Waivers for Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities and Autism

Today I want to talk about the different types of waivers. If you are looking for services or are assisting someone looking for services then you have heard of waivers.
 
What are waivers? Waivers are one way to pay for the services that support people with intellectual developmental disabilities and autism. Waivers offer a variety of services and benefits such as choice of qualified providers, due process, and health and safety assurances.
 
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) administers multiple medical assistance/ Medicaid waivers. Each waiver has its own unique set of eligibility requirements and services.
 
The waivers are overseen and disseminated to the states by the Centers for Medicare/ Medicaid Services (CMS). In January 2014, CMS created a final rule for Home and Community Based Services (HBCS) in order to make sure individuals receive services in settings that are integrated into the community and individuals receiving services have access to community resources equal to that of those who do not receive services. The CMS final rule states that individuals receiving services should be able to do all the following:
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 Have opportunities to seek employment and work in competitive and integrated settings.

• Engage in community life.
• Control personal resources.
• Obtain services in the community.

 
The CMS final rule further aims to make sure that individuals receiving services have free choice of where they live and what provider to choose as long as the providers is willing and qualified. This is a big deal. Therefore, there are many regulatory requirements and reviews. This ensures compliance. The CMS Rule also ensures that an individual’s rights are not restricted and clarifies that services will not be allowed in settings that have the qualities of an institution.

The rule's settings requirements apply to each of ODP's waivers.
 

• Adult Autism Waiver
• Consolidated Waiver
• Person/Family Directed Support (P/FDS) Waiver
• Community Living Waiver. 

Below is a brief description of each waiver.

• The Adult Autism Waiver (AAW) is a 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Medicaid waiver designed to provide long-term services and supports for community living, tailored to the specific needs of adults age 21 or older with ASD.

 

• Consolidated waiver: The Pennsylvania Consolidated Waiver is designed to help individuals with an intellectual disability, autism or developmental disability to live more independently in their homes and communities and to provide a variety of services that promote community living, including self-directed service models and traditional, agency-based service models.

 

• The Pennsylvania Person/Family Directed Support Waiver is designed to help individuals with an intellectual disability, autism, or developmental disability to live more independently in their homes and communities and to provide a variety of services that promote community living, including self-directed service models and traditional, agency-based service models. 

 

• The Community Living Waiver supports individuals with an intellectual disability, autism or developmental disability to live more independently in their homes and communities through the provision of a variety of services that promote community living, employment, communication, self-direction, choice and control.

 
I will review each of these waivers in greater detail,  the differences, eligibility requirements and how they can be used as per ODP later.

Thank you for checking out this blog post and video. If you or a loved one has any questions, please feel free to contact me. If you are a provider or interested in becoming a provider, please feel free to contact me for a consultation.