Are parents obligated to support adult disabled children?

[Anonymous]

This thread in the SPecial Needs forum may be helpful.
Things to consider for a teen with special needs before age 18:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/590454.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Legally? No
Morally? Yes

The moral failing is a country that provides no resources for families of children with disabilities. My child cannot put DS in childcare. Husband had to quit his job. We will never have money to retire or save enough for his LT needs. My only hope is that we all die together in the next 10 years or so.
Don’t get started on the moral obligations & failings.

[Anonymous]

I think about this a lot with some students I have had over the years. Some of their parents are older (50) when the kid is in middle school. I can't imagine the stress they have over how they will be cared for.

Last night I was speaking about a current student with a colleague. He has an IQ of 70 but he is the sweetest, kindest kid. I could see him doing well in a retail position (not handling cash) because he is so personable. He will most likely end up in a group home because he is cared for by his grandparents.

[Anonymous]

In my state we have a criminal statute for neglect of a care dependent person. Age isn’t exactly a factor; if you’ve been in a caretaker role and you act in a way that endangers their welfare, you can be charged. This includes failing to provide treatments or services.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my state we have a criminal statute for neglect of a care dependent person. Age isn’t exactly a factor; if you’ve been in a caretaker role and you act in a way that endangers their welfare, you can be charged. This includes failing to provide treatments or services.

https://www.specialneedsalliance.org/the-voice/child-support-for-an-adult-child-with-disabilities/

[Anonymous]

At least in our county (LCPS) disabled kids can go to public school until age 21. Our neighbors have a profoundly disabled son (wheelchair, doesn’t talk) and he’s in that 18-21 window now. Still goes to HS for a few more years.

They are definitely going to keep him at home long term though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At least in our county (LCPS) disabled kids can go to public school until age 21. Our neighbors have a profoundly disabled son (wheelchair, doesn’t talk) and he’s in that 18-21 window now. Still goes to HS for a few more years.

They are definitely going to keep him at home long term though.

Pretty sure that’s a national policy.

[Anonymous]

Legally, no. Morally, yes.

[Anonymous]

Move to Mass -- it is a state (thanks to the years that Ted Kennedy was in office) that knows how to take care of the disabled members of the state.

My husbands stepmother's daughter is disabled. She lives in a group home on Nantucket. Not kidding. It's beautiful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A place to live will not be her own 1 bedroom apartment. That’s not how it works.

What will it be?

We live in a court full of townhouses and there is a group home across the street. I think 3 women live there with what looks like a revolving group of caregivers. A van comes to pick up at least one of the women everyday. I’ve seen her working at our local library. Sometimes they take walks around the court when the weather is nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the state. In some states, you have to support your disabled adult child. In most states, you don't.

https://specialneedsanswers.com/am-i-legally-required-to-support-my-adult-child-with-disabilities-maybe-17044

Interesting for local parents “ Maryland requires a parent who is capable of earning sufficient means to provide food, shelter, care and clothing to her destitute child, one who has no means of subsistence and cannot be self-supporting due to physical or mental infirmity.”

[Anonymous]

They have to petition for guardianship and prove the person can’t take care of themselves. It’s a complicated process. My mom has been helping people do that in NYC for a long time.

[Anonymous]

Where site tells you which state makes you responsible for caring after age 18 and which don’t?

[Anonymous]

Yes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wrong wrong wrong

You can go to jail for abandoning a vulnerable person of any age.

This post is extremely vague and not accurate. My brother has a mental illness and is in his 30s. No one checks and he could certainly be homeless if all of us stopped supporting him financially and emotionally. We don’t because we love him. I don’t know what will happen to him if he outlives my parents and me someday. This keeps me up at night.

To OP, many families keep supporting adult disabled children because they want to. They try their best to set them up for some level of independence if their support system is not around someday. There are programs available that may be any combination of outreach or group homes. For those who do not have supportive families or those who do not comply with the family for any reason, unfortunate things can happen that can include being homeless, jail and/or death.