Transcript of Public Hearing East Chicago
BEFORE THE INDIANA FAMILY AND SOCIAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION OLMSTEAD PLAN
DRAFT PLAN FOR COMMUNITY INTEGRATION FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
PUBLIC HEARING TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS
PETER SYBINSKY, HEARING OFFICER
CONFERENCE ROOM
INTER-GENERATIONAL CENTER
1402 EAST CHICAGO AVENUE
EAST CHICAGO, INDIANA
APRIL 26, 2001
ACCELERATED REPORTING AGENCY
2766 NORTH 600 EAST
FRANKLIN, INDIANA 46131
317/736-6115
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Opening Remarks by Hearing Officer Sybinsky
Public Comments:
Larry Armogost
Ed Gottschling
Written statement attached as Exhibit 1
Teresa Terres
Barbara Osmon
Angie Caldwell
Loraine Jackson
Luis Roman
Marie Kalavetie
Rita Marcha
Ms. Abott
Enis Bennett
Adjournment
PROCEEDINGS
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: I'm Pete Sybinsky. I'm Deputy Secretary of Family and Social Services.
I'm here today to conduct our public meeting on community integration and the administration's draft plan for providing community integration to all those in need and who can benefit and who want to live in the community.
I want to identify our sign language interpreters, Lisa and Gordon will be helping us today.
Today we are doing bilingual discussions and I'm proud to introduce my Spanish interpreter, Mr. Terres and I'm let him go through in Spanish what I just said in English.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Thank you, Mr. Terres.
Our purpose today is to listen to your comments about the draft plan and to hear what you say, take it back, and to take those comments and work them as much as possible into the plan, but I'm not the only person from Family and Social Services who's here today.
I want to introduce our staff that have come up from Indianapolis. They are leaders in their programs and they're here to listen and take back not only for the plan but for their programs as well.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Randy, is our Deputy Director for Developmental Disabilities; Lynn Smith, our Deputy for Mental Health and Critical Populations; Sheila, our deputy for Commission on Aging; and I also want to recognize Ms. Judy Bump, who is our planner who is working with us on these meetings.
I really also want to recognize and greatly thank our partners the Centers for Independent Living have really done a great job in helping across the state in bringing people out, and this great crowd and the wonderful hospitality you see is the result of the work of Teresa Terres, Enis Bennett, and all the staff of Everybody Counts, and we really appreciate the enthusiasm and the work that has gone into this and we look forward to working with them to hear you and respond to you in your work.
(Spanish interpretation.)
I have a short presentation. Most of our emphasis is listening and so I'm just going to give a brief background, and we have a little slide show to help with that background, but our object is to listen. After that short presentation we will ask you for your comments and your input, so if I could I'll start the slide show.
(Spanish interpretation.)
So if I could I'd like to begin by covering a few points and provide some background for the draft plan and tell you how it was put together, and then the meeting is yours.
I'll just go with this and hope that we can talk through it. Community integration of persons with disabilities has been an important national trend. It began in the 1960's and has increased in importance especially since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act by the US Congress in 1990, which was about 10 years ago that the ADA was passed.
Various states have proceeded in various ways to realize the penance of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Indiana itself is in the midst of change. In 1992 Central State Hospital was closed. It was the first big institutional closure in Indiana's history and looking at Central State as kind of a key point, because it really began in a real way to move to community integration in Indiana.
(Spanish interpretation.)
In 1997 and 1998 two state developmental centers, New Castle and Northern Indiana both closed and the folks who lived there were moved into community living. This started the trend, started the activity for persons with developmental disabilities. Large scale across the board since then actions have happened to bring people into community integration.
(Spanish interpretation.)
In our mental health programs we have moved people out into the community so that they're actually 500 fewer beds in our institutions because people are living in the community more successfully. There's 74,000 people who are being treated in the community through our mental health programs. There's 700 fewer persons in institutions in our developmental disabilities program, and 4400 total people receiving community services in their own homes and the community.
(Spanish interpretation.)
We've tried in Indiana to use various funding mechanisms to pay for this. Medicaid waivers and Medicaid funding has been very critical to this effort. Very recently we completed two new Medicaid waivers, one for assisted living and another for adult foster care to broaden the array of option that can help people to move into community living or stay in the community as opposed to going into an institution.
(Spanish interpretation.)
