How do I fund my child's transportation to therapies?

Especially if Regional Center is funding the therapy itself, Regional Center may be able to fund the transportation if the parents are unable to provide it and no generic resource is available. You can ask Regional Center to reimburse for transportation via Uber vouchers or a similar third-party transportation service. Check your Regional Center’s purchase of service standards for more information about transportation.

Most respite agencies that Regional Centers contract with will not let respite providers drive a child. You might consider paying the respite provider off the clock and just pay them out of pocket for the additional hour.

If your child receives personal assistance hours from Regional Center (which is much more common for clients over 18 years old), their PA could potentially drive them to an appointment. It depends on the Regional Center as well as the payroll agency, as some contracted agencies do not allow employees to transport clients even if the Regional Center would allow it.

Another resource for transportation to medical therapies is Medi-Cal. For example, Medi-Cal can pick up a child at school, take them to their therapy appointment, and then transport them from the therapy appointment home, if parents can establish that there's not a way for the parents to do it themselves. This applies even if the therapy provider does not accept Medi-Cal.

To set this up, you need to get a referral from your child’s doctor for medical transport. Then, contact your Medi-Cal managed care plan. The managed care plan will have a transit company that they contract with, and you usually have to set the trip up a couple days in advance.

In general, an adult needs to accompany a minor child during transportation. If you are working full time and have specialized supervision, that person should be able to accompany the child to the appointment even if they cannot transport them.

Medi-Cal may also pay for transportation to disability-related medical appointments via In-Home Supportive Services if an IHSS-authorized service is required on the way to, during, or on the way home from the appointment. If the IHSS provider is required to remain on the premises during the appointment, you should request wait time as well as accompaniment. Because hours are assessed annually, you are most likely to get IHSS hours for standing appointments such as therapies, which are predictable ahead of time. However, if you know that your child sees specific providers in known time intervals (e.g., once per month), you can include that in your request.

Many counties in California offer alternative options for people with disabilities who are unable to access public transit. For example, if you live in Los Angeles County, you may be able to use Access Paratransit, a low-cost shared ride service for multiple riders at a time similar to a bus route. Eligibility is “based on the person with a disability's ability to use accessible buses and trains in Los Angeles County, not solely based on the disability, age, or medical diagnosis.” The process involves submitting an application and attending an in-person evaluation.