Demonstration outside the courthouse

A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on October 19 to put a stop to California’s plan to notify 130,000 elderly clients and people with disabilities that their in-home supportive services would be reduced or eliminated entirely.

The court ordered the state’s Department of Social Services to instead send reassuring letters to the clients, letting them know that their in-home services would not be curtailed on November 1.

“Outside the courtroom all of us were jumping for joy and just weeping — not sure from relief that someone is doing the right thing and that somewhere the system still works, or joy, or maybe both,” said Marty Omoto, director of California Disability Community Action Network, an advocacy organization.

Home care services will remain in effect for the targeted clients until a hearing is held to decide whether the state’s plan to cut the services violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, as advocates and unions contend. The groups filed a federal class-action suit on behalf of five clients of California’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program to block $82 million in budget cuts.

The plaintiffs argue that the state is using an arbitrary method — functional index scores — to discontinue or reduce IHSS services.

According to Disability Rights California, a representative for the plaintiffs, the judge said that because these scores were not based on need, they could result in essential services being withdrawn arbitrarily. “People could lose something irreplaceable — the ability to remain safely in their homes,” the judge said.

IHSS’s direct-care workers help elders and people with disabilities remain in their homes by aiding them in a host of essential tasks, including preparing meals, food shopping, cleaning, and/or providing transportation to medical appointments.

The judge’s ruling took place just days after she issued a temporary restraining order to stop the state from sending notices announcing the cuts to home care clients.