Bill closing Yakima Valley, Rainier schools moves ahead. ‘People will die,’ lawmaker says

Washington state House lawmakers this week advanced a bill that would close Rainier School and Yakima Valley School, two state-run residential habilitation centers for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

The proposal has been controversial.

Opponents of the idea argue that legislators are turning their backs on the most vulnerable Washingtonians. Supporters, meanwhile, contend that RHC residents would be better off – and much happier – living in community settings.

House Bill 1472, sponsored by state Rep. Timm Ormsby, a Spokane Democrat, passed out of the House Appropriations Committee 17-14 on Tuesday with only Democratic support – although two Democrats, state Reps. Lisa Callan and Mari Leavitt, voted against it.

Requested by the Office of Financial Management, HB 1472 would effectively consolidate Washington’s four RHCs at a time when the state is facing a multibillion-dollar budget shortfall. Under the bill, Eastern Washington’s Yakima Valley and Rainier School in Buckley in King County would shutter by June 30, 2027.

State Rep. Travis Couture, an Allyn Republican, decried the bill ahead of Tuesday’s vote.

“You know, my heart sits in my stomach right now, because I know what the outcome of this is going to be,” Couture said, his voice catching in his throat. “And I’m sorry for getting a little emotional, but I’ve lived, personally and professionally, in this space – legislatively as well.

“People will die as a result of this bill.”

Critics also note the effect that the measure could have on the livelihoods of those who work at the two RHCs.

During the Washington Federation of State Employees’ rally at the state Capitol Wednesday, many held signs advocating for the centers to stay open. State worker Kourtney Wytko’s placard read: “Save Rainier School.”

Wytko, who lives in Buckley, is familiar with the services that Rainier School provides.

“They’re proposing cuts to a very disenfranchised group of people, and those services that they receive at Rainier are not replicated in the community,” Wytko told McClatchy.

As of April 10, Rainier School has about 510 workers and a total of 79 residents, according to a Department of Social and Health Services spokesperson. Yakima Valley School counts roughly 243 employees and a total of 46 residents.

Republican lawmakers contend that HB 1472 lacks a detailed, viable plan.

But Ormsby, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, told McClatchy via email that critics have also claimed it would “put people out on the street.” He slammed such points as “fearmongering” and said they couldn’t be further from the truth.

Ormsby said that HB 1472 limits new admissions, except for short-term respite and crisis-stabilization services at the Yakima Valley location. The measure also offers relocation alternatives and options to residents of the two schools.

The Department of Social and Health Services is directed to offer state-operated living alternatives for those who want to begin living in the community, he said. Or they could decide to transfer to one of the two remaining RHCs or a supported-living setting.

Employees would have work opportunities in other state-operated living alternatives, a term used to describe state-operated group homes.

Ormsby noted that $22 million is provided to help ease the transition. He said the bill offers “a thorough plan for requirements to DSHS on how to prioritize factors that impact residents who are transferring, and the development of transition plans, as well as coordination with providers and agencies, and oversight and accountability measures.”

“Transitioning residents to communities helps us address some of the more dangerous aspects of these specific RHCs,” Ormsby said. “This is an opportunity not only to reduce our institutional footprint and introduce long-term savings to the budget, but also retain individual choice and autonomy for residents in deciding their future.”

Disability rights advocates fight to close RHCs

Shawn Latham, policy coordinator for Self Advocates in Leadership, testified in support of HB 1472 during a March 19 public hearing.

Latham was born with a disability that affects his voice and renders him unable to complete many physical personal-care tasks. He told lawmakers that he’s thankful his parents refused to place him in an institution; he’s since graduated college and had many job opportunities.

People with similar conditions can also receive behavioral support and medical, dental and catheter care in the community, Latham said.

“In this time of an economic slowdown, now is the time to close institutions like Rainier and Yakima Valley – and at the same time improve services in the community to be person-centered,” he said. “This is good for us financially and it’s good for individuals to be able to lead a meaningful life.”

Stacy Dym, executive director of the advocacy group the Arc of Washington State, said in an email that RHCs can cost double compared with community-based settings offering the same level of care.

She said on average, it costs $1,700 per person, per day at an RHC. That’s compared with $1,123 for a state-operated living alternative or $623 for a supported-living environment.