In 1999 the legislature appropriated $39 million to assist 1300 people at risk of going into institutions to stay in the community and have community life. The mental health division has had a special effort to try to reach even the toughest persons to be institutionalized, long-term patients, and has moved 23 patients out of the hospitals who were in there for eight, ten, twelve or more years, and now they're living in the community.
(Spanish interpretation.)
But this is just the beginning. We all know that's there much more to do. An awful lot begins with planning. Governor O'Bannon executive's order issued last fall made it very clear that he wants the state to build on what it's done already, but thoroughly to involve elderly and persons with disabilities throughout the process of planning a new system. One that will provide community integration for everyone who can benefit from it.
(Spanish interpretation.)
He also wants us to assess the state's compliance with the Supreme Court's Olmstead decision and ensure that we are going to be moving forward in the direction as the state is certainly legally required to but also to continue the good work and the good activity that has been going on already.
(Spanish interpretation.)
We've gone out already to get consumer input. We've done everything we could to get input from consumers, families, advocates and providers. In November we went out and had three public meetings across the state to get information, to get input on our planning process, on how we plan to do this.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Then in January and February of this year we called together three subcommittees. One appointed to help us with mental health issues, one with developmental disabilities issues, one with issues for persons who are elderly or physically disabled. And these subcommittees met and gave us quite a lot of direct input and feedback that have already gotten into this plan.
(Spanish interpretation.)
We also called together focus groups, consumers, families, advocates, providers from across the state to get their input, even people beyond these subcommittees and interviewed a good number of folks to get their input as well. So we've done a lot of spade work, we hope, to gather information and to gather feelings so that we could put this set of directions together.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Now we're at the standpoint of where we want to run those up the flag pole and get the public's input. This is one 12 meetings that we're going to be holding across the state to gauge people's ideas and reactions to what we've put down. In June we will submit our final report to the Governor and that report will basically send to him our recommendations on what we should be doing from now on.
(Spanish interpretation.)
This plan is not meant to be a detailed focus on specifics. It is supposed to be a road map with system goals we can work on together and ways we can work together and directions we can go together to better serve persons with disabilities and the elderly.
(Spanish interpretation.)
I think the focus that we've gotten from a lot of the input already is that we need to really emphasize our efforts to assist consumers and their families in making choices about their care and particularly care in the community.
While the emphasis is community-based care, we do have to take care of people who are in institutions as well. Their needs are not going to be lost or overlooked in all of this.
(Spanish interpretation.)
There are basically six policy directions, and I'm going to go just very lightly over them because you have them in the brochures, you've looked at them in the plan.
(Spanish interpretation.)
First of all increasing consumer choice is a very, very high priority so that people across the state whether they're in an urban area or a rural area will have choices that are meaningful to them about service, the location they take the service in and who gives them the service.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The second policy direction is to improve access to information and assistance. We want to emphasize informed choice. That unless people know what the options are there won't be any informed aspect and there won't be any choice aspect. So we really have to do a better job at informing people of what's available and how they can access those services.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Third we need to support an informal network of families, friends, neighbors and communities in general helping them to take care of people in their charge. The informal caregiver network is such an important one and so many people have testified about their personal experience that they really need help. This is a key area where we really need to focus.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The fourth direction is to strengthen quality assurance, complaint systems and advocacy efforts. We need to have a quality system. We need to make sure that people are getting the services that they need in a respectful and complete manner. And we also have to have ways, if they aren't getting those services that they can complain to us and let us know. So that we can rectify the matter and we need to do better in that.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The fifth direction is to increase our capacity for high quality care. We've heard many, many statements from across the state from varieties of people about the additional services that are needed and the things we have to do to strengthen our service delivery system.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The final policy direction is to create a coordinated work force development system. Again we've heard from all over the state that there aren't enough workers, that there isn't enough training, there isn't enough in the way of people to provide the services that are needed, and sometimes even those that are funded.
(Spanish interpretation.)
That's the overview of what we've done and what we've said. It's now time for us to listen. We are going to use this information and take it back and use it to improve our plan.
Letters, written comments and e-mails can be forwarded to us with testimony or comments up until April 27, 2001. We're going to read and look at and work with every comment that is made.
If you don't feel comfortable at standing up and saying something today, please feel free to write it down. In fact, please write it down and send it to us, because we really want to hear what you have to say.
