IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Approves California’s Pilot Self-Determination Program Waiver, Enabling Regional Center Clients More Choice and Autonomy 

By PWDF Staff

The California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) is developing a new program, called the Self-Determination Program, which aims to provide people with disabilities and their families with more flexibility and control in choosing the services and support that they need.[¹] The Self-Determination Program will allow people who receive California Regional Center services and their families to have “greater control over decisions, resources, and needed and desired services and supports to implement” their individual program plan (IPP), within their individual budget.[²]

“A participant’s unique support system may include the purchase of existing service offerings from service providers or local businesses, hiring his or her own support workers, or negotiating unique service arrangements with local community resources.”[³] The Self-Determination Program allows a wide variety of services to be covered, ranging from acupuncture to behavioral intervention, community living supports, crisis intervention and support, employment supports, housing access supports, and many others. (See the Program website for a complete list of allowable services and their definitions.) The Self-Determination Program was signed into law by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., in October 2013 (Senate Bill 468).[⁴]

In June 2018, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved California’s application for the program, enabling federal funding to be used for the Self-Determination Program.[⁵] The program will be available for up to 2,500 randomly selected participants during the first three years of the program. After that, it will be available on a voluntary basis to all eligible regional center consumers.[⁶]

To become eligible for this program, individuals with developmental disabilities must meet certain criteria: (1) they must already be receiving services from a regional center; (2) participate in orientation for the Self-determination Program; (3) work with a Financial Management Services (FMS) entity; and (4) manage the services within an individual budget.[⁷] The individual budget is the amount of money determined by the program planning team that the participants can use to purchase the approved services.[⁸]

The FMS providers will “help participants manage their individual budgets by paying bills and managing the payroll for support workers.” The FMS providers can be any person chosen by the participants as long as they are offered as a vendor by any regional center and are not relatives or legal guardians of the participants. The cost of the FMS provider will be paid by the participant out of his or her individual budget.[⁹]  The FMS providers will ensure that the participants have the financial resources to implement their IPP throughout the year.[¹⁰]

With this program, the participants will have more freedom to use either regional center services or independent facilitators for assisting with the planning process and services. The cost of the independent facilitator will be paid through the participant’s individual budget. In comparison, there is no cost to the participants from their individual budgets if they decide to use the regional center service coordinators.[¹¹] This is a disincentive to use independent facilitators because of the additional costs.

At PWDF, we believe that this is a big win for individuals with disabilities as this program gives more flexibility and autonomy in selecting service providers and needed services, for those who choose to participate, but we are concerned about any financial disincentives. To learn more about the program, visit the California DDS Self-Determination Program website https://www.dds.ca.gov/SDP/. Updated information about the SDP implementation timeline can be found here. (https://www.dds.ca.gov/SDP/SDPUpdates.cfm).

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Who We Are

People With Disabilities Foundation is an operating 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California, which focuses on the rights of the mentally and developmentally disabled.

Services

Advocacy: PWDF advocates for Social Security claimant’s disability benefits in eight Bay Area counties. We also provide services in disability rights, on issues regarding returning to work, and in ADA consultations, including areas of employment, health care, and education, among others. There is representation before all levels of federal court and Administrative Law Judges. No one is declined due to their inability to pay, and we offer a sliding scale for attorney’s fees.

Education/Public Awareness: To help eliminate the stigma against people with mental disabilities in society, PWDF’s educational program organizes workshops and public seminars, provides guest speakers with backgrounds in mental health, and produces educational materials such as videos.

Continuing Education Provider: State Bar of California MCLE and Commission of Rehabilitation Counselor Certification.