WHAT CAN A SERVICE COORDINATOR DO FOR YOU?

  • Determine you if you or a family member is eligible for LCBMRDD services.

  • Link you to community resources including recreational opportunities, budget-management services, counseling, physicians and dentists.

  • Make referrals to community agencies on your behalf.

  • Support you in a crisis.

  • Inform you about your rights and responsibilities.

  • Help you communicate with a physician or other specialist.

  • Assist you or a family member in finding employment.

  • Notify you about benefits that you may be eligible to receive and help you apply for those benefits.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

A child younger than three years of age must present at least one developmental delay or established risk to be eligible for agency service. At-risk children include those who were born premature, those affected by drug exposure, or others who have diagnosed physical or mental conditions that may cause delays. A delay is when a child does not reach his or her developmental milestones at the expected times. Developmental delays can occur in one or many areas such as motor, language, social or thinking skills.

Children age three to six years must present at least two developmental delays or an established risk to be eligible.

Children ages 6 to 15 must exhibit a substantial functional limitation in at least three of the following areas of major life activity as appropriate for their age: self care; receptive and expressive language; learning; mobility; self direction; and capacity for independent living.

Individuals age 16 and older also must exhibit substantial functional limitations in at least three of the following areas of major life activity: the capacity for economic self-sufficiency; self care; receptive and expressive language; learning; mobility; self direction and capacity for independent living.

An individual must experience developmental disabilities or delays before age 22 to qualify for services.

Developmental disabilities must be assessed by a licensed psychologist and/or physician.

Functional limitations are evaluated through completion of the Ohio Eligibility Determination Instrument (OEDI, for those age 16 and older), and the Children's Eligibility Determination Instrument (COEDI, for those age 6 to 15).

Please direct eligibility questions to:

Lorrie Miller, Intake Coordinator                                                                                                                - or -                                                                                                                                                          Chanda Busse, Director of Service Coordination                                                                             565 Industrial Parkway                                                                                                                      Heath, OH  43056                                                                                                                                   (740) 349-1420                                                                                                                                      (800) 722-6096

THE INDIVIDUAL SERVICE PLAN (ISP)

The Licking County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (LCMBMDD) serves people of all ages, using an individualized approach to developing the services and supports needed by people served. We offer a broad range of services to assist people in being successful members of the community. The LCBMRDD is proud to have achieved the highest level of accreditation awarded by CARF, the nationally-recognized Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission, for our ability to meet and exceed national standards.
 

Service coordinators collaborate with each eligible person's circle of support -- his or her family and friends -- to develop an Individual Service Plan (ISP), a written document that serves as a map for realizing personal goals. The creation of an ISP is driven by the individual or his/her family, and serves as both a vision and long-term plan for realizing lifelong dreams and a guide to service providers who are selected by the individual and family. An ISP documents a person's health, safety, community membership, personal satisfaction, income, housing, vocational needs, social and recreational needs and many other personal issues.


The Individual Service Plan is an important document addressing:

  • Health

  • Safety (including medical)

  • Daily living skills

  • Community membership

  • Personal satisfaction

  • Income

  • Housing

  • Vocational needs

  • Choices and options

The Plan also includes:

  • Development of a Vision for the individual, allowing long-range planning toward specific goals, plans and dreams.

  • Discussion of who is responsible for helping the individual to work toward/address specific parts of the ISP.

  • Arrangements for any changes that may occur in an individual's life.

  • Management of financial resources.

In the process of developing an ISP, the following will happen:

  • The individual will identify friends and family to assist in developing the plan. In addition, the individual will assist in deciding the number and length of meetings per year; location and times of meetings; meeting participants to be
    included; and topics to be discussed.

  • The Plan will be driven by the individual, and will be documented in a format easily understood by the person or family. In addition, the ISP will include individual service agreements as needed, and the anticipated amount and frequency of services or supports offered by each provider.

FAQ about the ISP:

Question: Does the staff at the LCBMRDD decide what should be on someone's ISP?
Answer: No. The individual and his/her family and friends decide these things. Service Coordination staff members are guides in this process.

