IMPORTANT INFO FOR SPECIAL NEEDS FAMILIES
Don’t miss out on valuable assistance for your loved one and your family!
The Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) and Medicaid offer a broad range of services for your special needs family member and in some cases for your entire family.
If you haven’t already, Sunrise Village strongly recommends you apply for your loved one to take part in one of the seven Medicaid waiver programs available to Iowa families. For example, families whose loved ones include someone with a certified Intellectual Disability (IQ of 70 or lower) will most likely qualify for some or all of the following services:
- Respite services
- Financial management services
- Home and vehicle modification
- Adult daycare
- Case management
- Home health aide services
- Nursing services
- Independent support broker
- Prevocational services
- Supported employment
- Residential based supported community living
- Individual directed goods and services
- Self-directed community support employment
- Self-directed personal care
- Consumer directed attendant care (assistance with personal cares, housekeeping, and other tasks so they may remain living independently in the community)
- Interim medical monitoring and treatment
- Personal emergency response or portable locator system
- Supported community living
- Transportation for individuals with intellectual disabilities
The waiver services are not just limited to Iowans with intellectual disabilities. You can find a complete list of qualifying situations here and this chart does a nice job breaking down what services are available to each program.
Special note:
There is currently a 3+ year waitlist. That’s a long wait, but don’t make the wait even longer by not applying!
This is especially important if your loved one is a young adult. It’s crucial that special needs family members get enrolled in these programs by their freshman year of high school in order to qualify for vocational training programs and other related services.
Where to apply:
Paper application (recommended):
https://dhs.iowa.gov/sites/default/files/470-5170.pdf?072820212347
Online application:
The application process is somewhat lengthy. You can shorten the process somewhat by having the following materials readily accessible:
- Social Security Numbers
- Employer and income information for everyone in your family (paystubs, W-2 forms, or wage and tax statements)
- Policy numbers for any current health insurance
- Information about any job-related health insurance available to your family
While these services are not directly related to Sunrise Village programming at this time, our mission statement and our purpose are to create nurturing and empowering opportunities for individuals with disabilities — and we believe strongly that information sharing is central to that mission.
Sunrise Village is fortunate to have a handful of great volunteers, including some directly involved in administering the Medicaid Waiver Programs. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us and we’ll gladly put you in touch with a local professional.
We’re here to help, and we don’t want anyone to miss out on a chance for much-needed assistance!