(Spanish interpretation.)
I'm now going to take my seat, and give you all a chance now to speak and say what you want to say in terms of your reactions to this plan and your thoughts about what we need to do.
It will be an open floor and I'll call on whoever raises their hand.
(Spanish interpretation.)
(Questions and answers in English and Spanish.)
LARRY ARMOGOST
My name is Larry Armogost, A-R-M-O-G-O-S-T.
Policy direction No. 1, listed in the plan as long as we have the single point of entry system we cannot have consumer choice. We're always going to be limited. Everyone must look to them, it puts the consumers at risk for retaliation, it puts consumers at risk for being targeted, for discrimination and for other things.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: As you go through, Ed, if you could take breaks so your speech can be translated. Thank you.
ED GOTTSCHLING
I'm Ed Gottschling. The Indiana Commission on Aging provides the following comments relative to the draft plan entitled Comprehensive Plan for Community Integration and Support of People with Disabilities, Policy Options to Support Individualized and Person Centered Services and Funding.
Reference is made to the adult guardianship program on page 37, Appendix E of the draft plan. The adult guardianship program is a valuable program. 284 individuals received adult guardianship services last year, fiscal year 2000.
Only 23 counties are covered by six providers, four Area Agencies on Aging and two Community Mental Health Associations. Additional guardianships are needed on a statewide basis.
The Commission on Aging recommends that the guardianship program be expanded statewide to eliminate the present waiting list and to serve all counties of the state. The program expended $390,376 in FY 2000. An additional $600,000 is needed each year.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to the state's CHOICE program on pages 37 through 43, Appendix E of the draft plan. Indiana's statewide in-home services program of which CHOICE is a part has been recognized by the national governor's association as a national model for its flexibility and responsiveness to consumer input. 12,338 individuals received services under the CHOICE program in FY 2000. An additional 7,400 individuals were on the waiting list for CHOICE services.
The present CHOICE funding is $42,623,785 per year, each year of the biennium. The Commission on Aging recommends that an additional $32 million per year for each year of the biennium is needed to meet the growing demands for services.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to the need to redesign the home and community based service waivers to incorporate the flexibility currently exhibited by the CHOICE program, page 43, item 17 of the Appendix of the draft plan. The Commission on Aging agrees with this statement.
(Spanish interpretation.)
On page 37, Appendix E of the draft plan, reference is made to the need of a unified vision across state agencies. Several groups have created vision statements including the CHOICE board of which the Commission on Aging chair is a member. The Commission recommends that the CHOICE board vision statement be used as the beginning point in establishing a vision across state agencies.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The CHOICE board's vision statement is: The citizens of the State of Indiana shall have a full array of long-term care services that includes a range of individual options based on the principles of independence, quality, dignity, privacy and personal choice as directed by the consumer. Note long-term care includes in-home care, community and facility based services including assisted living.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to funding for community-based services being currently very limited, page 38, item 2, Appendix E of the draft plan. The Commission on Aging agrees with this statement and recommends that the state fund the 10,000 aged and disabled Medicaid waiver slots that have been approved by HCFA but have not been funded. The state is currently only funding 2,500 individuals versus 12,500 approved slots.
The Commission on Aging further recommends that the funding of Medicaid waiver slots be through a separate appropriation for the Medicaid waiver program and the utilization of CHOICE funds as a match for the Medicaid waiver program be eliminated, $4.9 million per year.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to the Ombudsman program, the money management program, adult protective services program on page 37, Appendix E of the draft plan. These programs are under funded.
The Commission recommends that an additional $500,000 is needed for the Ombudsman program, presently $477,922, to allow Indiana to add more local Ombudsman to bring the state closer to the standard of one Ombudsman for every 200 nursing home residents. An appropriation of $400,000 is needed each year for the money management program statewide, presently zero funding. It depends on volunteers. And approximately 200 individuals are served each year. An additional $1 million is needed for the adult protective services program in order to expand the hours of operation, from five to seven days and 24 hour access to service, presently serve approximately 12,000 individuals per year with an $856,224 budget per year.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to the 16 Area Agencies on Aging serving as the single point of entry for in-home and community based services, page 37, Appendix E of the draft plan.
