Bureaucracies really burn my toast. Fortunately, I expected this because it's already happened to many parents in IL.
Quick history - IL has a unique grant program for severely mentally ill children. It pays for both community-based services (but not medications/therapist/psychiatrist or hospitalizations) and Residential Treatment Center (RTC). By the time I finally applied in 2000, difficult child had been hospitalized 15 times (with 1 more while we were waiting to see if we got the grant). Criteria is that the child must have "impaired reality testing". The application process involved a whole slew of documentation, which in difficult child's case was really pretty easy to supply, unfortunately.
Fast forward to last year, when the administrative part of the program was contracted out to a company that I have unfortunately had way too much contact with- as the gatekeeper of our mental health insurance. Based on past experience, their policy is to deny coverage, services, payment, etc. They are holding true to form.
difficult child lost the grant. I'm fighting it, of course. What they're doing is changing the rules, now requiring that the child meet that initial "impaired reality testing" critera (in their administrative eyes) but at the same time *not* requesting the same detailed documentation that is required with the initial application. Then they tell you you can't submit any new information in the appeal - but they don't tell you that until *after* you've been denied. To say I'm outraged would be a gross understatement.
It will probably be a moot point for difficult child, since he will probably be a dropout by summer and therefore be ineligible, but this kind of manipulative bureaucratic bologna just inflames me.
To top it off, when I called the agency to tell them they've out of their minds, I got this disgustingly condescending woman on the phone, blathering on about "recovery" and blah blah blah. You know what? Recovery is not going to happen with- my kid. He's *that* ill. The best we can hope for is he doesn't hurt himself (which I fear is an increasing danger) or someone else (which I think might be a lesser danger now). When I told her she obviously must not have a mentally ill child, she admitted she didn't but she "knew" what I was going thru. Uh - nope, not a clue.
ARGH! I'm just shaking, I'm so utterly torqued right now.
Quick history - IL has a unique grant program for severely mentally ill children. It pays for both community-based services (but not medications/therapist/psychiatrist or hospitalizations) and Residential Treatment Center (RTC). By the time I finally applied in 2000, difficult child had been hospitalized 15 times (with 1 more while we were waiting to see if we got the grant). Criteria is that the child must have "impaired reality testing". The application process involved a whole slew of documentation, which in difficult child's case was really pretty easy to supply, unfortunately.
Fast forward to last year, when the administrative part of the program was contracted out to a company that I have unfortunately had way too much contact with- as the gatekeeper of our mental health insurance. Based on past experience, their policy is to deny coverage, services, payment, etc. They are holding true to form.
difficult child lost the grant. I'm fighting it, of course. What they're doing is changing the rules, now requiring that the child meet that initial "impaired reality testing" critera (in their administrative eyes) but at the same time *not* requesting the same detailed documentation that is required with the initial application. Then they tell you you can't submit any new information in the appeal - but they don't tell you that until *after* you've been denied. To say I'm outraged would be a gross understatement.
It will probably be a moot point for difficult child, since he will probably be a dropout by summer and therefore be ineligible, but this kind of manipulative bureaucratic bologna just inflames me.
To top it off, when I called the agency to tell them they've out of their minds, I got this disgustingly condescending woman on the phone, blathering on about "recovery" and blah blah blah. You know what? Recovery is not going to happen with- my kid. He's *that* ill. The best we can hope for is he doesn't hurt himself (which I fear is an increasing danger) or someone else (which I think might be a lesser danger now). When I told her she obviously must not have a mentally ill child, she admitted she didn't but she "knew" what I was going thru. Uh - nope, not a clue.
ARGH! I'm just shaking, I'm so utterly torqued right now.
He doesn't need "help". Won't accept "housing". Doesn't want MH services, doesn't want SSI, can do it all on his own when he has to, in spite of zero preparation and not having the foggiest idea of how to do *anything*. 
I'm mad right there with you! Ludicrous...
