Hi everyone,
I have question ... Has anyone heard of children qualifying for disability benefits for ADHD? I have 2 children with ADHD and each take 3 - 4 different kinds of prescriptions a day.
My son is 11 1/2 and been on meds since he was 4yrs old, and my daughter is 10 and put on meds when she was 8. Here is a list of what medications they take:
My son: Morning
Ritalin LA 40mg - Ritalin LA 5mg to go with his 40 of mornings and afternoons before 4pm if needed
Risperdal .25mg
Evening
Remeron SolTab 30mg
medications taken in the past since he was 4:
ritalin 1995-1999 4yrs, concerta 1999- 2002, adderall 2002-2003, ritalin la 2003-present
My son is a very bright/smart child, but he lets the simplest things make him angry and feels like he's a victim of everything and has caused uproars at school, had no friends because of this, he was evaluated by one of the Special Ed teachers the entire school year with no one knowing of this evaluation, from this she classified him as being Emotionally Disabled along with his other ADHD symptoms. The school will be accommodating his needs somewhat for this upcoming school year, but its not enough. He has a phobia of being in large groups so he has trouble walking into the classroom and so the teachers count him as being Tardy, he does better in smaller groups, mainly 1 on 1, that keeps his focus on what he needs to do. Tutors are not an option for my kids because of financal hardship.
My daughter: Strattera 40mg (can take up to 2 a day if needed - takes of morning with breakfast, but give at evening if needed)
Risperdal - .25mg mood stabilizer (takes this before bed and its a lifesaver, can take up to 3 times a day, but was instructed at last visit over a week ago to give 2 times a day to see if helps)
Paxil - 10mg Antidepressants (This medication is used to treat depression or other mental/mood disorders)takes this also before bed
Others have taken in past but was not effective:
adderall,concerta,ritalin,zoloft
My daughter has speech and language difficulties, comprehending simple math problems(but has come a long way with her math but now has some setbacks), loves to read, but got an F in reading in her last 6 weeks of school due to failing tests- all this has been results of being on Strattera and no other stimulants, but her teacher didnt tell me she was failing Reading til after school was over. She wasnt talking by the age of 2 so she was placed with Early intervention services and started taking speech therapy. Attended headstart from the age of 3 - 5 (1996-1998)headstart center - received speech therapy then as well, continues speech therapy during school. Her mental state at times are a 10 year old being a 5 year old. When she attended Kindergarten her teacher would tell me shes very immature for her age. DUH!!!
I have insurance through my job, but it only pays Half for mental/nervousness conditions and I get them on childrens medicaid once in a while when I dont recieve child support from their father, but soon as I get a check they get taken off again. But I can go for months at a time and be ok for their coverage, but when you have 6 medications and therapy sessions once a month and doctor visits for update checkup monthly, its very costly and I dont have that kind of money for all this. I applied for the both of my kids over a year ago and was both denied, but I was told to keep at it and eventually they will be approved. This year alone we have more information on both kids of their problems and knows that they need treatments. Each medications alone costs $70-$100 take that x's 6 ..very costly. Money benefits would pay for their priscriptions and health coverage would help cover for their dr and therapy sessions.
I am at a loss on where to turn to for this type of help and coverage for my kids. Taking the kids to their ADHD related appointments qualifies under FMLA (family medical leave act), but after 2 years of getting attendance points for all this, I was told I should have been covered from the beggining, everything is settled in that area and I dont get attendance points for taking off to take them for their sessions and dr. appointments, but that takes away my pay. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
[This message has been edited by auburn_brat (edited 06-29-2003).]
From what all I have read on different topic discussions on this board site, no one seems concerned about the costs of all these medications (if they have I'm sorry for overlooking it). With very limited income I have that is why I am asking for any advice and information for help, cause my State doesnt seem to know of any.
I am adding to all this the list of pricing of medications that either I have to pay out of pocket, or if my children are lucky enough to have childrens medicaid for 1-3 months at a time.
