Developmental Services

The primary funding source for adults with developmental disabilities is home and community-based services (HCBS) funded under the Global Commitment to Health Medicaid Waiver. HCBS services are tailored to the individual's specific needs and based on an individualized budget and person-centered plan.

Community Supports assist individuals in developing skills and social connections and may include teaching and assistance in daily living, support to participate in community activities, and building and sustaining healthy personal, family and community relationships.

• Supported Employment - Enabling transition-age youth and adults with disabilities to access and succeed in employment of their choosing.
• Service Coordination - Assisting individuals in coordinating and gaining access to their personalized services and supports.

Staffed Homes are specialized residences for one or two individuals who require significant support to help manage their emotional, behavioral and medical needs. Staffed Homes provide individualized supports by trained agency staff 24 hours per day.

Residential Care Homes/Therapeutic Community Residences are state-licensed group living arrangements designed to meet the needs of people who cannot live independently and often require a higher level of care and support than can typically be provided through other home support options.

Despite the group setting, services meet each individual’s specific needs. They may include help managing medical issues, emotional and behavioral supports, and assistance with daily activities such as eating, walking, personal hygiene and dressing. Residential Care Homes and Therapeutic Community Residences provide nursing oversight and, under certain conditions, may be able to provide a nursing home level of care.

• South Bay Home: South Bay is a four-bed licensed Residential Care Home that supports residents with functional and medical needs who may also require support to address significant maladaptive behaviors.

• Kingdom Way: The Kingdom Way Home is a six-bed, fully accessible licensed Residential Care Home in Newport. The home supports co-ed residents with significant functional and medical support needs.

• Mountain View: Mountain View will be a therapeutic community residence, licensed to provide support for up to five residents with significant psycho-social and behavioral support needs.

• Cedar Lane: Cedar Lane is a four-bed licensed Residential Care Home that supports female residents with significant functional and medical needs, with a focus on dementia and memory care.

• Parkway: Parkway is a four-bed licensed Residential Care Home supporting male residents with significant functional, medical and behavioral needs.

Adult Family Care is a 24-hour Home and Community-Based Service (HCBS) shared living option for Vermont’s Long-Term Care Medicaid Choices for Care (CFC) Program. AFC is a combination of housing and long-term service and supports where individuals live full-time in a single-family residential home and receive hands-on care from the home’s resident. This option is available through CFC to participants in the highest of the high-needs groups. Adult Family Care provides person-centered supports in a home environment that is safe, family-oriented, and designed to support autonomy and maximize independence and dignity for up to two individuals enrolled in Choices for Care. An authorized agency must contract with each home for the home provider to receive a “Difficulty of Care Payment” (tax-free stipend).

Flexible Family Funding for eligible families of adults and children with developmental disabilities helps pay for any legal goods or activity that the family chooses, such as respite, assistive technology, home modification, individual and household needs or recreational activities. These income-based funds, determined by a sliding scale, are used at the family's discretion.

The Bridge Program supports families of children and young adults under age 22 with intellectual and developmental disabilities to access and coordinate needed medical, educational, social or other services. The program can also help families coordinate multiple community-based services and develop a coordinated plan to address needs.