The Commission recommends the continued support and the expansion of the single point of entry for services to older adults and individuals with disabilities of all ages to include new services as they become available in the State of Indiana, and to enhance the infra-structure of the Area Aging network as necessary to stay current.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Reference is made to assisted living and adult foster care on page 43, Appendix E of the draft plan. Full funding is needed for both of these programs that are scheduled for implementation in fiscal year 2002.
(Spanish interpretation.)
The Commission on Aging established the following priorities through year 2006, along with the governor's task force on Alzheimer's disease and related senile dementia, CHOICE board, and money management advisory council. The Commission on Aging recommends that these priorities be addressed in the integration plan: Education, in the areas of health, aging, financial planning; health care; assisted living; transportation; and employment volunteering.
(Spanish interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: Thank you very much, Ed.
(Question in Spanish and interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: If we could we will hold questions until the end, and myself and my staff will answer questions like that at the end.
If you could please focus on the plan for now. If you want to talk about personal experiences that is good too.
We will be available for questions afterwards.
(Spanish interpretation.)
TERESA TERRES
I'm not going to take up a lot of time. My name is Teresa Terres, and I'm with the Everybody Counts Reuben Center. I see a lot of folks out there looking real confused, and I just want to take a second to make sure that you understand. Dr. Sybinsky gave us a lot of good information, it's kind of difficult for me to give a long presentation after that.
This whole effort by the state is about making certain that the services of the community meet your needs. Now that I've said that I want you to understand that's why you're here. You don't have to worry about using the exact right words, you haven't had time to read the plan, that's okay. They just want to know what your issues are, what your questions are, and hopefully you'll get them answered today or soon. But this is for you. Please don't be afraid to speak out or ask questions.
What this whole Olmstead decision is about which drove the state into making planned changes is about civil rights for people with disabilities and our senior citizens, and that's you guys, if not now, later, so please feel free to speak out.
(Spanish interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: The lady here said she has to leave, could she go first.
BARBARA OSMON
My name is Barbara Osmon, O-S-M-O-N. I represent my husband, my son and myself. We have a 34-year-old son Bill who has autism. We were fortunate in a very bittersweet way to inherit money to allow us to buy and build a home for Bill to live in and possibly one or two other people with disabilities. We've run into a real stumbling block. We have the money to build the home. We cannot sit and wait forever to get an autism waiver.
My son has been on the waiting list for over three years. My husband called last November to get Bill's number. He was told his number is 691 and do not bother calling back anytime soon because there will be no movement for him in the near future. Needless to say we were very devastated, we were very angry and very depressed.
When I went to other agencies and inquired how I could get services for my son sooner, I was given two options. One, the two of us should die. Then he would get the waiver services. The other thing I was told was for my husband and myself to check into a mental health center say we can no longer take care of our son, place him in an institution, and hope that somebody steps in to block the action because our son does not belong in an institution.
Neither one of these options are what I want. Like any parent of a child who is either disabled or non-disabled, you want to live out your last years, you want to be able to die knowing they are being taken care of, and because my son has autism, it's no different than for your sons and daughters who are happily off living as adults.
The other thing I'm concerned about is we are continually giving lip service to people we want them in the community. This is where they belong. How can they be in the community if we do not have waiver services and when there's a motorium on group home building.
Neither one of these things are going to help our adult children.I want to know how many times we are going to plan the plan. The thing I want to know is when are we going to define what is a reasonable waiting period. I don't think currently -- I'm being told hopefully if the budget goes through it might be another four years. Okay, my husband is going to be 60 very soon, I'm 56, my son is 34, hopefully the two of us have four more years so that we can see our son happily situated in a caring, loving environment.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
ANGIE CALDWELL
My name is Angie Caldwell of Gary. I would like to talk about the deaf consumers. Most of the focus for the deaf is choice of interpreter services. We need a list of interpreting services.
(Spanish interpretation.)
Now, this draft on page 4 of the plan, FSSA, line number three consumer choice and self determination will be promoted, I hope, but right now we, the deaf consumers, do not have a choice of interpreting services. What I mean by that is we deaf know who the interpreters are that we want. And say there's an open public meeting and we attend that, and I call and I ask for an interpreter by name, the public sets me up, they call an agency and they constantly go to the same agency, but I choose an interpreter that doesn't work for that agency but they continue to use that interpreting agency and the state fund only gives money to that one agency.
