On Tuesday, Disability Rights Nebraska and the Nebraska Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities released a study with Scioto Analysis on Nebraska’s waiting list for developmental disability services.
Citizens with disabilities in Nebraska are entitled to receive residential, habilitation, and vocational services from the state, but the state does not always provide these services at the time of need for people with disabilities. Because of these delays, the average Nebraskan with disabilities waits nearly seven years to receive services from the state necessary for everyday functioning.
“Nebraska has a strong history of investing in educational, medical and related services and supports for children and youth with disabilities from date of diagnosis through age twenty-one,” said Disability Rights Nebraska Chief Executive Officer Eric Evans, Ph.D. “Despite this commitment to young Nebraskans with intellectual/developmental disabilities, today over 2,300 children, youth and adults are waiting for essential services beyond their need date.”
The study found that the state has made strides on developmental disabilities, but fell short of legislative workgroup recommendations for developmental disability funding by about $33 million over the past ten years, causing the backlog.
“If the state had not had this shortfall in spending, this wait list would not exist,” said Scioto Analysis Principal and study author Rob Moore.
This study will inform Disability Rights Nebraska and the Nebraska Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities’s efforts to reduce the waiting list and improve access to services for people with developmental disabilities in the state of Nebraska.