Thousands of Nebraskans on Developmental Disability wait list

Over 2,332 Nebraskans are on the Developmental Disabilities wait list.

“It’s a big fear for us,” Angela Gleasin said. “If he graduates high school and this isn’t available and he doesn’t have services yet, what’s going to happen is I am going to be sitting at home with my son.”

Gleasin has a 7-year-old son with autism and has been on the wait list for two years now, getting the support and help she needs has not been easy.

Nebraska has two waiver’s that the state funds, they are called Developmental Disability and Aged and Disabled.

“Are we going to go and pay $120,000 a year or are we going to lose our kid,” The Arc of Nebraska, Edison McDonald.

This is a question that Nebraska families have had to talk about with McDonald.

He works with a non profit called The Arc of Nebraska, which has been advocating for those with disabilities and their families for over 60 years.

“The ultimate goal is to make sure no family is ever struggling, that my phone doesn’t ring that much, doesn’t ring at eleven at night with a family that’s calling because they don’t know what to do to help take care of and keep their kid,” McDonald said.

Gleasin and her family have thought about moving to another state so her son is able to access those services, get a job and live a good life within the community.

“If that support is not here, I don’t know if my son will be able to do that,” Gleasin said.

Currently, there is an active legislative resolution and it’s investigating the waiting list along with other issues.

The average cost for a Nebraskan with a disability could be hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Gleasin said she is fortunate that her husband has a job which covers a lot of her son’s therapy but doesn’t know what the future will hold.

“It’s hard if you don’t have a child with a disability, you don’t really know what goes on in the daily activities and depending on the disability that the child has it really varies what they are capable of and what the future possibly looks like for them,” Gleasin said.

Even though Gleasin’s son is only 7 years old, she says she knew signing up to be on the list right away was the best option because who knows how long it will take.

To learn more about The Arc of Nebraska, click here.