What is self-direction of OPWDD services in NYS?

Self-Direction is the opportunity to have partial or complete management and/or budget authority of your OPWDD funded supports. As a Start-Up Broker I provide a consulting service (paid by the state of NY) to help you develop a proposal based on your assessments of need, and your interests and preferences, then present that to OPWDD for funding.

We'll engage in a person-centered planning process and identify a circle of support for you (related and unrelated, paid and unpaid people who care about you and have insight about your support needs, safeguards, and things you want to do in life). With your Circle and your MSC, I'll help you or your family to develop that proposal, find staff, and get them on payroll with the Fiscal Agency who will pay approved payroll and expenses.

It's not simple (hence my role as consultant) and it does require a fair amount of work from you or your family and circle. And it doesn't free you entirely from following regulations. But self-direction offers you an alternative to traditional agency services with greater control and complete focus on you instead of a larger organization providing a service to you.


Wednesday, November 19, 2014

PLAN Institute Releases 2014 Edition of Safe & Secure E-Book

Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network is a Canadian not-for-profit providing training and resources for families of persons requiring support. Accordingly, some of the regulatory and policy statements in their materials are Canada-specific, but in terms of thoughtfully addressing the emotional and social realities of caring and planning for the future of a person who will require care when a parent is gone. Safe & Secure helps you conceptualize a process for future planning that is not locked into administrative hurdles like an 18th birthday and considering guardianship, or transition to adult living at age 21, but in language that both respects the citizenship of folks who require care and the anxiety of those who provide it.

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