CHICAGO (CN) - To settle a federal class action, Illinois promised to move retarded and disabled adults out of large institutions if the residents choose. Plaintiffs claimed Illinois violated the civil rights of 6,000 disabled people living in 250 facilities.
Illinois also must provide services to make it possible for the disabled people to live on their own. It has 6 years to set up the services and a court-appointed monitor will oversee the process. The transition will cost Illinois an unknown amount of money, but it may prove cheaper in the long run, according to the Associated Press.
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