What is CDPAP?

The Consumer Direct Personal Assistance Program, or CDPAP, is a New York Medicaid-funded program that provides services to chronically ill or physically disabled individuals who need help with activities of daily living or require nursing care. The program allows participants to choose their caregiver, allowing them more control over their care.

Doris and Sarah, a mother and daughter, have been using the CDPAP program for many years. Today, they are sharing their story and highlighting the positive impact CDPAP has had on their lives.

Doris and Sarah’s story

I would like to introduce you to my daughter Sarah. She has a beautiful spirit, the biggest heart, a great sense of humor, and a contagious laugh and smile, all mixed in with a bit of sass. Who truly thinks every day of life is awesome. Even with all Sarah goes through in her life she always manages to touch the heart of all she meets, with her beautiful spirit, heart full of love and her joy for life.

Sarah is 41, and was born with CHARGE Syndrome a rare condition with a wide range of severe complex medical needs, which includes a heart defect, legal blindness, osteoporosis diabetes, enduring many surgeries, significant gross and fine motor defects and requires total assistance of with all of her ADL’s. As she ages, her medical needs are becoming even more complex, requiring adding more doctors and doctor appointments.

It was becoming more difficult to work outside of the home. The fear of losing my job was real as I required more time off to meet Sarah’s needs and take her to the increasing amount of doctor appointments.

I reached out to then-Assemblyman Joe Morelle. I shared our story about the ongoing caregiving crisis: Why couldn’t parents of disabled adult children be compensated through the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) for caregiving? He was interested, and the work began with research. I knew other states had this model, but I needed to know how they implemented it. It took us five years working together to pass legislation that allowed parents of disabled adult children with disabilities to be compensated through CDPAP. This was a crucial change for my family and families like ours. It meant that Sarah could stay in her home being cared for by whom she knows best and who knows her best without the added burden of financial strain.

I advocate for because she needs a voice when hers cannot be heard. A hand to hold as we navigate this special needs journey of life and to find those that will help along the way, to do the right thing! To keep her safe and to help her live in a world that doesn’t quite fit into hers. To live a life with dignity just like you and I get to do!

This advocacy requires constant contact with lawmakers, writing letters and op-eds to allow Sarah to live her best life, especially as we fight the forever fight to keep CDPAP intact. It literally is a bridge between being cared for at home or being in institutional care.

This program is too important to Sarah and me as it allows her the choice to remain in her own home, the choice of whom she wants to provide the help she needs to live a life with dignity. It allows me to provide safe and reliable care with the dignity she deserves, allowing her to live a life deserving of every human being—living her best life, as Sarah likes to say.

We chose Maxim Healthcare Services as our Fiscal Intermediary (FI) for CDPAP and have been with them for eight years now! As a parent who is now providing that care for her daughter, they were instrumental in helping me get on board. I always talk about the Behan team we have put in place – those who help us in this special needs journey – the ones who do the right thing! Maxim is a team member with Sarah’s best interest in mind always.

As a parent of a disabled adult child, there are many challenges in life. Balancing that, along with just being a mom, can be difficult at best. With all the medical issues Sarah has, dealing with Medicaid and all the paperwork that is involved can become a full-time job. It’s always refreshing when an entity or person comes along and just simply gets it.

I am beyond impressed with the knowledge Maxim has of the rules and regulations that the Department of Health (DOH) has for CDPAP. They go above and beyond to make at least one piece of this challenging system go a bit smoother for Sarah and me. Ray Donovan, the State program director for CDPAP, and all of Maxim’s employees within this program have great knowledge, passion and compassion for what they do. They are quick to respond to any issue that may arise and work with us to make it right! Open communication is essential for all of this to go smoothly.

At the end of the day, the knowledge that Maxim has for CDPAP ultimately allows us more time to be a family because they know how to run this program efficiently.

It’s entities like Maxim who truly care about what they do that help make traveling this journey in the special needs world just a bit easier – allowing Sarah to live her best life.

– Doris & Sarah Behan

Maxim is proud to participate in Consumer Directed programs across the country and in the great state of New York. Under the CDPAP program, we do not direct home healthcare activities; instead, we act as a fiscal intermediary provider, so you don’t have to manage all administrative tasks yourself.

The Maxim team will help you complete enrollment and onboarding paperwork, and your caregiver will be able to track their time through our electronic visit verification systems.

For more information on participating in CDPAP, reach out to your local New York Maxim office.

*Patient information/likeness used with permission*