Read Mr. Farley's bioLegal Specialties for Children and Adults with Disabilities and Their Families
Click on any of the substantive legal specialties below to learn more.
Ongoing Litigation Regarding Children's Services
During the last eight years, ongoing litigation against the State of Illinois has resulted in many families receiving funding for day programming, in-home supports, and residential services for children with developmental disabilities, and important legal issues in the State are still being litigated. If you have been told that your son or daughter does not qualify for funding, please contact Attorney Robert H. Farley, Jr. to determine whether current litigation may effect your situation, or if you have a basis for a legal claim against the state.
Click here to view video of Mr. Farley's presentation, Obtaining Funding or Services for Children & Adults with DD in the State of Illinois.
Securing Services for Children with Developmental Disabilities
In addition to special education services, children with developmental disabilities may also be entitled to funding for in-home supports and services, or for residential services — Community Integrated Living Arrangement (CILA) — even if the state does not consider your child's situation an emergency or priority. Funding denials have been challenged and services successfully secured for individuals even when parents were initially told that their children were not "eligible" or did not meet waiting list criteria.
The State of Illinois Children's Program for Persons with Developmental Disabilities
In July 2007, the State of Illinois initiated a new program for individuals with developmental disabilities aged 3 to 22 to provide services and supports to families over and above those the individual receives in special education, without regard to their income or financial status.
A child in this program can receive approximately $1,540 per month for supports and services, including personal support — someone at least 18 years of age, who can watch or assist in the care of your child. While parents cannot be paid by this program to take care of their own child, an adult brother or sister, relative, or grandparent could.
Example: the family of an autistic child may use the funding from the Children's Program for a fence installed in the backyard to prevent their child from running away.
Funding in this program can be used to pay for occupational, physical, and behavioral therapy. Funding in the amount of $15,000, over and above the monthly subsidy of $1,540, can be used for assistive technology, adaptive equipment, vehicle modifications, communications devices, and home accessibility modifications.
Transitioning to Adult Services
As children with disabilities become adults and establish more independence, parents must take an active role in securing appropriate support service and/or housing options for their children. Since November 1, 2004, the State of Illinois has maintained a database — the Prioritization of Urgency of Need for Services, or PUNS — that documents the unmet needs of Illinois residents with developmental disabilities.
In order to receive funding for services an individual must be listed on the PUNS waiting list. Contact your local Independent Service Coordination Agency to be placed on the list.
Click here to learn more about adult services.
Click here to learn more about the Illinois PUNS waiting list.
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