Loved ones of YDC clients attend Stop the Closures rally

June 20, 2015 at 9:24p.m.

AUSTINTOWN

For nearly three decades, 71-year-old Richard Kraus has been used to a comfortable routine and lifestyle as a client at the Youngstown Developmental Center. But the threat of the facility’s closure and his being uprooted could prove detrimental – or worse.

“My mother and I feel that if he is transferred out of there, he would not survive,” said his sister, Robin Tarr of Twinsburg. “Quite frankly, it could kill him.”

Tarr was referring to the possible closing of YDC in Weathersfield Township by July 1, 2017, a move that she is convinced would be harmful to her brother, who suffers from several physical disabilities, cannot bear weight, needs one-on-one care, can’t swallow and is bedridden.

Tarr was among the few hundred loved ones of YDC clients who attended Sunday’s Stop the Closures rally and program in Austintown Township Park. The gathering was to call attention to what attendees see as the urgent need to keep open YDC, as well as the Montgomery Developmental Center near Dayton. Also in attendance were many people who made the four-hour trip from the Dayton area, along with several local elected officials and community, faith and labor leaders.

Some state officials have argued that closing the two centers would be an inevitable result of reductions in federal Medicaid funding, which they contend forces the state to consolidate many programs for those with developmental disabilities. Also, the number of clients in such facilities statewide has dropped by 40 percent in the past eight years.

But critics say that such an argument ignores the human dimension and is unfair to those who are unable to advocate for themselves and are most vulnerable.