Remembering Olmstead
June 23, 2014 /
By: Paolo del Vecchio, M.S.W., Director, Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
This month, we remember the courage of Lois Curtis and Elaine Wilson as we observe the 15thanniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark civil rights decision in Olmstead v. L.C. After being diagnosed with mental illness and intellectual disabilities, Ms. Curtis and Ms. Wilson were voluntarily admitted to the psychiatric unit in Georgia Regional Hospital. They remained confined in the institution even after their treatment teams determined they were ready to move to a community-based program. They both wanted what we all want: to be part of a community that includes and values them, so they took their case to the Supreme Court.
On June 22, 1999,the Supreme Court agreed with Ms. Curtis and Ms. Wilson, ruling that unnecessary segregation of individuals in institutions is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under this ruling, the Court confirmed that states must provide services to individuals with disabilities, including psychiatric disabilities, in the most integrated setting appropriate for their needs. The Court ruled that segregating those individuals who can benefit from community settings “perpetuates unwarranted assumptions that persons so isolated are incapable or unworthy of participating in community life.”
In the letter and the spirit of the Olmstead decision, SAMHSA supports states’ efforts to build integrated communities through grants, technical assistance, and other resources. SAMHSA’s pilot Community Integration State Self-Assessment Tool gives states a foundation for measuring their progress in achieving community integration through housing, employment, and social inclusion.
SAMHSA also funds the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) programs across the country that work to protect the rights of the most vulnerable individuals with serious mental illnesses, especially those residing in public and private residential care and treatment facilities. PAIMI programs ensure that residents they serve are free from neglect and abuse, including inappropriate restraint and seclusion, and that they receive the appropriate mental health treatment and services they need to facilitate their recovery and become fully integrated in their communities.
Ms. Curtis and Ms. Wilson advocated that people with mental illness be part of the community and share in the social, economic, and spiritual choices and relationships that engage us all in our everyday lives. On this 15th anniversary, we celebrate not only the implications of the Olmstead decision, but also the wisdom, fortitude and strength that persons with mental illness or intellectual disabilities have and their incredible contributions to America.