(Spanish interpretation.)
What I'd like to see happen that all still have interpreter referral service and have money -- like in Indianapolis they have money there they would send them out like when a deaf consumer, like here I called Everybody Counts and they have a list, the list like here of interpreter service, and so I could go through the list and pick the interpreter of my choice and then I would call. It would indeed be a choice instead of an agency calling for me.
(Spanish interpretation.)
(Questions by different individuals.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: I want to answer -- and as I said I think individual questions need to come at the end -- but some of these are kind of rhetorical questions and they ask for a clarification and that's what I'm going to try to do right now.
The first question related to services are we training people to advocate for themselves or are we training their case managers, and I think depending on the type of disability people should be encouraged to make their own decisions and we should educate them to make their own decisions and that's what should be more clearly stated in the plan, and we will do that.
In other cases people do need case managers and case manager help and that will be stated in the plan.
The other comment about alternative formats, and with the cooperation of Everybody Counts, we do have the plan on diskettes for sight-impaired people and those will be available very soon, and we will have the full version of the plan in Spanish, so those are two questions that I can answer here because they have a lot of applicability to other people here.
(Spanish interpretation.)
LORAINE JACKSON
Loraine Jackson from East Chicago. In your plan speak of case managers and state about training, but they don't speak on our terms, they don't know where we're coming from. And then my second comment, you say case managers I don't need nobody to manage me. I need assistance. Why aren't we allowed to voice our opinions, and those of us that want to speak out, you're not going to allow this. When we ask to speak to the supervisors or speak to the head of the department, we're brushed off. Our concerns need to be taken up with our local -- we need someone to sit down in East Chicago with us.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
LUIS ROMAN
My name is Luis, L-U-I-S, Roman, R-O-M-A-N, from East Chicago. Why is it you have these different waivers and what have you, why are the people with disabilities always clumped in categories instead of there being a uniformed method for those of us receiving services.
The waivers they get into disabled and the autism waiver and et cetera, et cetera.
(Spanish interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: Thank you, Luis.
MARIE KALAVETIE
My name is Marie Kalavetie, K-A-L-A- (inaudible.) The plan is very interesting and it's a nicely written policy, but I'm quite concerned that it's very vague. Indiana has forgotten the people that need services.
There are people on the waiting list because we've never funded the waiver program. Now we're trying to use CHOICE money to fund Medicaid waivers and still the majority of the funding goes to institutional care.
Unless this plan addresses the funding it doesn't matter what you say, you can't deliver.
What's the point of giving more information if there's no money there to provide the service. What's the point in doing all of this, if there's no money there to do it? All you've done is increase everybody's aggravation and frustration with the system. And I note in your plan you do not go into the price tag. You have no funding mechanisms so at this point you still have to go back and work that out.
Indiana needs a statewide unified plan. And in most cases the person who wants to be assisted there are no funds available. They need transportation to the doctor's office, et cetera.
If they need assistance, they can't get it. You need to go back and look seriously at the funding mechanism.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
RITA MARCHA
Hello, my name is Rita Marcha, M-A-R-C-H-A. We're very isolated with each other.
We can not interact. We need to get with other people. There needs to be a big push with Olmstead. It's very hard to get information out. We need to get along.
(Spanish interpretation.)
MS. ABOTT
Hello, my name is (inaudible) Abott, A-B-O-T-T, and I'm with the ARC of Indiana. I'd like to thank FSSA for the opportunity to speak and for the fact that they are going around and asking our opinions. And I'd have to agree with the people that spoke earlier that said you can plan and plan for years but if we don't have funding nothing is going to happen.
And I think they did ask for funding this year in the budget, but with some political maneuvering it has been cut back. And I hope that it will be reinstated. I'd like to say that the best plans that we might have are absolutely worthless if we don't fund them.
We had plans in the past with the 317 that helps people decide their own fate. We have to have more funding. We have to fund those programs we already have.
They can come up with all the plans in the world but unless we have that funding -- and especially funding for increased wages for direct care staff, we can't keep the staff, we can't train them adequately with the funds that are available, and that's necessary for people to get the care they need.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
TERESA TERRES
My name again is Teresa Terres. I guess as I have listened to the folks today talk about those programs I don't think very many people know what 317 is, what CHOICE is. You call up the local provider and say, help, I need services and you don't know to say I want 317 or I want CHOICE.
