Shannon Wolfe gets emotional talking about her adult son, Ian.
Ian, 28, is autistic and his behavior can sometimes become extreme. It’s made finding day support programs in Suffolk difficult. Ian’s been discharged from programs before because of his behavior, sometimes leaving Wolfe and her husband, Bennie, little choice but to leave Ian home while they work.
Shannon Wolfe said doing so strained Ian’s mental health.
Helping families like the Wolfes inspired Tilfany Brown to open Fresh Start Day Support downtown.
“I don't care what type of behaviors you had or what stopped you from being in other day supports,” she said. “I’m going to get to know you personally and we’re going to see what we can put in place to help you stay out in the community.”
Unlike a center-based program, which provides indoor activities and workshops for those with more sensory challenges, Fresh Start clients spend most of their time in the community getting counseling, going on field trips, volunteering, and doing other activities.
Brown said it’s an opportunity for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities to build social-emotional skills and connect with peers while promoting their emotional well-being, and an opportunity to give peace of mind to their parents.
“They need services in place to help individuals out while they’re at work so they don’t have to worry about everything,” Brown said.
Fresh Start opened in early April and had already filled 10 of its 20 spots on the day of its ribbon cutting. This is a sign of the backlog in services in Virginia.
The state covers the cost through Medicaid waivers of support services for qualifying people. But the number of waiver slots is dependent on the funding the General Assembly approves each year.
Tonya Milling is president of The Arc of Virginia, a statewide advocacy and public policy organization for people with developmental disabilities. She said that while about 17,000 people have received waiver slots, another 15,000 are on the waiting list.
Milling said the result is “people not getting services” and families feeling overburdened.
“It has a big ripple effect on communities and on families,” she said. “You may have to quit work to provide care or provide support if they’re part of this backlog.”
Receiving the waiver, however, doesn’t mean the local network of providers has the capacity to accept a client. People can also lose their waiver slots if they don’t use them, making it important for people to find a provider within six months, though the state does offer extensions for people having trouble finding providers.
Milling said it means every new provider, such as Fresh Start, is a small but important step to meet the needs of families and clients.
The Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services also just began a rate study that could result in recommending to bump the rate each waiver pays providers. Milling said jobs often pay about $13 per hour, contributing to high turnover and vacancy rates which make it difficult for groups to take in clients.
For Brown, though, the immediate goal is to build momentum and serve Suffolk to the best of her ability. While she might expand with local demand, her focus is now on the clients under her care.
“At the end of day, I want to make sure that I'm able to help you,” Brown said. “And if I can't help you, then I want to see who I can reach out to – if it’s the case managers that they have, or if it's just their doctors – what can we put in place to help this individual out?”
