1. A. The mission of this waiver is to create options and provide meaningful opportunities that enhance the lives of individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities through employment and day service supports in the community. The goals of the supports waiver are as follows:

   1. 1. promote independence for beneficiaries with a developmental disability who are aged 18 years or older while ensuring health and safety through a system of beneficiary safeguards;
   2. 2. provide an alternative to institutionalization and costly comprehensive services through the provision of an array of services and supports that promote community inclusion and independence by enhancing and not replacing existing informal networks; and
   3. 3. increase high school to community transition resources by offering supports and services to those 18 years and older.

2. B. Allocation of Waiver Opportunities. The Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities (OCDD) maintains the developmental disabilities request for services registry (DDRSR), hereafter referred to as “the registry,” which identifies persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities who are found eligible for developmental disabilities services using standardized tools, and who request waiver services.

   1. 1. Services are accessed through a single point of entry in the local governing entity (LGE). When criteria are met, individuals’ names are placed on the registry and a screening of urgency of need (SUN) is completed.
   2. 2. Individuals determined to have current unmet needs as defined as a SUN score of urgent [three] or emergent [four] are offered a waiver opportunity.
   3. 3. The registry is arranged by the urgency of need and date of application for developmentally disabled (DD) waiver services.
   4. 4. OCDD waiver opportunities shall be offered based on the following priority groups:

   5. a. Individuals living at publicly operated intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled (ICF/IIDs) or who lived at a publically operated ICF/IID when it was transitioned to a private ICF/IID through a cooperative endeavor agreement (CEA facility), or their alternates. Alternates are defined as individuals living in a private ICF/IID who will give up the private ICF/IID bed to an individual living at a publicly operated ICF/IID or to an individual who was living in a publicly operated ICF/IID when it was transitioned to a private ICF/IID through a cooperative endeavor agreement. Individuals requesting to transition from a publicly operated ICF/IID are awarded a slot when one is requested, and their health and safety can be assured in an OCDD waiver. This also applies to individuals who were residing in a publicly operated facility at the time the facility was privatized and became a CEA facility.

      1. b. Individuals on the registry who have a current unmet need as defined by a SUN score of urgent [three] or emergent [four] and the earliest registry date shall be notified in writing when a funded OCDD waiver opportunity is available and a waiver offer is available.

Authority Note

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 36:254 and Title XIX of the Social Security Act.

Historical Note

HISTORICAL NOTE: Promulgated by the Department of Health and Hospitals, Office of the Secretary, Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities, LR 32:1604 (September 2006), amended LR 40:2583 (December 2014), amended by the Department of Health, Bureau of Health Services Financing and the Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities, LR 43:2531 (December 2017), LR 48:1574 (June 2022), LR 50:211 (February 2024).