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Will State’s Makeover of Developmental Disabilities Wait List Be Fair to Families?

Jeff Raymond-Oklahoma Watch

As the number of people waiting for developmental disabilities services has reached an all-time high, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services is considering abandoning the first-come, first-served approach to the developmental disabilities services waiting list.

Instead, it would prioritize the list according to need, meaning families who have waited for help for years could be moved back in line while others are shifted to the front.

But how that system would work, and whether it would be fair and effective, is unclear. DHS officials said the change will take years to implement. The agency has made relatively little progress during the past two years.

In the meantime, the waiting list for government-paid services for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities continues to grow, hitting a record 7,560 this year.

In 2015, a state panel formed by Gov. Mary Fallin recommended ways to improve services for developmentally disabled people and proposed ranking those on the waiting list according to their situation and need.

Personnel changes at DHS and the agency’s attention to other matters, however, have delayed changing the first-come, first-served approach, a DHS official said.

Under the current system, individuals on the waiting list receive a Medicaid “waiver” for services as soon as their name reaches the top of the list. The waiver allows Oklahoma to use Medicaid funds to pay for treatment of the disabled in families’ homes or community homes instead of large institutions.

The approach has left?more than 1,000 families?waiting for?a decade or more for?services,?which can include therapy, vocational training, home health aides and long-term case management.?Those on the list have conditions such as?autism, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome, brain injuries and intellectual disabilities. About half are children.

The state panel recommended creating ranking criteria that include factors such as the applicant’s condition, age and risk of institutionalization, and the age and medical condition of the caregiver.

Currently, applicants who have extreme needs?can receive emergency waivers.

Oklahoma Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that produces in-depth and investigative journalism on a range of public-policy issues facing the state. For more Oklahoma Watch content, go to www.oklahomawatch.org.”