Children and adults who are eligible for OPWDD services and enrolled in the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Waiver can choose to self-direct their services.  Self-direction gives individuals with disabilities flexibility to choose the mix of supports and services that are right for them. The individual (or their parent/advocate) can choose their services, the staff, and organizations that provide them, and a schedule that works best for them.  Self-direction empowers people to design supports based on their unique strengths and needs. It gives them more control over the funding used to purchase their services.

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Individuals in self-direction can choose if they want an agency to help them self-direct (agency-supported self-direction) or if they’d like to manage their own budget and staff with help from a Fiscal Intermediary and Support Broker (Self-Direction with Budget and Employer Authority). Hawthorne Foundation Inc. is an approved Fiscal Intermediary and can help individuals and their families/advocates manage self-direction budgets/staff.

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