Tommy Olmstead, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Human Resources, et al. v. L. C., by Zimring, guardian ad litem and next friend, et al. (Olmstead v. L.C.) was a case filed in 1995 and decided in 1999 before the United States Supreme Court. The plaintiffs, L.C. (Lois Curtis, deceased November 3, 2022) and E.W. (Elaine Wilson, deceased December 4, 2005), were two women who were diagnosed with schizophrenia, intellectual disability and personality disorder. They had both been treated in institutional settings and in community based treatments in the state of Georgia.
This landmark Supreme Court decision established the “integration mandate” under Title II of the ADA. It held that states must provide services to individuals with mental disabilities in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs, rather than in institutions, when such placement is appropriate, the affected persons do not oppose it, and it can be reasonably accommodated. This ruling was a monumental victory for community living for people with disabilities and has driven significant reforms in state long-term care systems.