Tallahassee, FL: Family members are wondering how to apply after Gov. DeSantis’s big news about funding for the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD).
Monday, the governor said that APD would get $2.2 billion from this year’s state budget. The governor called this a record-high investment in services for people with developmental disabilities.
The applicants must all have a cognitive disability that started before they turned 18 and is likely to last forever, according to APD. Candidates must be at least 3 years old.
Section 393.063 (11), Florida Statutes, says that a developmental disability is a disease or syndrome that is caused by intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, severe forms of autism, spina bifida, Down syndrome, Phelan-McDermid syndrome, or Prader-Willi syndrome.
You may also be able to help kids between the ages of three and five who are at a high risk for a developmental disorder.
Applicants can only get services if they live in Florida. See section 222.17 of the Florida Statutes for information on how to set up a domicile.
According to APD, a Florida driver’s license or ID card, a Florida voter registration card, a Florida court-filed declaration of domicile, a homestead exemption filing, a mortgage or lease agreement, or job or school records can all be used as proof of residence.
In addition, ADP said that letting applicants include proof of eligibility will speed up the process of reviewing applicants’ eligibility.
APD will first ask for proof that the person has a developmental delay, like medical records, school records, or test results.
For services from the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, like the iBudget Home and Community-Based Services Waiver or placement in an intermediate care facility for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities (ICF/IID), you must mail or deliver an application to the APD office in your area. Sending things by fax will require a signature on the source document.
Someone who is a parent or court-appointed guardian of a minor child, an adult who is legally able to do so, or a legal agent can apply for services.
People under 18 must have a legal representative sign the application for APD programs on their behalf. Applicants must sign the application and all related paperwork if they are 18 years or older, unless a court has ruled them legally unable to do so or they have asked someone else to do so (in writing), according to APD.
An adult who can’t sign can write their name on the line for signatures. The mark must be named and proven to be “his/her mark.” If the adult is unable to sign papers, the legal representative named in a court order can do so on their behalf.
Applicants who are in a crisis should call the regional office for their county of the Agency for Persons with Disabilities. This includes applicants who are homeless, exhibit behaviors that put themselves or others in great danger, or have a caregiver who is under a lot of stress and can’t take care of their health and safety anymore.
The Florida’s Early Steps Program, which is part of the Department of Health, helps kids younger than 3 who are significantly behind in their development or who have a disease that is likely to cause later development.
