According to a July 25, 2005 memo from the San Francisco Controller to the Board of Supervisors and Department of Health Commissioners, "approximately one out of every 700 people in the City is living in Laguna Honda Hospital. The City has effectively institutionalized more of its population, across a wider spectrum of needs, than anywhere in the country. By [The Department of Public Health's] own assessments, a significant fraction of the Laguna Honda population does not need hospital-based long term care and could be effectively treated in another setting - at home or in the community."

A number of community-based organizations are advocating to shift resources from institutionally-based to community-based programs. Others believe that institutional care is the best option for San Franciscans with disabilities of all ages and seniors, and that community-based care can't properly handle their needs.

The memo accompanied a report on long term care in San Francisco. A summary of the report can be found on the link below.

In addition, on 8/15/05, a local radio program, City Visions Radio (91.7.FM), had a discusssion entitled: Is San Francisco over-institutionalizing its citizens?

Questions included: Who needs institutional care? What other options exist? Can San Francisco sustain its high rate of institutionalization given that by the year 2020, one in five San Franciscans will be over the age of 60? What are the pros and cons of community-based versus institutional care for people with disabilities of all ages, seniors, family members, and caregivers?

Guest host Lauren Meltzer examined the issues with:
* Paul Kumar, governmental affairs director, SEIU United Health Workers West
* Herb Levine, executive director, Independent Living Resource Center, and managing director, Innovation Funders Network

The radio show can be found at http://www.cityvisionsradio.com/archive.html