A failure at Fernald

IF GERALD Morrissey, commissioner of the state Department of Mental Retardation, could promise the severely handicapped residents of Fernald Developmental Center and their families that closing most of the center's beds would result in residents moving, just once, to an equal or better state facility, the Romney administration's push to relocate most Fernald residents might be defensible. But Morrissey could not make that promise at a meeting Sunday, since Fernald is just one of several such centers that the state is likely to close in the future. The residents, their families, and their advocates have no choice but to contest the state's relocation proposals.

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Fernald now has 241 residents. According to Morrissey, the current plan is to keep 80 to 85 beds at its Waltham campus, including about 60 in a skilled nursing facility that would have about twice the capacity of the existing one. He said the relocations make sense as a way to provide residents with the least restrictive setting and to improve efficiency -- he said Fernald's central power plant is very inefficient. New boilers would be installed, he said, for whatever buildings are kept after the relocation of most residents. But if the state is willing to make investments in the campus, why not do so to accommodate as many residents as prefer to stay?

The attorney for the residents' families and advocates, Beryl Cohen, argues that the ''least restrictive setting" argument makes no sense for most of the 241. He says 90 percent of residents are severely or profoundly retarded. Many suffer from chronic diseases or other handicaps as well. Their average age is 59, and many have lived at Fernald for decades. For many, relocation would mean a traumatic disruption of routine.

The families say that the push for emptying most of Fernald is coming from the state's desire to put much of the institution's 168 acres up for sale. Morrissey says that eventually much of the campus will likely be sold but denies that this is driving the relocations. The families say they would be happy to see the state sell most of the land if it maintained a small portion of it for their loved ones' continued care.

In January, US District Judge Joseph L. Tauro turned down a bid by relatives and advocates of Fernald residents to reopen a 1970s lawsuit that forced major improvements in the state's treatment of the mentally retarded. But Tauro directed Cohen to keep an eye on all the cases of residents being transferred out of Fernald and to report back if he sees systemic problems emerging.

The families can also appeal relocations to Morrissey's office, to an administrative hearing officer, and to state Superior Court. Cohen said the families know something the state takes too little into account: ''that Fernald is home for these individuals." These residents should not be forced to give up their homes for the convenience of the state.