The Litigation: Hutchinson v. Patrick
Hutchinson v. Patrick is a federal class action lawsuit brought on behalf of over 9,000 persons with brain injuries who are unnecessarily confined to nursing facilities in Massachusetts. The case alleges violations of the ADA and the Medicaid Act on behalf of institutionalized persons with acquired brain injuries.
The Center and its co-counsel, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, filed the Hutchinson case in 2007 on behalf of five named plaintiffs, the Brain Injury Association of MA (BIAMA) and the Stavros Center for Independent Living. Named after a 54 year old brain injury survivor who had spent the last ten years of her life in a nursing facility, Hutchinson sought to enforce the rights of institutionalized persons with brain injury to be free from discrimination and segregation in the provision of long-term care, and to receive integrated community services, as guaranteed by the ADA and the Medicaid Act.
After several early procedural victories, including the certification of a class of over 9,000 persons, the Commonwealth agreed to settle the case. In September 2008, a court-ordered Settlement Agreement established a plan to dramatically enhance community-based services in Massachusetts. That Agreement, approved by the Court on September 16, 2008, requires the State to: 1) develop a new, comprehensive community service system for persons with brain injuries; 2) transition 1900 nursing and long term care facility residents to the community; and 3) conduct statewide education and outreach activities for consumers, families, providers and other stakeholders to inform them of these new opportunities. The Center is afforded a prominent role in designing and monitoring the new service system.
More information about Hutchinson v. Patrick, including the Settlement Agreement, can be found below:
Amended Complaint, part 1 of 2
Amended Complaint, part 2 of 2
Class Certification Order
Final Class Definition
Settlement Agreement
Order Approving Settlement
Fee Decision - District Court
Fee Decision Court of Appeals
Litigation as System Change (October 2008) : A presentation delivered at the NABIS Brain Injury Conference
More information on the Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIAMA), including its activities and programs for survivors and families, can be found at www.biama.org
The documents contained on this page and within this web site do not constitute legal advice. Anyone engaged in legal action should consult with an attorney. Attorneys should make their own independent judgments. Local laws vary and the law may have changed since these documents were written. Litigants should fully research any claims or defenses before making them.