SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) – Darren Bailey told reporters Monday that he will keep the Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center open if he is elected governor. However, Gov. JB Pritzker said he listened to advice from advocates for people with developmental disabilities on why the state should pursue other options.
Bailey said he understands the Anna facility has faced serious failures over the years with staff misconduct and abuse of residents.
The Republican said patients deserve to be safe and anyone responsible for mistreating them should be held accountable. Bailey argued Illinois should fix the broken system and improve care at Choate instead of closing residential units and cutting jobs.
“They have listened to Springfield call this a transformation,” Bailey said. “They have watched decisions about their community be made without them. Now, they’re being asked to trust that everything will work out after the beds leave Anna.”
Pritzker recently said Illinois is one of the last states in the country to get out of state-owned developmental centers. He said other states have stopped the practice because they realized community homes are better settings.
The Pritzker administration is also offering all Choate employees an opportunity to work for the Illinois Department of Human Services.
“We have many more open positions in the Department of Human Services in southern Illinois than we do people available to fill those positions,” Pritzker said. “Here we’ve got really high-quality people, no doubt, who may become available as a result of this, and we’d love to have them continue to work for the state.”
Southern Illinois lawmakers said an SIU School of Medicine study supported their efforts to keep the facility open.
“They suggested that we increase, not decrease, beds,” said Sen. Paul Jacobs (R-Marion). “They suggested that this could also be a residency program for their psychiatric residents.”
Some lawmakers stressed Pritzker should personally visit Anna and talk with workers who want to save Choate.
Collin Corbett told WAND News that Pritzker promised he wouldn’t close Choate three years ago, and the independent candidate for governor believes the state has failed southern Illinois. Corbett said Illinois needs to keep essential services close to home, ensuring residents receive care near their families and local workers remain employed.
“Instead of shipping residents hours away and displacing dedicated workers, Pritzker should be investing in local community-based resources,” Corbett said.
