Looking for state services for an individual with a developmental disability? Chances are, a crisis may be the only way you’ll get them anytime soon.

Nearly every state has a waiting list, often times thousands of people and several years long. And in all too many cases, services come only when a person is in “crisis.” That’s because emergency situations — like if the person’s caregiver becomes ill or dies — mean the individual skips to the top of the waiting list.

A recently released report indicates that in Nebraska alone it would cost an additional $31.3 million to provide for the 2600 state residents on the waiting list. But as the families of these individuals wait, some are leaning toward desperate measures. One family, for example, abandoned their daughter at an area hospital essentially creating a crisis and forcing her to the top of the list, reports the Lincoln Journal Star.

Meanwhile in New Jersey more than 4,600 individuals are on a waiting list for community housing, like group homes. And progress is slow. One man who has been on the list for seven years is still number 1,126. The parents of these independence-hungry adults are fearful that the only way their children will get housing is if they get sick or die, reports The Star-Ledger. To read more click here.

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