Other Public Funding Sources

The Social Security Administration (SSA) offers cash benefits for some children with disabilities. The child’s disability needs to have lasted or be expected to last for at least 12 months, or is expected to shorten the child’s life span.

California Head Start offers early learning programs for children with and without disabilities ages 0 to 5. These programs are federally funded and free to low-income families, foster children, those experiencing homelessness, and those who meet other eligibility requirements.

California Children’s Services (CCS) is a state program that provides and funds diagnostic and treatment services to children under age twenty-one with CCS-eligible medical conditions. CCS may provide support for families who have exhausted other options.

CCS eligibility is usually based on income: ​​a family’s adjusted gross income must be less than $40,000, or the child’s out-of-pocket medical expenses must be more than 20% of the family’s income. However, if the child is a Medi-Cal recipient, CCS will not look at family income.

For school-age children in California, Special Education Local Planning Areas (SELPAs) maintain and oversee special education programs and services, and they can provide adaptive equipment and other accommodations and devices as outlined in a student’s IEP.

An individual is automatically eligible for CalABLE if they have a disability that occurred before age 26 and they receive benefits under Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).