My son:
Remeron SolTab 30mg - Qty:30 - $77.78
Ritalin LA 40mg - Qty:30 - $82.68
Risperdal 0.25mg - Qty: 30 - $96.32
Total: $256.78
My daughter:
Strattera 40mg - Qty:30 - $92.54
Paxil 20mg - Qty:30 - $88.84
Risperdal 0.50mg - Qty:15 - $53.54 -(drug store only had this one in at the time so I had to cut in half to meet the dosage need, but when you have to break pills, the child may not be getting that full mg amount .. the refills were only allowed to be filled with this mg til the refills ran out.)
Risperdal 0.25mg Qty:60 - $185.88 (her dr. made sure that they gave the correct mg without me having to alter it.. so now she takes full .25mg + half of another one IF needed)
Total: $367.26
Grand total: $624.04 a month
I just started fighting with the state to get my child support garnished from my ex-husbands employment as court ordered from our divorce settlement almost 3 years ago, but I was told that I may not get my full weekly amount as was ordered IF they go through with it, because hes already paying out too much per week on another child hes got and he was just informed that another x/gf put in for a garnishment for she just got on total welfare plus shes got a job. I told them any amount is better that $0.00, cause its to pay for their medications and dr. bills, and I would keep receipts to prove thats what it will go for. He now got 4 kids by 3 people and I was the only one stupid enough to be married to this man. Therefore my kids are being counted as last on the list and his out of wedlock children comes first.
Again, any information if ADHD kids would qualify for disability, would be greatly appreciated, because what I read on the internet has mixed issues on it. And from applying for them before, I was pretty much informed that if they are not deaf, blind, and can walk, they are not disabled. If there is no chance for this, is there any other programs that can help out?
[This message has been edited by auburn_brat (edited 06-29-2003).]
One of the first things that my daughters psyc. told me about was disability and medical insurance for my daughter.
She was evaluated by her school last Novemeber. It turns out that she has ADD/ODD. The therapist agreed with the ADHD threw out the ODD and felt that she has an adjustment disorder.
On top of all that we learned that my daughter hears
"voices."
I have a job and work everyday, however I am a single mom and am not rich. We qualified for Medical Assistance. Now, I have insurance through my job so the medicaid is used along side this. That takes care of me having to either pay out of pocket or for the high co-pays.
My daughter is currently on Strattera 40Mg and Risperday 1 mg.
She is also on a slew of meds for Asthma. So the medicaid helps a lot.
Also, since she qualified for Medicaid, I was advise to apply for Disability benefits for my daughter. We were awarded partial payments based on my income. If I ever become unemployed or have to take a job making less money, the supplement will increase.
I was under the impression that the process to obtain Medicaid and Disability would take forever. But since I keep ALL paperwork (every evaluation, med script, reports regarding her behavior from school, copies of the ADHD ratings that are sent to the school periodically, and EVERY thing else pertaining to her mental health, I was able to provide the Medicaid,SSI office with all the paperwork. It took 3 weeks to be approved for Medicaid, and 1 month to be approved for the disability benefits.
I would say to give it a try you have nothing at all to lose and your sanity and help for your children to gain!.
Contact your local Social Security office regarding disability information.
And there is a link that you can go to and fill out the Medicaid information on-line. I can't remember it, but we will be seeing my daughter's psyc. dr. tonight and I will ask her for the site link.
To Courtney'sMom..............You mentioned your daughter needed lots of asthma meds. I would like to suggest you get rid of a lot of your store bought cleaners and get the toxins out of your home so that you can ease her use of these meds and help the asthma. You might also want to switch to an all natural laundry soap and get rid of the harsh soaps with all the chemicals in them since this too can be a trigger for asthma problems. I think once you get rid of the toxins you will see a big improvement in your daughter regarding her asthma.
ADHD/ SS Disability benefits 
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