IRIS GENERAL INFORMATION
IRIS is a new Wisconsin long term care option that began July 1, 2008.
Individuals who choose to participate in IRIS have more choices, control,
and freedom to design their own support and service plans to meet their
functional, vocational, medical and social needs. Persons using IRIS self
manage their goods and services and may use IRIS to remain in their
community and avoid moving into a nursing home or an institution. With
IRIS, adult Wisconsinites who are elderly or those with a physical or a
developmental disability have control over the type of services they
receive in home and community settings. The DHS IRIS brochure describes
many IRIS details.
A key IRIS feature is the participant or their family member or
representative being in charge of his/her long term care and fully
self-directing his/her services, supports or goods and life. IRIS
participants create a support and service plan for their long term care
supports and services within an individually assigned monthly budget
allocation. Individuals may hire their own service workers directly or
they may purchase goods and services from an agency provider. In IRIS you choose
the services you need,
and decide where and how to spend your monthly IRIS budget allocation.
IRIS participants self manage their chosen goods and services. Your
monthly budget allocation may be adjusted based on your unique
circumstances.
You select your own IRIS Independent Consultant with help from
the IRIS Independent Consultant Agency. The IRIS Financial Services Agency
pays the bills for services received that you authorize according to your written IRIS plan.
Help from both of these IRIS agencies is provided at no cost to your plan and
monthly budget. You may enlist the help of a support broker
if desired, and support broker fees are paid out of your individual
monthly budget allocation.
IRIS allows you to choose which services you need, when
and where you receive them and will help you to attain the highest
quality of life possible. The Wisconsin DHS Bureau of Long Term Support is
pleased to give Wisconsinites this important opportunity. IRIS is
available to Wisconsinites who are Medicaid eligible and also eligible for
publicly funded long term care services that live in a county where
managed care (family care) is available. Individuals are offered the
choice of IRIS or managed care when they enter the state publicly funded
long term care system at their local Aging and Disability Resource Center.
Check the Wisconsin map by clicking the box on the right to verify that
IRIS is currently available in your county. If no information is listed for
the county where you live you may contact your local Human or Social
Services Office for this information.
The program known as IRIS (Include, Respect, I Self-Direct) was
developed with the assistance of Wisconsin Stakeholders
(38K PDF) representing long
term care consumers, advocacy programs, counties, tribes, state DHS staff
and others. IRIS is sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Health
Services, and is implemented by the Bureau of Long Term Support under
authorization of the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. IRIS
helps you self manage your chosen goods and services.
IRIS participants have access to an ombudsman program for
questions and assistance. Disability
Rights Wisconsin (exit DHS) is the ombudsman program for individuals
ages 18 - 59.
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Where to find updated information:
We will continue to update and add to the information about
IRIS and self-directed supports on these web pages, so check back frequently. If you need information that
is not published here, you may contact:
IRIS Information
Wisconsin Department of Health Services
Bureau of Long
Term Support
1 West Wilson Street, Room 418
P.O. Box 7851
Madison WI 53707-7851
DHSIRIS@wisconsin.gov
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Last Revised: November 09, 2009 |
