Autism Services Glossary of Terms: N-Z

Need: "Need" for services must be determined in both medical and educational law. If your child has autism, evaluations will confirm the diagnosis and identify any areas of need, whether they are educational, medical, or behavioral. Parent input is mandatory.

OBRA Waiver: A waiver is a federal funding stream that allows states to be exempt from (or "waive") certain requirements. The OBRA waiver is a funding stream regulated by federal law, generally designed for persons with developmental disabilities that substantially limit major life functions.

ODP (Office of Developmental Programs): Creating the new Office of Developmental Programs within DPW in 2007 was one of the core recommendations of the Pennsylvania Autism Task Force. In its initial stages, Office of Developmental Programs will house a Bureau of Mental Retardation Services and a Bureau for Autism Services, as well as necessary support bureaus.

OMAP (Office of Medical Assistance Programs): A program office located within the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare. For the purposes of people with autism, OMAP administers the joint state/federal Medical Assistance program that purchases health care for over 10,000 "loophole" children.

OMHSAS (Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services): A program office located within the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare responsible for behavioral health services ranging from community to hospital programs with emphasis on helping children, adolescents and adults to remain in their communities.

OVR (Office of Vocational Rehabilitation): Located within the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. This office administers job/vocational training and coaching to persons with disabilities based on a model of temporary need.

PCP (Primary Care Provider): A specific medical services provider (doctor) responsible for providing primary care services and locating, coordinating, and monitoring other medical care and rehabilitative services (in addition to behavioral health services) on behalf of a Medical Assistance recipient.

PDE: Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Privacy: See also HIPAA (health records privacy) and FERPA (school records privacy).

Residential Habilitation: Learning behavior skills that may be ordinary household tasks or self-help. Self-help, also called personal care, refers to activities such as showering, shaving, toileting and dressing. Residential habilitation also includes learning to do household tasks, making meals and other activities you would do when you return home from work or other daytime activities.

Respite: Services provided to the family or caregiver of a person with autism so that they may have time to attend to sibling’s or other family member’s needs, to have time to go out to dinner, attend to personal appointments or simply relax. These may be in or out of home services.

Special Needs Trust: A legal financial entity established by parents of children with disabilities to provide for supplemental needs not covered by public assistance funds that cover basic needs. The fund is created because assets owned by a person with autism would prevent their eligibility for publicly funded services until the funds were gone. The trustee distributes funds from the trust to the person with autism for non-basic supplies. For more information, visit the Autism Society of America.

TSS (Therapeutic Support Staff): This person has a certain level of experience, education and training to support a person with autism one-on-one in settings found to require their support. This could include school, social functions and community.

Waiver: A waiver is a funding program where the state is allowed to "waive" certain requirements, usually of a federal law or program. In Pennsylvania, two waivers are most likely to serve a person with autism; the Consolitated Waiver, and the OBRA Waiver.

Wraparound: Wraparound or "wrap" refers to behavioral health services, such as Therapeutic Support Staff (TSS) and Behavioral Specialist Consultant (BSC) support, that "wrap" around other supportive services. Wraparound may include trained workers who support and intervene on behalf of a client to implement the client’s Behavioral Treatment Plan.

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Other Sources:

Office of Medical Assistance (OMAP) Program Dictionary: A reference guide to commonly used acronyms.

University of Pennsylvania’s Glossary of Medical and Research Terms: Definitions of terms commonly used in medical research.

Special Education Definitions: Terms defined by the Pennsylvania Code.

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If you cannot find the information you need, please contact DPW.