He was stuck in a hospital for 8 months. How states can fail people with disabilities

November 21, 2024

A young woman in a wheelchair facing a window.

(NPR) – Nearly 15 years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Georgia for unnecessarily segregating people with developmental disabilities and mental illness. The state settled the case and agreed to a massive overhaul of the services it offers to that population. Despite hundreds of millions of dollars in investments and some notable improvements, the state’s system of caring for people with developmental disabilities and mental illness still has holes. The gaps often leave people like Mills sequestered in institutional settings and without the proper community supports.

Advocates said those failures continue to violate the rights of Georgians who have been historically marginalized and put their health at risk. (Read More)