The Brief
- Florida provides around 35,000 residents with developmental disabilities with services, but more than 20,000 others have been stuck on a wait list for years.
- In 2025, the state opened a voluntary, pilot program for home-based services in parts of the state.
- Florida lawmakers have an interest in expanding it to everyone on the wait list.
TAMPA, Fla. – Throughout Florida, people with severe disabilities are suffering without the home-based services they are eligible to receive. Florida’s government provides services to around 35,000 residents living at home with developmental disabilities, but more than 20,000 others have been stuck on a wait list for years.
Big picture view:
Florida gives people with severe developmental disabilities a choice: choose an institutional setting and be separated from their loved ones or stay with their families and get them services they need at home. Many choose the home option, which is cheaper and intended to save state taxpayers. However, many who choose this option get caught in a government backlog and spend years waiting for the support. …