Local lawmaker proposes registry to track abusers

April 07--In an effort to prevent re-hiring caretakers with a documented history of abusing disabled people, state Rep. Linda Dean Campbell has proposed creating a state Disability Abuse Registry.

The legislation was introduced earlier this year by Campbell, D-Methuen, who also represents Haverhill. It has been referred to the Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities. Campbell said she filed the bill in time to receive a public hearing as early as this summer.

"I filed legislation with 58 co-sponsors and considerable support among my colleagues and also from disabled person advocates that creates a registry of those who have been reported for abuse in caring for the disabled," Campbell said. "We met with many stakeholders to draft this legislation, including representatives from the Department of Developmental Services, as well as the Arc advocacy group."

Maura Sullivan, director of public affairs for the Arc of Massachusetts, which operates on behalf of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, said clients often have trouble communicating when they are in trouble, afraid, or have been harmed, such as during incidents of abuse.

"They can often struggle with circumstances in life that typically developing individuals do not struggle with," she said. "And think of non-verbal individuals who cannot speak, and who are a percentage of our clients."

She said abuse happens in a variety of places, including group homes, day rehabilitation sites, and shared living situations, such as when a person takes in a disabled person and is paid to care for them.

In a recent case in Haverhill, a 50-year-old man is accused of raping an adult woman with an intellectual disability while she was living in his home.

Joseph Gagnon, 50, whose last known address was 177 Liberty St., Haverhill, recently was arraigned on charges of rape, indecent assault and battery on a person with an intellectual disability, and permitting the abuse of a disabled person.

Police said Gagnon raped the woman, who is in her late 30s, while she was in the care of him and his now-estranged wife. They received money from the state to care for her in their home, police said. Police said the victim did not report the abuse until Gagnon left the home after a family dispute, and was about to return to pick up his belongings.

"If he is not found guilty, then a DPPC (Disabled Persons Protection Commission) investigation can occur if it hasn't already, and then he could end up on the registry and never be a provider again," Sullivan said.

There would be no need for the name to go on the registry if he is found guilty because that guilty finding would show up on a typical background check.

Campbell said the registry would list caretakers against whom a finding of abuse or the financial exploitation of a person with an intellectual or developmental disability was issued by the commission.

The bill would allow for an appeal period, during which a caretaker's name would be listed with an asterisk.

"Although it will not prevent all abuse, it will give providers one tool to check and prevent potential abuse," Campbell said. "The intent is to identify those abusers who are fired for this, only to be hired by another provider serving the disabled."

Campbell called the bill, named "Nicky's Law," a "helpful and prudent step in reducing incidents of abuse."

"We looked at something we could do that was reasonable and common sense in approach," she said.

Several other states, including New York, New Jersey, and Illinois, have similar registries, she said.

Sullivan said the bill was named "Nicky's Law" in recognition of a client who was abused by a caretaker who went on to obtain similar employment.

Sullivan said not all cases of abuse and neglect rise to the level of criminality and that some of these cases can't be proven in a court of law.

"For our clients, the kind of abuse that would not put someone in jail would be investigated by the Disabled Persons Protection Commission," Sullivan said. "At present, there is not a lot they can do other than have a person who has been substantiated of abuse and neglect fired. The biggest problem we have is that hundreds of those people just go find another caretaker job with another provider, and a criminal background check won't show anything."

She said under this bill, it would be mandatory that if the DPPC substantiates abuse or neglect, the name of the person responsible would be added to the registry.

"Right now, there is no way to track a person who has been substantiated of abuse or neglect by the DPPC, unless we get this registry up and running," Sullivan said. "At this time, there are more than 700 individuals who have been substantiated and whom we can't track. They are out there getting new jobs and working with vulnerable clients."

A federal audit released in July of 2016 by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that in certain cases, Massachusetts did not comply with federal and state requirements for reporting critical incidents involving developmentally disabled Medicaid beneficiaries.

Campbell said those incidents included emergency room visits that involved reasonable suspicion of abuse related to things like severe bed sores, severe bruises or lacerations -- physical signs indicating the types of things that show up in an emergency room and should be reported. She said all of the abuses noted in the report occurred in group homes and private residences.

"There is no doubt some of the numbers are higher than actual cases of abuse, which DDS substantiated," Campbell said. "Within DDS, they have a commission that is responsible for investigations and no doubt need additional help for investigations and inspections."

Campbell said the proposed registry would not be considered a public record and that the Department of Disability Services would be responsible for disseminating information to providers looking to hire a caretaker.

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