Personal Assistant Services (PAS)
Personal Assistance sometimes called attendant care, is help with a variety of activities, such as getting out of bed, bathing, or meal preparation, et al. Not having this basic help often prevents people from living independently, working or being an active part of the community.
The ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia, Inc. (ECNV) has a Personal Assistance Services (PAS) Program which provides the following services:
- Personal Assistant Services (PAS) Registry
- Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS) PAS Program
- Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS)/ Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) PAS Program
- Elderly and Disabled with Consumer Direction (EDCD) waiver program
- Money Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration project
- Individual and Family Developmental Disabilities Support Waiver (DD waiver) Program
- Contact Information
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Personal Assistant Services (PAS) Registry
ECNV maintains a PAS registry, or list of individuals who are available to provide personal assistance. The registry offers consumers a good resource for finding providers, many of whom have home health care training and are willing to work at a mutually agreeable rate that can be lower than prevailing rates charged by home care agencies. The registry, which is updated on a regular basis, may be obtained by request from the PAS Coordinator. Please contact Ruchika Lalwani at ruchikal@ecnv.org for further information about PAS registry.
Assistants listed in the registry have completed an application that provides information about their experience and qualifications including personal references. The applicants are then required to attend a training workshop orienting them to the philosophy of consumer-directed services before being added to the registry. The applications are kept on file for use by consumers who are recruiting new assistants.
ECNV does not conduct background or reference checks but encourages consumers to do so before hiring a provider. ECNV does not offer personal assistant management training to consumers.
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Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS) PAS Program
Through the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS), in cooperation with Centers for Independent Living (CIL's) and consumers, the DRS Personal Assistance Services (PAS) Program was developed as a model program. It has successfully kept many Virginians out of nursing homes, on the job and with families. It helps low-income consumers who are not Medicaid-eligible, find and pay for their own personal assistants. The DRS PAS Program offers participants the opportunity to choose, hire, fire, schedule and manage their personal assistants.
The DRS PAS program now has over 200 consumers receiving services statewide. Currently, there is a waiting list due to limited funding for the program.
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Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS)/Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) PAS Program
In conjunction with the DRS PAS Program, active DRS clients seeking employment or participating in school or training may be eligible for funding from the DRS/VR PAS Program. The funding for this program comes from another source and does not have a long waiting list.
*** ECNV provides consumers and families the information and assessment needed to participate in the two DRS programs. Once accepted into these programs, many individuals use ECNV's PAS registry to find their providers.***
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Elderly and Disabled with Consumer Direction (EDCD) waiver program
The EDCD Waiver provides services that help individuals live in their own home/community rather than in a nursing home. It is available to individuals 65 years of age and older AND/OR to individuals of any age who have a disability. Individuals may require assistance with some activities of daily living (ADLs) such as bathing, toileting, dressing, mobility, etc.
Available Services:
- Adult Day Health Care
- Agency- and Consumer-Directed Personal Care
- Agency- and Consumer-Directed Respite Care
- Personal Emergency Response System (PERS)
* Medication Monitoring - For individuals participating in the Money Follows the Person (MFP) project:
* Transition Coordination
* Transition Services
* Environmental Modifications
* Assistive Technology
***ECNV is only certified to provide service facilitation for individuals interested in Consumer-Directed services***
Eligible individuals must have nursing-home level of care needs. To request a screening to see if you meet nursing facility eligibility criteria, contact your local department of social services to schedule a meeting at your home in order for the pre-admission screening team (consists of a social worker and a nurse) to assess your needs. If the applicant is a patient at a hospital, the screening may be done by the hospital staff.
In addition, there are also financial eligibility criteria.
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Money Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration project
Virginia is one of 31 states participating in a five-year project that is administered by the Department of Medical Assistance Services.
MFP is a voluntary project that assists seniors and individuals with disabilities, who are currently living in facilities, to transition back into their communities and receive appropriate long-term services and supports.
Available services:
- Transition Coordination—working with a Transition Coordinator to develop and implement a transition plan that addresses the participant’s needs.
- Transition Services—up-front household expenses for individuals moving from a provider-operated living arrangement to a private residence.
- Environmental Modifications
- Assistive Technology
***ECNV is only certified to work with individuals who will be eligible for the EDCD waiver upon discharge from the facility***
To participate in the MFP project, you must:
- Have lived for at least 6 consecutive months in a nursing facility, an intermediate care facility for individuals with mental retardation/intellectual disabilities (ICF/MR), or a long-stay hospital licensed in Virginia, including periods of hospitalization;
- Be a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia;
- Be Medicaid-eligible for at least one month at the time of discharge;
- Qualify for a Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) OR one of the five following waiver programs:
* Elderly or Disabled with Consumer-Direction Waiver (EDCD waiver)
* Individual and Family Developmental Disabilities Support Waiver (DD waiver)
* HIV/AIDS Waiver (AIDS waiver)
* Mental Retardation/Intellectual Disabilities Waiver (MR/ID waiver)
* Technology Assisted Waiver (TECH waiver); and - Move to a “qualified residence.”
* A “qualified residence” is one of the following:
-- A home that you or your family member owns or leases;
-- An apartment with an individual lease, with lockable entrance and exit, that includes living, sleeping, bathing, and cooking areas over which you or your family has domain and control; or
-- A residence in a community-based residential setting in which no more than 4 unrelated individuals reside.
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Individual and Family Developmental Disabilities Support Waiver (DD waiver) Program
The DD Waiver provides services to individuals 6 years of age and older with a developmental disability, but do NOT have a diagnosis of mental retardation, and who have been determined to require the level of care provided in an ICF/MR.
Available services:
- Assistive Technology
- Agency- or Consumer-Directed Adult Companion Services
- Case Management
- Crisis Stabilization
- Crisis Supervision
- Day Support
- Family and Caregiver Training
- Environmental Modifications
- In-home Residential Support Services
- Agency- or Consumer-Directed Personal Care Attendant Services
- Personal Emergency Response System (PERS)
- Prevocational Services
- Agency- or Consumer-Directed Respite Care
- Skilled Nursing Services
- Supported Employment
- Therapeutic Consultation
- Transition Services (only for those individuals participating in the Money Follows the Person project)
Eligibility is based on 3 factors:
- Diagnostic
- Functional - ICF/MR level of care criteria is determined during the initial screening process
- Financial - Medicaid eligibility is determined by the local Department of Social Services
An individual who is at least 5 years and 9 months may request or seek services through the local Child Development Clinic. Please contact ECNV to obtain a Request for Screening Form to submit to your local Child Development Clinic.
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Contact Information
Form more information on ECNV PAS Registry, please contact Ruchika Lalwani at 703-525-3268 ext. 8000; ruchikal@ecnv.org.
For more information on either the IFDDS (aka DD) or EDCD Waiver programs, please contact Layo Osiyemi at 703-525-3268 ext. 8005; layoo@ecnv.org or Hannah Manila at 703-525-3268 ext. 8010; hannahm@ecnv.org.
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