APNewsBreak: DOJ, Va OK deal on disabled housing

Excerpt from NECN: (click for entire article)

Virginia will close four of its five homes for the developmentally and intellectually disabled and instead provide services in local communities under a 10-year, $2 billion settlement Thursday with the U.S. Department of Justice.

The deal follows a three-year investigation that found Virginia violated federal law by needlessly warehousing disabled individuals in institutions instead of providing adequate community-based services. The settlement was filed with the U.S. District Court in Richmond after nearly a year of negotiations with the Justice Department.

The agreement is meant to provide better, more localized care for 5,000 Virginians with intellectual and development disabilities, including more than 1,000 who currently reside in five large facilities scattered across the state. It calls for Virginia to provide nearly 4,200 waivers to pay for localized care, enhanced crisis management services, housing assistance and greater employment opportunities for those receiving treatment.