But what I wanted to say was that while Indiana has all these programs, award winning programs, the CHOICE program, this state has done too much in creating its own programs.
There are federal programs, federal laws, that's the whole reason we're doing all of this, I believe. There was a Supreme Court decision that says that the states were accountable under the American with Disabilities Act. But unfortunately what we do all the time, it seems to me, I can tell you for those of you that have read this -- and the draft was available several months ago -- those of you who have read this would agree with that? I've got some nodding heads.
However, what concerns us there's a great deal and I don't think it's all -- I think it's out of a lack of knowledge of what's out there. I think we need to utilize the systems that are in place. Do an honest assessment of what's out there.
You can read right there Indiana has a system where anybody seeking nursing home care, they're screened, evaluated and told what resources are available to them. I don't know where that's happening, but it's not happening in Lake County, it's not happening here.
I would propose maximizing services that are in place until we find out if they're working, and that's what you're doing, but we need to really find out. And I guess it really seems like to me all these different plans, programs and projects, if we just followed the ADA and utilized those people that are out in the community trying to do that, it would save a lot of time, money and energy.
(Spanish interpretation.)
ENIS BENNETT
My name is Mr. Enis Bennett of the Center of Everybody Counts set up by Independent Living.
I think that today we really need to be clear and honest of how this whole initiative came about, and I know Peter in your opening, in your presentation you pretty much said that the Governor signed an executive order and that is true, however some things happened on the national level to get this ball rolling.
I mean there was an effort to start such initiatives on the nation-wide level, but locally is what I want to speak on today, because there was a collaboration between persons such as Steve Gold, who was the attorney for an organization called Adapt, and he with some of the local people, plus some other attorneys, they worked along with everybody at the Everybody Counts Reuben Center and identified some plaintiffs to file a lawsuit against the State of Indiana to get this initiative going, to make sure there is Medicaid dollars and some of the other services that are provided to people with disabilities that would assist them in living in their own communities, in addition to some of the institutions being decertified by the state, so there was a lot of things that happened.
And I say that because being very very big on advocacy I do think that it's very important for the people here to realize that their involvement and coming and participating in such things as we have here today. It makes a difference. People's voices really need to be heard. They need to have these type of opportunities, but it's not going to happen unless we get involved and we identify those people that can assist us in doing so.
I do commend the state agency, FSSA, as well as the Governor for starting this up and going statewide with it and hearing the comments of the local people, but I think again we need to be honest about how it came about because I want to encourage people to get involved and continue to participate in such functions.
In addition I want to say that, yeah, that funding is very important, it is very important, but to follow up what Mr. Armogost said in regards to single point of entry, people need informed choices in all aspects. The bottom line is you can receive all the funding you want but if there's one agency that has a monopoly on providing those services, then that's not going to do any good, because there again, people with disabilities and those that are elderly are not in control of their own lives.
We don't need another monopoly, we already had IPSCO (phonetic). We don't need that now. So that's my comment.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
HEARING OFFICER SYBINSKY: Is there anyone else?
(No response.)
I want to thank everybody for your thoughts, your concepts, you have given us some good ideas, certainly some places where we need to clarify some things that are down there and we will work to incorporate what you have said here. I want to also mention very much that folks from the various programs and I are going to stick around and answer questions that people have.
So please, we will respond to you now. I want to thank you again for coming. I want to thank the Reuben Center Everybody Counts for their graciousness.
Thank you.
(Spanish interpretation.)
(Hearing adjourned at 11:00 a.m., April 26, 2001.)
STATE OF INDIANA )
) SS:
COUNTY OF JOHNSON )
I, Linda R. Merkl a Shorthand Reporter and Notary Public, in and for the County of Johnson, State of Indiana, do hereby certify that the foregoing hearing was taken on behalf of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration in the matter of the Olmstead Act, beginning at 9:30 a.m. on the 26th day of April, 2001;
That said hearing was taken down in stenograph notes and afterwards reduced to typewriting by Andrea Jacobs; and that the typewritten transcript is a true record, to the best of my knowledge and belief;
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed by notarial seal this 25th day of May, 2001.
_________________________
Linda R. Merkl
Notary Public
Residing in Johnson County
My Commission Expires: January 27, 2009
