State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services

Release 24-03 December 18, 2024

View History

37.1 Children's Long-Term Support (CLTS) Waiver Program Introduction

37.1.1 Program Purpose

Children's Long-Term Support (CLTS) is a Medicaid Home and Community-Based Waiver Program that enables children and youth with disabilities to live at home and participate in family and community life rather than reside in an institution or nursing home. The waiver program allows Medicaid to pay for supports and services that normally are not covered by Medicaid.

The CLTS Waiver Program serves eligible children and youth in the following three target groups:

• Developmental disabilities
• Physical disabilities
• Severe emotional disturbance or mental health disabilities

37.1.2 Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for the CLTS Waiver Program, an individual must meet all of the following:

• Be under 22 years old
• Meet an institutional level of care, as determined by the CLTS Functional Screen
• Meet nonfinancial and financial eligibility criteria for a full-benefit category of Medicaid (see Section 21.2 Full-Benefit Medicaid)
• Reside in a setting allowed by CLTS Waiver policy

A disability determination is not required for the CLTS Waiver Program.

Children in the CLTS Waiver Program qualify for 12 months of continuous Medicaid coverage. If they are disenrolled from CLTS waiver services (for example, because they lose their functional eligibility) during the continuous coverage period and they do not qualify for any other form of full-benefit health care, they will keep their HCBW Medicaid and can keep getting Medicaid card services for the rest of their continuous coverage period. If they voluntarily disenroll from CLTS, it will be treated as a voluntary disenrollment from Waiver Medicaid.

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The information concerning the Medicaid program provided in this handbook release is published in accordance with: Titles XI and XIX of the Social Security Act; Parts 430 through 481 of Title 42 of the Code of Federal Regulations; Chapters 46 and 49 of the Wisconsin Statutes; and Chapters HA 3, DHS 2, 10 and 101 through 109 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code.

Notice: The content within this manual is the sole responsibility of the State of Wisconsin's Department of Health Services (DHS). This site will link to sites outside of DHS where appropriate. DHS is in no way responsible for the content of sites outside of DHS.

Publication Number: P-10030