Product Description:
Abstract: Families of children with developmental disabilities face special challenges, and the level of support needed often does not decline as the child matures. Parents of children without disabilities are able to regain freedom as their children develop independence; however, adult children with developmental disabilities do not always reach this milestone. To account for the rising population of adults with disabilities, policies must be implemented to give person-centered, meaningful, and generalized support.
Families caring for an individual with a disability spend 8-20 percent more than those without an individual with a disability (as cited in Davenport & Eidelman, 2008). Historically, two different Medicaid policies have been implemented to assist with these costs. Intermediate Care Facilities for the Mentally Retarded (ICF-MR), started in 1972, are public institutions that provide rehabilitative services. The Home & Community Based Services (HCBS) waiver was enacted in 1981 to provide individuals with disabilities more control over the services received.
Delaware runs an ICF-MR at the Stockley Center in Georgetown, which currently houses approximately 200 people (Conroy, Garrow, Fullerton, Brown, & Vasile, 2003). An additional 729 people with developmental disabilities in Delaware utilize the HCBS waiver (?Delaware Medicaid 1915(c) Waivers?, 2005). Moving individuals from the Stockley Center makes sense financially and based on the research. Supporting 200 people at the Stockley Center is equal to supporting 790 people on the HCBS waiver. The individuals experience benefits such as an increased perceived quality of life (Conroy et al., 2003). By learning independent living skills and generating their own income, individuals will also become less dependent on the state, and benefits would appear in multiple ways.
