soon-to-be "parents" of borderline DD adult. help! - Page 2

[germin8]

Thanks RemiJP. Yes, his speech is mostly understandable. But, I can see how he would do poorly understanding, comprehending, and providing the correct & complete answer to questions.

If we requests these tests, (and he does poorly) what do I do with the info? Will this just be a way to see a new/other disability? I am looking forward to his doctor appointment, but am not sure we will get the referrals we want...

You all have been so hopeful. Thank you.

[RemiJP]

I'm not familiar with Idaho services for people with disabilities but if he receives low scores on language tests, that would indicate that he has an expressive/receptive language impairment. If he did not have any traumatic events that caused this as an adult, a doctor would likely conclude that he has a developmental disability based on those test results. From there, it might be easier to get him on Medicaid/SSI/VocRehab. If his doctor seems clueless about how to get a referral to a speech pathologist, maybe try to get a referral to a neurologist, as they are more familiar with disabilities than the average family medicine physician.

[germin8]

Okay. He was already denied disability by SS... so no chance getting that again. They do their own testing. But, we are going w/ plan B and we will try our best to get more specific testing done. Thank you for the advise...much appreciated.

[mamarhu]

Have you received the official SSI denial letter? It includes information on the appeal process. Don't give up - many deserving people are denied on the first try. By appealing the decision immediately, you are entitled to back pay to the original date of application. SSI might be very important for your BIL, as the cost of Assisted Living or a group home is around $3000-5000/month (in my area, depending on level of needs). Medicaid will pay this IF SSI is in place. There are specialized lawyers who do SSI appeals - I would look into finding one in your area if possible. You may be able to provide evaluations and documentation of his current level of functioning (rather than just IQ scores) to support the case. In my area, NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) offers advocates to help families through this precess.

Don't give up! Your BIL is lucky to have you in his corner.

[germin8]

Yes, we did. It's been over 30 days now... and now you are making me re-think this. I just googled and found 70% of applicants are denied. I feel our case is special... in that my BIL never got the help he needed before. So, we are going to try to appeal. I am thinking we need a lawyer but have read that some people appeal w/o a lawyer. we are not sure what we will do... Hmmmm.

Regarding evaluations/documentations: He is now seeing a doctor (at a community hospital) and she will try to get hiim the tests he needs. I don't think we are able to do all these special evaluations within the 30 days we have!  I am stressing out now! :-S

Also, I am about to call and find out his results from the psych eval he had (w/ SS-selected doctor).

[RemiJP]

Disability rights lawyers might be the way to go: http://www.disabilityrightsidaho.org/ Since you may need testing done for an appeal, they can help you get things moving. Appeals I'm familiar with (my state's medicaid) take a very long time. So you probably just need to file for one, they'll set a date, which will probably give you time to get testing done. 

[germin8]

Thanks. We found a Disability Rights advocate for the state of ID... found him thanks to someone I talked to locally from NAMI. I am going to call him to see what he says... and see if we should appeal

I also talked to a free lawyer... and they said I need medical paperwork to prove he has a disability. Makes sense, since we don't have any in our hands. Also, Voc Rehab needs it... so this has been in the works... trying to do it w/ little money as possible.

DH read somewhere that doctors can say you have certain symptoms for a disability... but lawyers can legally say you are disabled. I think that was from a SS site somewhere (I don't have the link). So, we are scrambling getting the paperwork we need. I'm driving out to my BILs to get things going over there. And, I hope SS gives us enough time for all testing.

[germin8]

Disability Rights advocate won't work with us if we are working with the lawyer... so we chose the lawyer. He says we have an intersting case. We are also doing Voc Rehab, & it sounds like Disability Rights people would have pointed us in that direction. Turns out, VR also gets my BIL tested for disability. Our first meeting is Tuesday.

On another note, I learned that our BIL can be helped financially by us in 2 ways. One is to have him as a dependent (covering 51+% of his support) or loan him money (documented personal loan?) that he would have to pay back. Now, it sounds like the former is the best option... but the courts will probably look for the latter and that could get my BIL the help he needs. Oh dear. I could see this turning terribly wrong. I wonder if we can do both. A loan for 49-% of his support? :S

BTW, I got great tips on another post I posted... thanks everyone. I think I will keep you updated... :)