By Steve Kemme
The Cincinnati Enquirer

HAMILTON - Advocates for the developmentally disabled want to make sure Butler County state legislatorsunderstand the pain caused by this year's $45 million statewide cutback in funding for services to the disabled.

The Butler County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (MRDD) suffered a $325,000 reduction in state funding this fiscal year.

"That's a considerable chunk of change," said Dr. Fred Valerius, the agency's superintendent. "That cost us an additional $500,000 in potential federal matching money."

Ohio Reps. Gary Cates of West Chester, Greg Jolivette of Hamilton and Shawn Webster of Millville were among about 100 people who attended an informal dinner meeting Tuesday at the Janet Clemmons Center in Hamilton. It was organized by the Butler County Association for Retarded Citizens (ARC).

The legislators listened to people express the plight of the developmentally disabled and talk about the need to expand services.

Robert Neubert, legislative liaison for the Butler County ARC, said the steep state funding cuts have undermined recent state legislation allowing counties to put up matching money to obtain federal Medicaid dollars for services for the developmentally disabled.

With the cuts in state funding, counties don't have the matching money, he said.

Another problem is the delay in implementing the new Medicaid waiver program that would allow Medicaid to be used for in-home services, not just nursing home care.

Disputes over how to implement this waiver program have caused the delay, said Tom Eamoe, president of the Ohio Conference of Executives of the ARC and executive director of Hamilton County ARC.

"It's preventing service expansion from happening," Mr. Eamoe said.

There are 7,000 people on Ohio's waiting list for in-home services, said Stuart Warshauer, chairman of the Ohio MRDD Waiting List Coalition.

But Mr. Eamoe said the actual number of people waiting is probably much larger.

"A lot of people have chosen not to get on the list because the wait is absurd," he said.

Mr. Neubert used skits and props to illustrate the disproportionate amount of state money that goes for nursing home care instead of in-home care.

"Nursing homes have a powerful lobby and can make big campaign contributions," he said.

Advocates at the meeting spoke strongly in favor of Senate Bill 191, which would allow the Ohio MRDD to remove clients from licensed care providers who have repeated neglect and abuse offenses.

Dr. Valerius emphasized the need to impress upon Gov. Bob Taft the need for an increase in funding for services for the disabled in the next state budget.

E-mail skemme@enquirer.com