PDD Pilot Program Will Hopefully Provide Autism Therepy in 2007
Last year the South Carolina legislature funded a Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) pilot program with $3 million (which will be matched by federal Medicaid funds). While a far cry from what is needed, this program will hopefully provide a number of South Carolina children suffering from an Autism Spectrum Disorder with the opportunity to receive meaningful therapy.
The PDD pilot program will be run by the South Carolina Department of Disabilities and Special Needs (DDSN). DDSN has worked with a number of state agencies and other interested parties over the last few months to develop the program. DDSN's first hurdle is to obtain the federal approval at to how the money will be spent. Several weeks ago DDSN held a public meeting to detail the proposed program.
Here are a few highlights from that meeting:
- $3 million has been appropriated to DDSN (to be matched by federal money)
- the PDD program is a designated Medicaid pilot project for children diagnosed with a PDD by age 8
- the program targets the youngest ages feasible for treatment effectiveness
- the treatment cannot exceed 3 years
- the program will fund no more than $50,000 per year for treatment
- findings will be reported to the General Assembly by June 30, 2007
By December DDSN will announce the application process for families who might be interested. The DDSN will assess individuals to determine if they meet the Medicaid medical criteria, and the Department of Health and Human Services will determine financial eligibility.
This legislation (the text of which is presented below) is the result of the efforts of a group of parents known as the Ryan's Law Gang. The legislation they had hoped to pass would have required that all insurers in the state provide coverage for all autism spectrum disorders. Those efforts unfortunately failed, but the PDD pilot program will at least make it possible for some families to access services that were previously inaccessible.
With over 2700 cases of autism in South Carolina and with the number of children diagnosed growing exponentially, we are going to have to find a way to make crucial services available to these children. When all is said and done, the DDSN believes the pilot program might serve 100 children. The pilot program is a start but only a start.
Statute appropriating the money for the PDD Pilot Program
“The three million dollars appropriated to the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs, as the agency authorized to treat autistic disorder, shall be designated for a Medicaid pilot project to treat children who have been diagnosed by eight years of age with a pervasive developmental disorder. The pilot project must target the youngest ages feasible for treatment effectiveness, treatment of each individual child shall not exceed three years without a special exception as defined in the waiver, and reimbursement for each individual participant may not exceed $50,000 per year. The Department of Disabilities and Special Needs and the Department of Health and Human Services will determine the areas of the State with the greatest need and availability of providers. Children participating in the pilot project will be selected based upon an application system developed in compliance with the Medicaid waiver. Treatment will be provided as authorized and prescribed by the department according to the degree of developmental disability. In authorizing and prescribing treatment the department may award grants or negotiate and contract with public and private entities to implement intervention programs for children who have been diagnosed with a pervasive developmental disorder. “Pervasive developmental disorder” means a neurological condition, including autistic disorder and Asperger’s syndrome, as defined in the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association. By June 30, 2007, the department shall report to the General Assembly and the Governor on the developmental progress of the children participating in the pilot project. This provision does not establish or authorize the creation of an entitlement program or benefit.”
