When someone calls us looking for help funding their assistive technology (AT), one of the first things we ask is whether they are enrolled in a waiver – that is, one of Pennsylvania’s Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waivers. For many people with disabilities, waivers are a major source of funding for AT.
But waivers have their limitations. Not everyone with a disability qualifies for a waiver. In fact, children with a physical disability (where intellectual disability is not a primary diagnosis) are not eligible for waiver services until they reach the age of 18.
Note: Learn more about waiver funding for AT in Chapter 4 of our book,
Funding Your Assistive Technology. Refer to page 20 for a table comparing Pennsylvania's waiver programs, including age of eligibility.
A Major Gap in Public Funding for AT for Children with Physical Disabilities
This means that public funding for AT is limited for kids with such disabilities as cerebral palsy, spinal muscular atrophy, muscular dystrophy, and others, as well as acquired physical disabilities like a spinal cord injury.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up some of the top public and private funding resources for assistive technology for kids under 18 with physical disabilities – and provided a few examples of the AT these resources may cover.
