BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - A dispute in Allen Parish over the potential location of a group home for mentally ill youth is spilling into the Louisiana Legislature.
Rep. Dorothy Sue Hill, D-Dry Creek, is proposing to require parish governing authority approval of such group homes in Vernon, Allen and Beauregard parishes.
The bill awaits a vote on the House floor.
The Advocate reports (https://bit.ly/1pLJPFK ) that the state Department of Health and Hospitals is opposing the measure, fearful of its ramifications on state mental health needs.
Therapeutic residential group homes are part of care options state officials say they need for the treatment of the mentally ill. The homes give teenagers access to life activities, such as school and work, while they are living in a home with two full-time staffers with mental health backgrounds. So far, the state has two such group homes, in Baker and in Baton Rouge.
“We want to get these group homes across the state,” DHH Secretary Kathy Kliebert said. “The more roadblocks we throw up, the harder it will be to get providers.”
Kliebert worries the Hill legislation could get other parishes added, and she said the proposed restrictions are discriminatory and conflict with federal law.
“We have been fighting this for 40 years or more about people with disabilities being allowed to live in neighborhoods, communities,” Kliebert said.
Residents of Indian Village in Allen Parish object to plans for a group home in their town that would be designed for youth aged 12 to 21 who have been assessed by mental health professionals to require the residential treatment and not be a risk to the community.
“We don’t have a problem helping people,” said 57-year-old resident Beth Courville. But she added: “We don’t know what’s going to be in our backyard. We would like to stop this nightmare from happening to another community.”
Residents say they are concerned about the backgrounds of the youth who would live in their community and whether they have been violent in the past.
“The young children will be riding the school bus with these young people,” Hill said. “Are these people molesters of young children? We don’t know.”
Hill’s proposal cleared the House health care committee with a 10-6 vote, with supporters saying they were concerned the group homes could crop up anywhere without notice.
“I see a problem in an area that doesn’t want them,” said Rep. Bernard LeBas, D-Ville Platte.
Kliebert said a lot of the problem involves people not understanding what the homes are about. “These are not kids from criminal backgrounds. They are not a danger,” she said.
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Online:
House Bill 1155 can be found at www.legis.la.gov
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Information from: The Advocate, https://theadvocate.com
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