Developmental/Intellectual Disabilities

The DMIE awards funds to states to develop, implement, and evaluate interventions that are intended to improve health care coverage and employment services for working adults with potentially disabling conditions. It allows states to offer Medicaid-equivalent coverage, employment support, and case management services in order to sustain employment. This issue brief reviews the rationale for the DMIE, the interventions of the four most recent states, evaluation, and information dissemination.

Medicaid waivers funds can be used to support self-employment, but may not be used directly to fund the development of a business. This factsheet provides answers to questions about how to leverage waivers supports for self-employment while complying with these regulations. It also outlines eligibility requirements and presents short case studies.

This annual conference focuses on quality of services for people with developmental disabilities. Held Aug. 10-12 in Baltimore, this year’s conference featured agencies that have implemented person-centered planning and individualized support structures. One highlight was individuals who have developed their own micro-enterprises. In addition, innovations in policies, systems issues, and quality assurance methodologies were presented.

Approximately 2.4 million young adults had a serious mental illness in 2006. To better understand challenges that will arise as these youth transition into adulthood, GAO was asked to provide information on the demographic characteristics of these young adults, how selected states assist them, and how the federal government supports states in serving them. The data come from national surveys, the Social Security Administration, published research, and site visits.

Using information from published literature, interviews and focus groups, this review covers a wide variety of characteristics of the jobs of direct care workers in the behavioral health field. It also looks at the prospects and requirements for developing more effective career paths that recognize and reward quality workers. It concludes with 12 policy recommendations.

Wisconsin used MIG funds to increase self-directed supports within a managed care framework in their state. Find here a set of policy recommendations used for setting the stage for this effort as well as a qualitative study outlining the implementation process. There are also several presentations focused on training support workers to understand and facilitate self-direction, using Cash & Counseling to support employment, and helping people with traumatic brain injuries return to work.

Wisconsin uses MIG funds to increase integrated employment using strategies such as vocational planning, peer support, social enterprises, and self-employment. The first resource here presents best practices in integrated employment from 23 states. The rest are manuals and training materials for replicating vocational planning, social enterprise, and self-employment programs.

This memorandum and tables present data on Medicaid 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver expenditures from Federal Fiscal Years 2002 through 2007. Each HCBS waiver is classified by population served in order to show the distribution of HCBS waiver expenditures across long term care populations.

This memorandum presents data on Medicaid long-term care expenditures in Federal Fiscal Year 2007 (Oct 2006-Sept 2007). Table 1 presents national data on Medicaid expenditures for Long-Term Care from 1995-2007. Other tables present state-by-state data for Nursing Homes, ICF/MR, Personal Care, HCBS Waivers, Home Health, Home Care, 1115 Waivers focused on HCBS, and other Medicaid services.

Seven states received a share of over $8 million in federal grants to increase awareness of home-and community-based long-term care options for people leaving hospitals who otherwise may enter a nursing home. Over $7 million of the awards will be used to develop person-centered hospital discharge planning models. An additional $574,613 will supplement grants from FY07 to Wisconsin and Alaska so they can continue their Person-Centered Planning Implementation programs for another two years.