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Eligibility

Eligibility Information for
Developmental Disability Services

What is a County Board?

County Boards of Developmental Disabilities (often referred to as “County Boards”) were created by the Ohio legislature in 1967 to meet the needs of people with developmental disabilities. There is one County Board of Developmental Disabilities in every county in Ohio. County Boards are mandated by Ohio law to coordinate services and funding for people with developmental disabilities who meet state criteria for eligibility.

Why might I need County Board Eligibility?

For children and adults ages 3 and above, if determined eligible, you will be assigned a Service and Support Administrator (SSA) to help find services to meet your needs and goals. Your needs could be met in many ways, and the county board SSA will help you understand what is available to you and connect you to the supports.

Families with children under the age of 3 with concerns about their child’s development should seek eligibility for our Early Intervention services by visiting https://www.miamicountydd.org/early-intervention or by calling 937-440-3000.

Benefits of having an SSA

  • Service coordination is personalized to each person served.
  • SAs help the person and their family determine what is important to and for them
  • SSAs support families at IEP (Individualized Education Plan) or other school meetings, if asked.
  • SSAs identify and connect people and their families to community resources.
  • SSAs collaborate with schools and other agencies to support the person and family.

Understanding Eligibility

Many people with developmental disabilities need support for their daily needs, to engage in their communities and to achieve their vision of a good life. People with developmental disabilities may be eligible for many different services in Ohio. This document will help you understand the basics of how eligibility is determined for services through County Boards of Developmental Disabilities. As outlined in more detail through Ohio Administrative Code, a person must have more than just a developmental disability diagnosis to be eligible for services through a County Board of Developmental Disabilities. To be eligible for services, a person must also meet both of the following criteria:
  • A person must have a developmental disability that presents or manifests before the age of 22 and is likely to continue throughout the person’s life.
  • A person must meet eligibility criteria for functional limitations, and these are determined through an assessment conducted by the county board. For children age 6-15, this assessment is called the Children’s Ohio Eligibility Determination Instrument or “COEDI.” For people aged 16 and older, this assessment is called the Ohio Eligibility Determination Instrument, or “OEDI.” The COEDI and OEDI are screening instruments developed by the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities and are used to determine if an individual has substantial functional limitations in the major life areas.

What is a Developmental Disability?

A Developmental Disability is defined as a severe and chronic disability that is likely to last a person's lifetime, was developed before the age of 22, and is due to "a mental or physical impairment or a combination of mental and physical impairments".

Documentation Required to Confirm a Developmental Disability

Miami County Board of Developmental Disabilities is required to have documentation to show that an individual has been diagnosed with a developmental disability prior to age 22, the disability is attributable to a physical or mental condition other than a sole diagnosed mental health condition and defined as a severe, chronic disability that is likely to continue indefinitely. Developmental disability diagnosis documentation should include:
  • Detailed examination
  • Formal assessment tools
  • Testing instruments
  • Conclusive testing appropriate to confirm a qualifying diagnosis that causes significant functional limitations that are likely to continue indefinitely

The diagnosis must be made by a doctor or qualified professional who is specially trained and licensed to examine patients, conduct or refer for diagnostic testing, diagnose health conditions, treat illnesses, diseases, and conditions and prescribe as applicable to the diagnosis. Diagnoses do not need to be recent, nor does the documentation. However, in the case of an old diagnosis of developmental or intellectual disability, Miami County Board of Developmental Disabilities may need to inquire further to determine the accuracy of that diagnosis and whether more current information disputes the diagnosis. If so, a new evaluation may be requested. The applicant is not required to have any degree of intellectual disability to be considered eligible for County Board services.

Terms or labels used by school districts in an Individual Education Plan (IEP) or Evaluation Team Report (ETR) under the auspices of the Ohio Department of Education for classifying educational placement(s) when presented alone are not sufficient to serve as evidence of a qualifying disability or the absences of a qualifying disability for the purposes of proceeding with eligibility determination. Miami County Board of Developmental Disabilities may be able to use the ETR as documentation of disability, if the information contained it in meets the standards set forth in the Ohio rule.

