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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois ranks 47th among states for spending
3commitment for community services for people with intellectual
4and developmental disabilities (I/DD), according to the 2017
5State of the States in Intellectual and Developmental
6Disabilities report published by the University of Colorado;
7and
 
8    WHEREAS, The reimbursement rates in Illinois, including
9rates for the Direct Support Professional (DSP) workforce, are
10inadequate, forcing many in the DSP workforce to rely on
11means-tested public assistance despite working full time; and
 
12    WHEREAS, As reported by the national direct care workforce
13research and advocacy group PHI, the DSP workforce is
14predominantly women at 86 percent and is racially and
15ethnically diverse; 59 percent of the DSP workforce consists
16of people of color, with 30 percent of workers identified as
17African American, 18 percent identified as Hispanic/Latino,
18and 7 percent identified as Asian or Pacific Islander; and
 
19    WHEREAS, According to the National Core Indicators Staff
20Stability Survey, the average turnover rate for the DSP
21workforce in Illinois is 54.5 percent with an average vacancy
22rate of 13.7 percent; this is well above the national average;

 

 

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1and
 
2    WHEREAS, COVID-19 has made these challenges more
3substantial as providers risk their health to perform in-home
4visits and daily care for this vulnerable population; despite
5a pandemic, the daily support needs for persons with I/DD
6remain the same; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Since 2011, the State of Illinois has been
8subject to the Ligas Consent Decree, which mandates dramatic
9increases to funding for services and supports for persons
10with I/DD; and
 
11    WHEREAS, In 2015, the Federal Court Monitor found Illinois
12out of compliance with the Consent Decree, and a federal judge
13officially found the State out of compliance in 2017; as a
14result, the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS)
15Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) began to review
16existing rate methodologies around residential, employment,
17training, and support services rates; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In 2019, the State contracted with a rate
19consultant, Guidehouse (formerly Navigant Consulting), to
20develop potential new rates and rate methodologies using
21objective, publicly available data sources, standard
22administrative cost reporting, and provider-reported costs in

 

 

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1order to determine the resources necessary to create and
2maintain access to quality services and supports for persons
3with I/DD in Illinois; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The recommendations from Guidehouse, detailed in
5their final report, are designed to identify rates that
6provide adequate reimbursement for residential and other
7supporting services in compliance with the State's Ligas
8consent decree and rates required to keep pace with new
9minimum and living wage levels being implemented over the next
10five years in Chicago and across the State; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Implementation of these recommendations requires
12financial investment that reflects the challenge of addressing
13historical underfunding of existing services and the need for
14new funding to respond to rapid growth in wage requirements
15over the next five years; and
 
16    WHEREAS, According to the Guidehouse Rate Study, Illinois
17requires a $329 million GRF investment in FY22, outlined in
18seven priority areas, to keep the system sustainable; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The Governor's FY22 Introduced Budget includes a
20$77 million dollar investment to partially fund four of seven
21priorities identified in the rate study that should continue
22to be funded in the manner in which the appropriation was

 

 

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1intended; and
 
2    WHEREAS, The State's I/DD community is very grateful for
3investments made by the General Assembly in recent years;
4however, despite these investments, the State has not
5succeeded in satisfying the requirements of the Consent Decree
6or kept pace with state-mandated minimum wage increases;
7therefore, be it
 
8    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
9ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the State of
10Illinois to fully fund the Guidehouse final rate
11recommendations in FY 22 including the recommended changes to
12the rate and service structure allowing Illinois to make real
13progress toward the Division of Developmental Disabilities
14mission to design and deliver quality outcome-based,
15person-centered services and supports for individuals who have
16developmental disabilities and to implement the rate study in
17whole to maintain the integrity of the methodology behind the
18rate setting calculations to avoid creating an even more
19unbalanced system; and be it further
 
20    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
21presented to the Governor, all Illinois legislative leaders,
22and the Illinois Department of Human Services Department of
23Developmental Disabilities.