Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman has announced that the
first of five facilities within the Beatrice State Developmental
Center is now certified to receive federal funding.
Heineman made the announcement Monday with Jodi Fenner, who
oversees developmental disability programs within the state's
Department of Health and Human Services.
The center is being divided into five smaller, independently
licensed care facilities on the campus. Fenner says the goal is to
have all five certified by July.
In January, a federal judge dismissed several lawsuits against
state officials over resident safety at the center, following the
death of one resident and the removal of 47 others considered
medically fragile.
The center that is certified houses 24 people. Fenner says the
facility will receive and $4.9 million annually after this fiscal
year.