Examples of Diagnoses

Intellectual Disability (Intellectual Developmental Disorder, IDD)

A full psychological evaluation completed prior to age 22. The evaluation must include IQ testing and adaptive behavior testing with a composite score, be completed by or under the supervision of a qualified diagnostician, incorporate clinically appropriate assessment tools related to the diagnosis, demonstrate that diagnostic criteria were met and include a diagnosis and demonstrate that a thorough differential diagnosis was completed prior to evidence that the presenting concerns are not better accounted for by another disorder

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

ASD presents with persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts with restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities, with or without accompanying intellectual impairment, or with or without accompanying language impairment. A school diagnosis of Autism is not a clinical diagnosis and does not apply in this situation. To document ASD, the documentation should include the instrument used for the diagnosis, and show the following:

  • What persistent deficits the individual has in each of three areas of social communication and interaction plus at least two of four types of restricted, repetitive behaviors. 
  • What the individual’s current severity is. Severity is described in 3 levels: Level 3 – requires very substantial support, Level 2 – Requires substantial support, and Level 1 – requires support. 
  • And specify if any of the following are present: with or without accompanying intellectual impairment, with or without accompanying language impairment.

Physical or Medical Developmental Disability

Physical or medical developmental disabilities could be genetic and chromosomal abnormalities, cerebral palsy, fetal alcohol syndrome or other developmental delays. These types of developmental disabilities differ from intellectual disability in that they should be evaluated and diagnosed by a qualified medical doctor or specialist.

Speech-Language Disorder

A speech-language disorder could include diagnoses of aphasia, dysphasia, dysfluency, expressive language disorder, mixed receptive expressive language disorder, phonological disorder, and stuttering. These diagnoses must be completed by a qualified diagnostician such as a speech therapist or speech and language pathologist. The documentation should include the assessment tools and demonstrate that diagnostic criteria were met.

Hearing Impairment

A hearing impairment could include diagnoses that results in a pure tone hearing loss according to American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Guidelines, a history of chronic medical problems resulting in fluctuating hearing. These diagnoses must be completed by or under the supervision of a qualified diagnostician. The documentation should include the auditory evaluation and the clinically appropriate assessment tools related to the diagnosis and demonstrate that diagnostic criteria were met.

Visual Impairment

A visual impairment includes a diagnosis of a visual acuity of 20/70 or poorer with correction, or a physical eye condition that affects visual functioning where special services are required. These diagnoses must be completed by a qualified diagnostician. The documentation should include an optical evaluation with clinically appropriate assessment tools related to the diagnosis and demonstrate that diagnostic criteria were met.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity–impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development. ADHD must be diagnosed by a psychologist or doctor qualified to diagnose ADHD. The documentation should include a recent, comprehensive diagnostic evaluation that includes testing specific to ADHD, a description of the current ADHD symptoms that have been present for at least the previous six months, academic records, developmental history, family history and medical history showing significant impairment over time, beginning in childhood or early adolescence, which shows symptoms present in two or more settings such as home and school, all the person’s diagnoses and all current medications and an explanation of why the symptoms attributed to ADHD could not be a result of the person’s cooccurring diagnoses.

Where do I start?

  • Families with children under the age of 3 with concerns about their child’s development should seek eligibility for our Early Intervention services by visiting www.miamicountydd.org/early-intervention or by calling 937-440-3000.
  • For ages 3 and up, please call the Intake and Eligibility Coordinator at 937-440-3080.
  • Testing instruments
  • Provide documentation of a developmental disability: For ages 3 to 5, this is the Preschool Evaluation Team Report (ETR). For age 5 and up, this is documentation of a developmental disability. (see above for requirements.>
  • The individual will be notified by the Miami County Board of Developmental Disabilities of the outcome of the assessment and eligibility status.

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