Still Qualifies

Middle Son's DDD caseworker came to my house this morning for his annual re-evaluation of eligibility.  We ran through the questions.

Some questions were about him.  How much assistance does he require for eating, dressing, bathing?  He requires some assistance with those tasks.  Can he handle money?  He has some practice with the process of buying something--take it up to the counter, give them money, get change back.  But he doesn't have any concept of how much change he should get, and he sometimes leaves the change on the counter.  Does he know what to do in an emergency?  No, he does not.  Does he engage in dangerous behaviors? Yes, he wanders off if given the opportunity.  Does he engage in inappropriate but not violent/dangerous behaviors?  Yes, sometimes he takes his clothes of in the middle of the living room.

Some questions were about me.  Does caring for him have an impact on my career and ability to work?  Yes it does.  Does caring for him impact my mental/emotional health?  Yes it does.  Does it impact my physical health?  Yes it does.  What is the financial impact of caring for him on your family?  I spent $45K a year on care-givers to keep him safe while I'm at work.

And finally, could you continue to do what you are doing now in order to care for him for the next two years?  Yes, I can, provided I maintain a sufficient level of income to pay for the caregivers.  If I have a big drop in income for some reason, all bets are off.

The final outcome was, unsurprisingly, that Middle still qualifies for DDD services.