A message from Mickey Slawson,

President of the Parents Association of Bellefontaine Habilitation Center

Governor Blunt’s proposals to close Bellefontaine Habilitation Center, as well as privatize for profit and cut back state services for our children and family members statewide, is a life-threatening mistake

Bellefontaine is a good facility and the best possible living situation for our children and family members who are there. Our loved ones are cared for, they are loved, and they are allowed to thrive despite their condition.

For almost 40 years, Bellefontaine has been home to my daughter Carol, and her caretakers are like family to her. Carol was born with severe brain damage. We tried to take care of her at home, but we could not. It was the hardest decision of our lives to place Carol in Bellefontaine, but it also turned out to be the best decision we could make.

The parents and families have worked hard together over the years with the staff to make Bellefontaine into the excellent facility it is today. There is no private facility that can care for Carol and the other residents the way Bellefontaine can.

Forcing hundreds of severely mentally handicapped persons out of the only home they have known for many years will not save the state any money. It will actually cost the state more money to do it. The state’s privatization agenda is reckless, callous, misinformed, and unnecessary.

We’ve inspected and reviewed the so-called private alternatives. They do not even begin to match the care that is given at Bellefontaine, and all too often these alternatives are a threat to the lives of our children and family members. Frequently these private sector facilities and programs are poorly maintained and they lack proper oversight and regulation. They are understaffed with poorly-trained employees. Many of us tried placing our loved ones in private care facilities, and seen how they were unable to properly care for them, ultimately returning them to Bellefontaine.

Forcing our loved ones into the private sector will put their lives at risk. Studies have shown that the closing of state habilitation centers and forced privatization leads to increased mortality. The Post-Dispatch showed that the closing of Lincoln Developmental Center in Springfield, Illinois lead to a quick and rapid increase in client deaths. The residents of these centers are fragile individuals with special and profound needs, and they cannot be bounced around from one place to another without endangering their lives.

As parents we have looked into all of the private and public alternatives, and we know what is best for our children. The state government isn’t listening to us now, but we’re going keep fighting for our children and family members.

For weeks now, we’ve pleaded with the Governor to meet with the parents and to come to Bellefontaine to see for himself the kind of loving place it is. So far all of our pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

What we are saying about Bellefontaine applies with equal force to the programs at Nevada, and at Poplar Bluff. There too the state is demanding privatization and cutbacks in services, while refusing to listen to the families. Closing these programs and moving their residents will be harmful and traumatic to almost all and surely fatal to some. These are immoral political decisions.

We appeal once more to Governor Blunt, if he is not to become forever known as the meanest man in Missouri, to listen to the parents of Bellefontaine, Nevada, and Poplar Bluff. It is not too late to change course, to stop and think about what he is doing.

If this state is truly committed to the dignity and sanctity of life, then it must show that commitment by protecting and safeguarding the most vulnerable members of our society, the residents of Bellefontaine, Nevada, Poplar Bluff and other state mental health facilities.