To apply for I/DD waiver the family or individual must complete the WEST VIRGINIA I/DD WAIVER APPLICATION and send it to APS Health Care as noted on the application.
The family will be contacted by APS within five business days.
APS will provide a list of approved psychiatrists from which the family chooses and makes an appointment for the evaluation. Once the appointment is made, the family notifies APS of the choice and appointment day. It is important for the family to bring documentation of services the individual received in school (copies of last 2 IEP’s and evaluations completed by the school as well as any information from OT, PT or Speech services provided) in order to establish that the condition developed was before the age of 21 and to show need for an ongoing program.
When meeting with the psychiatrist completing the evaluation, please remember that all questions asked are as if the individual was independent and had to do things totally on their own without any assistance or support.
For example, the question might be “Does he/she take their medications on a regular basis?” A caretaker might want to answer “yes” to this question because when the caretaker gives them the medications the individual takes them and swallows them or he/she can take them from a pill box that is filled by the caretaker.
This is not what the question is asking- The question is can he/she take the medications totally by themselves without help – meaning, can they tell time and know it is time to take the medications? Can they open the pills and get the right number of medications out – and take them the right way? Do they know what they are taking and why? The question in this context would get a “No” for an answer.
The evaluation is not about the successes of your loved one, though there are many. It is about determining if services are needed. If support (family, community, volunteer) is already there to meet an individual’s needs why would the state pay for things that the individual is already receiving for free and therefore does not need them?
Please apply as soon as possible for waiver assistance as the wait list for services is four years long.