By Dave Ranney, KHI News Service, February 18, 2011
TOPEKA — A senate subcommittee voted Friday not to recommend closing Kansas Neurological institute.
"We don’t agree with the governor," said Sen. Vicki Schmidt, R-Topeka.
Last month, Gov. Sam Brownback proposed closing KNI over a two-year period.
KNI is one of two state hospitals for people with severe developmental disabilities. The other is Parsons State Hospital.
Last month, Parsons State Hospital had 192 residents; KNI had 156.
In recent years, advocates for people with developmental disabilities have urged lawmakers to close one or both hospitals, using the savings to underwrite additional openings in community-based programs.
Subcommittee members, however, said they thought few community programs would be able to care for KNI residents, most of who are unable to walk, speak, bathe or feed themselves.
Rocky Nichols, executive director at the Disability Rights Center of Kansas, assured the subcommittee that community-based programs already serve hundreds of people with disabilities as severe as those of KNI residents.
Schmidt said she found that hard to believe.
Also, several subcommittee members said they thought closure would end up costing the state as much as it would save.
"I don’t think there would be that big of difference between what we spend at KNI now and what we’d end up spending in the community," Schmidt said.
KNI is expected to spend $28.8 million, all funds, in the current fiscal year; Parsons State Hospital: $25.3 million.
The subcommittee is expected to forward its recommendations to the full Senate Ways and Means Committee on Monday.