Question: How does the ISP get approved?
Answer: Your Service Coordinator documents the information from the ISP meeting and gives it to the other meeting participants (including family and friends) for their review. Then it is reviewed for compliance with state and federal regulations.

Question: Do Service Coordinators change information on an ISP without asking the individual for whom it was prepared?
Answer: No. An ISP may be changed only when an ISP meeting is held and approval for any changes is given by the individual and/or guardian.

Question: Who can be included in a person's ISP meeting?
Answer: Anyone the person chooses including family members, friends, advocates, paid staff, workshop staff and others.

Question: When and where should the ISP meeting be held?
Answer: ISP meetings are held at least one time in each 12-month period, or at least one time per year. The meeting can be held anywhere and anytime the person chooses. Examples could include a person's home, work, a restaurant, or wherever and whenever it is convenient and comfortable for the individual. Service coordinators are required to go over

Question: If I have a question about my ISP, who should I contact?
Answer: Please call your Service Coordinator at the LCBMRDD -- (740) 349-1420.

LCBMRDD Service Coordination
565 Industrial Parkway
Heath, OH 43056
(740) 349-1420
(800) 722-6096

WAIVERS 101

What is the Level One Waiver?
The Level One (L1) Waiver is a relatively new waiver program within the mental retardation and developmental disabilities service delivery system that has some similarities to -- as well as a key distinction from -- MRDD's other Medicaid waiver, the Individual Options (IO) Waiver. Approved a few years ago by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the L1 Waiver's purpose is to support families that have a son or daughter living at home. It particularly is aimed at the growing number of aging caregivers in Ohio, giving their sons and daughters priority enrollment.

How Does the Level One Waiver Compare with the Individual Option Waiver?
Like the IO Waiver, services available under the L1 Waiver include informal respite, institutional respite, environmental accessibility adaptations, transportation, specialized medical equipment and supplies, personal emergency response systems, supported employment, day habilitation and homemaker/personal care. Many Licking County families currently are using the L1 Waiver to subsidize personal care, transportation and home modifications, including widened doorways and equipment that aids the movement of an individual from a bed to a wheelchair. The central difference between the IO Waiver and the L1 Waiver is the amount of services that can be purchased. While a funding range for the IO waiver is determined by the results of an Ohio Developmental Disabilities Profile and assigned by the Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (ODMRDD), the L1 Waiver has an annual cost cap of $5,000 for each enrollee. A family can utilize any combination of service up to the cap in one year, with the exceptions of supported employment and day habilitation.

How many Level 1 Waiver slots are available in Licking County?
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and the ODMRDD negotiate the number of L1 Waiver slots allocated to Ohio by CMS. County boards apply to ODMRDD for a specific number of slots, which is a function of existing local resources to support the required 40 percent match for the cost of waiver services. If an individual enrolls in the L1 Waiver and uses $5,000 worth of services in a year, for example, the county board is responsible for $2,000, and the federal government contributes $3,000 in what is known as Federal Financial Participation. In 2006, for example, the LCBMRDD had 46 individuals enrolled on an L1 Waiver. We continue to apply for additional slots as financial resources are available.

How is Eligibility for the Level One Waiver Established?
Eligibility is determined through a level of care process. Services purchased with the waiver must be included in an Individual Service Plan and updated annually. The LCBMRDD staff completes assessment packets for individuals applying for enrollment. The Eligibility Unit in ODMRDD's Division of Medicaid Administration and Development reviews the information submitted and determines an individual's eligibility to receive waiver services. All waivers administered by the ODMRDD require an annual renewal process for continued waiver services. Each individual enrolled must meet Medicaid eligibility requirements every month and have his level of care renewed each year.

To learn more about the L1 Waiver, log onto www.odmrdd.state.oh.us, or call LCBMRDD Administration at (740) 349-6588, to request a list of ODMRDD-certified L1 Waiver services providers.

The IO Waiver is for people with mental retardation or developmental disabilities who meet the waiver's eligibility requirements. Services provided through this waiver allow people to stay in their homes and get support rather than living in an Intermediate Care Facility (ICF/MR). This waiver is administered by the Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (ODMRDD).

Resources from the ODMRDD:
The following links provide more information on eligibility requirements, services provided, and how to apply.

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