Waiver Question

[Guest guest]

Charlotte,

I have a question on the child and adult waivers along with the PUNS process. I

am a divorced mom trying to make all ends meet and find that at times it is all

so overwhelming. Last August my son was funded for a child waiver. In December

my son turned 18. On January 4th I met with our PAS agency and requested that my

son be changed to an adult waiver as it would change some of the rules for

hiring and what the moneys could be spent on. At this meeting I found out that

we can no longer apply for a waiver. We now complete the PUNS and wait for the

state to invite us to apply for funding. Once we apply this will more than

likely be our one and only opportunity to recieve funding so I was told to go

for my ultimate wish and not just my interim wish. So I have asked that my son's

needs be revised to 24 hour CILA as that is ultimately what my wish is for him.

I have found though since January that I need to have this happen sooner than

anticipated as he is up all night and wanders out o

f the house or damages items in the home we rent. So I spend many nights up with

him and then head off to work at 6:00am. I return home at 6:30 pm having very

little energy to really work on anything at all with him. On top of that I am

currently trying to get a parttime job so that I can cover the costs of a 60

hour a week summer PSW. With this history my questions are:

1. Can the child waiver be converted to an adult waiver or do we need to wait

for an invite to apply?

2. If we are invited to apply is this our one and only chance?

3. Is there a way to roll over funding and save for months when you have a need

for higher amounts?

4. If my current situation has become so difficult to deal that my health and

job are threatened due to lack of sleep and increased stress; is there a way to

increase your chance of being invited to apply? What is considered a crisis? (I

think I may be there?)

Thanks,

mar