Autism Mommy Swami: Planning Ahead for Housing

Dear Autism Mommy Swami: How do you get started on finding a place for your adult child to live? How do you begin to feel comfortable that he will be treated well? Is this covered by Medicaid? My son is only 11 but I know we will have to be making these decision and am wondering how early we have to start looking. Is your son still taking medication for anger issues?  Is this a life-long issue? Thank you, Thinking Ahead Mom Dear Thinking Ahead Mom: 1) Regarding an adult child’s housing, your best bet is to apply to your Department of Developmental Services now and see if you can get him in the system for funding. This is usually called Waiver Funding. So if your child is eligible for DDS prior to 22, he stands a better chance of getting the funds for housing and staff post 22. Call the DDS about support services now, even though he’s still at home. 2) Start saving money, whatever you can put away, for some sort of housing for him, but do not put it in his name. Consult a Special Needs Attorney to find out the best, legal way to save for a special needs child. 3) Be sure he is on SSI the moment he turns 18. Qualifying for SSI at 18 I believe will then qualify him for Medicaid, which does have programs that support people like my son, but it is different in every state.  But the first step is go for SSI when he is 18. 4) As soon as he is 18, get him on the waiting list for Section 8 housing. You can apply for that in your town’s Housing Authority. There̵...
Source: Susan's Blog - Category: Autism Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs