By Pat Barcas
Staff Writer
Thursday Aug. 2
     The budget for state disability dollars is acceptable now, but according to some disability lawyers, Illinois needs to address a long waiting list of patients who need state aid. People can contact disability lawyers in Charlotte to get more information.
Kevin Casey, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities for the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS) said the state needs to come up with a long term plan that addresses the waiting list of about 1,000 people. Casey spoke at a community town hall event July 26 hosted by State Senator Linda Holmes (D–Aurora) in Aurora.
“There are four states in the country that don’t have a long waiting list for people who need support,” said Casey. “And those are states that produce oil. My job is to solve that problem in Illinois.”
Casey said in the last three to four years, his program has been treated “as well as it could be treated” budget-wise by the state legislature.
“My fear though, is the deficit in Illinois will get so bad they’ll be forced to cut our budget,” he said.
Casey’s department serves 35,000 people with physical and intellectual disabilities in Illinois.
Holmes said she fears the number of people in need will rise sharply soon.
“My concern is that the number is going to keep growing, especially with all of the adult caregivers aging, and the rise in autism. More people will need state aid,” she said.
Casey said the program needs a lot of work.
“We provide a lot of good services to a lot of good people. But the program needs a ton of work,” he said. “There is still a very long waiting list and we need a long term plan to get out of it.”
The Department of Human Services is one of Illinois’ largest agencies, with more than 13,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $5.4 billion. Illinois created DHS in 1997 to provide the state’s residents with streamlined access to integrated services, especially those who are striving to move from welfare to work and economic independence, and others who face multiple challenges to self-sufficiency.
Casey said it’s not only the caretakers that are getting older, but the patients themselves.
“There are two ends of the spectrum — kids who need help when they’re finished with special education, and people when they’re older. How do we provide care for people getting older? It’s going to be a difficult process because people with disabilities face the same things when they get older, in addition to the disabilities they face throughout their lives,” he said.

Pat Barcas’ e-mail address is pat@foxvalleylabornews.com.