Dym also referenced research that suggests the de-institutionalization of adults with intellectual disabilities is associated with a better quality of life. Washington is the only West Coast state without a plan to shut down its RHCs, she said in an email.

Disability Rights Washington also reports that the state’s RHCs have a history of abuse and neglect.

Dym told McClatchy in a phone interview Wednesday that she understands why some families with loved ones in RHCs might feel anxious or worried about the potential change. She’s been there, too. Her sister once lived at the Fircrest Residential Habilitation Center before eventually leaving institutionalized care.

That transition period was scary for Dym’s family, she said – but they also had to trust the system would care for her sister. And it did: For the next two decades, her sister was quite happy living in a community setting close to family.

“She got to pick the color of her room. She got to have a cat. She came home when she wanted to come home and stay with us for holidays and weekends and visits,” Dym said. “And it was a very rich life for her, one I couldn’t have imagined until we tried it.”

Concerned residents, Republicans push back against HB 1472

Concerned citizen Sher Kirkpatrick told lawmakers at a public hearing last month that her 40-year-old son with autism was unsuccessful living in various community settings. Once, she said, the sheriff nearly shot and killed him. Moving her son into a SOLA “was such a failure for him.”

Kirkpatrick said her son went to the hospital 14 times, and they were told to never bring him back. He wouldn’t be able to receive urgent care because of his behavior, she said: “So we had nowhere to go when he had his meltdowns.”

Today, Kirkpatrick said her son is happy and stable at Rainier School. There he can ride his trike and receive support for medical needs, and staff can assist when he becomes aggressive.

“So I just really ask – there’s nowhere for him to go if he’s discharged,” Kirkpatrick said. “We tried everything. Keep Rainier open. Not everyone is successful in the community.”

The proposal to close the two RHCs is also personal for state Rep. Joshua Penner.

The Orting Republican told McClatchy on Wednesday that he has several children with profound disabilities. It’s easy for him to understand why someone might decide that an RHC is the best place for their loved one.

“As my wife and I get older, or if we die, how are our children going to be taken care of?” he said. “These are the existential dreads of every parent with a special-needs child – especially one who is significantly involved, meaning they need that one-on-one support.”

Penner also said there’s a myth of an “abundance of community settings” that’ll work for everyone. In reality, he said, that doesn’t exist.

Washington should open more RHCs instead of closing them down, Penner said.

Couture acknowledged in a phone interview that there have been past issues at Washington’s RHCs. In his view, however, such incidents pale in comparison to the good done at these centers each day. Some folks don’t want institutions to exist, but they do for a reason, he said.

To Couture it seems HB 1472 was presented as a budget-savings item, yet he questions whether the proposal would actually save money. Residents need constant monitoring, he said. And certain equipment required to care for medically complex and fragile people can be quite pricey, he said – at times, costing up to half a million dollars.

Couture doesn’t think the community has the necessary housing, or the skilled workforce or equipment, to accommodate the RHC closures, he said.

“I guarantee there won’t be a savings,” Couture said. “It’s way more expensive to re-establish all this stuff that doesn’t exist in the community right now.”

The bill still has to clear other hurdles before becoming law, he said. If it reaches Gov. Bob Ferguson’s desk, Couture doesn’t know whether the Democrat would sign it.

“It’s got still a road to go,” Couture said. “So I don’t think we’re done fighting it.”

Democrats explain proposals to close RHCs

House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon told reporters at a March 25 media availability that there’s capacity – in the other RHCs and in the community – for residents of Rainier and Yakima Valley schools. As lawmakers work to balance the budget, it’s their responsibility to examine facilities thought to be underused, he said.

“We do not take lightly the disruption that causes both to residents of those RHCs as well as to the workforce there,” the West Seattle Democrat said. “But we do have to evaluate the services that the state provides every time we pass the budget and decide whether we still need every state facility.”

Fitzgibbon added that the House’s proposed budget includes a rate increase for supported living, and that lawmakers also anticipate increased capacity being needed in community settings.

The upper chamber’s suggested budget, meanwhile, includes a proposal that would only shutter Rainier.

Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen said that the state is evolving away from institutionalization.

“The idea of these large ‘schools,’ where people would get sent away and essentially locked up for the rest of their lives, is not a modern idea,” the Seattle Democrat said. “Washington is very unusual in preserving those spaces.”