News reports of abuse against individuals with disabilities have been exploding across the news. Stories of children being left on the bus, subjected to electroshock therapy, and even parents sending kids to school with a wire because of suspected abuse from teachers have all surfaced and are cause for concern regarding the disability care system.

Governor Andrew Cuomo says his priority for the next several weeks is to reform the system to better protect individuals with disabilities. With the end of the year’s legislative session on June 21 approaching fast, the governor has very limited time to accomplish this goal.

Part of Cuomo’s plan is to build a new agency that would investigate and record instances of abuse or neglect. This new plan would also make it easier to discharge those who engage in abuse or neglect of these individuals with disabilities.

200 New York State employees are under fire, and reports suggest these people will lose their jobs for “substantiated allegations of abuse.” The Office for People with Developmental Disabilities employs thousands of people, but they have been trying to fire about 200 people, some of whose cases have dragged on for over a year.

Governor Cuomo believes he can get support from parents and disability advocates; he believes their rally will be enough to get lawmakers to respond quickly.

You can read more about Governor Cuomo’s proposed plan at the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs website.

Photo by Patja