Medicaid Waivers provide a variety of supports and services for children and adults with developmental disabilitiesThe Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a person with a disability as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity.  This includes people who have a record of such an impairment, even if they do not currently have a disability.  It also includes people who do not have a disability but are regarded as having a disability.  The ADA also makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person based on that person’s association with a person with a disability. and their families who need long-term support systems to live successfully in the community rather than in institutional settings. Unlike general Medicaid, household income is not considered. As a Waiver, only the income/assets of the person seeking eligibility are reviewed.

Virginia Medicaid offers several different Waivers that supply various supports: Commonwealth Coordinated Care (CCC Plus), Community Living (CL)One of the three types of developmental disability (DD) Medicaid waivers in Virginia, the Community Living (CL) Waiver is aimed for the minority of our population who have extremely high medical, behavioral, or support needs and provides 24/7 active services., and Family and Individual Supports (FIS)One of the three types of developmental disability (DD) Medicaid waivers in Virginia, the Family and Individual Supports (FIS) Waiver is the waiver for the majority of people – those who need supports for between a few hours and most hours of the day, including overnight monitoring in some cases.. Within these waivers, services such as Personal Care, Respite CareShort-term care for a child or adult that allows the primary caregiver relief., and Companion CareA waiver-paid service focused on presence of a caregiver for safety, but less on hands on caregiving. are available.