Northwest News

Lethal Removal, Range Rider Concerns Raised At Washington Wolf Advisory Group Meeting

By Courtney Flatt
Wolf in snow
For the first time, a wolf wearing a radio collar traveled south of Interstate-90 into Washington’s Southern Cascade Mountains. Photo Credit: Eric Kilby Flickr – Tinyurl.Com/Gngh5n7 Listen Read For the first time, a wolf wearing a radio collar has crossed south of Interstate-90 into Washington’s southern Cascade Mountains, biologists with the Department of Fish Read More

He’s 13-Years-Old, Autistic And Stuck In The Hospital For The Holidays. He’s Not The Only One

By Austin Jenkins
This hospital room at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett is where an autistic, non-verbal 13-year-old named Matthew is living while the state of Washington tries to find a community placement for him. He's been there since late September following a crisis in his group home. Advocates say Matthew's case is indicative of a growing problem of high-needs youth getting stuck in hospitals after they've been cleared for discharge.
It's a growing problem in Washington: kids with developmental disabilities and complex behaviors who are stuck in the hospital with no reason for being there. Usually, they end up in the hospital after a crisis or an incident. But once the child is medically cleared to leave, their parents or their group home won't come get them citing inadequate supports to manage the Read More

‘The Situation Is Dangerous.’ Parents Sound Alarm Over Troubled In-Home Care Provider

By Austin Jenkins
Andrew Simmons, right, blows bubbles with his father Bo last spring. Andrew, who's profoundly autistic and mostly non-verbal, lives in a supported living home in Snohomish County operated by Aacres WA, a troubled state contractor. Bo Simmons says conditions in the home over the past year have deteriorated to the point of being dangerous for Andrew and his housemates.
Mysterious bruises. An unreported burn. Two vulnerable clients left alone overnight. These are just some of the complaints that families are leveling against Aacres WA — a troubled residential care provider that gets tens of millions of dollars a year from the state to care for people with developmental disabilities. Now state officials say they’re investigating. Read More
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