An effort to remove people off the Developmental Disability waiver waiting list by using savings from other parts of the program may take longer than previously thought.
So Governor Matt Mead is proposing putting 20 million dollars in the program. Currently there are about 600 people hoping to get funding to help care for a family member with a brain injury or other disability.
The state is reviewing the current system to see if money is being used efficiently. If not, they’d like to use those extra funds to remove people off the waiting list. Mead wants to continue with that effort, but he’s proposing a one-time infusion of state and federal money to reduce the waiting list.
“I do think you have to put money into the system. Now if the DD waiver redesign works as we think it will be, we know that we are going to recognize savings from people who are getting benefits they don’t need and in fact some don’t even want. But it’s hard to calculate what those savings will be.”
Mead says it’s likely that a combination of savings and state money will always be needed for the state to provide adequate services for the D-D population.
