would prevent the potential unintended closure of mental health and IDD group homes at the conclusion of this calendar year. It is now incumbent upon all of us to do what is necessary to solve this problem. In order to ensure that our state's most vulnerable citizens are protected and allowed to remain in their homes, it is my opinion that legislative action by the General Assembly is needed. Therefore, I respectfully request that you convene a Special Session of the General Assembly under the authority granted to you by Article Ill, Section 5(7) of the North Carolina Constitution. The North Carolina House of Representatives stands ready to take immediate action to resolve this impending problem. If you should decide to convene a Special Session, you have my word that no additional matters will be taken up by the House of Representatives. We will act quickly and decisively to protect the residents of mental health and IDD group homes, and the session will end when that action is concluded. I look forward to your prompt reply. Thank you for your time and attention concerning this very important matter. Sincerely, Thom Tillis   cc: Senator Phil Berger