At the request of Congress, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) examined states' monitoring and reporting of injuries and other critical incidents of people with developmental disabilities living in group homes. OIG found that up to 99 percent of these critical incidents were not reported to the appropriate law enforcement or state agencies as required.
All people, including those with disabilities and older adults, have the right to live as independently as they can, and group homes make this possible for many. Many do so safely, but the issues identified by OIG must be addressed to ensure the health and safety of all.
To assist states in making improvements, ACL joined OIG and the HHS Office of Civil Rights, along with the U.S. Department of Justice, to develop Model Practices to help address gaps in reporting and monitoring efforts. The Model Practices are based upon effective strategies being used by individual states, and were informed by a variety of stakeholders, including ACL’s DD network partners and grantees.