Maryland DDA Coordinator of Community Services: Role, Access, and What Families Should Expect

What the DDA Coordinator Does

Once an individual is found eligible for the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Administration, a Coordinator of Community Services (CCS) is assigned to manage their case. The coordinator is the primary point of contact between the individual, their family, and the service system. They are not the same as a DDA provider — the coordinator manages the plan, while providers deliver the services.

The coordinator's core responsibilities include conducting the person-centered planning process, developing the annual service plan, coordinating services within the individual's DDA budget, monitoring service quality, and connecting families to resources they may not know about. The coordinator also handles the paperwork — annual plan renewals, service authorization forms, and documentation that keeps the individual's DDA funding active.

How Coordinators Are Assigned

After DDA eligibility is determined through the DDA application process, the individual is assigned a coordinator through a Coordinator of Community Services agency. Maryland uses multiple CCS agencies across the state — the individual or family typically has a choice of which agency to use, though availability varies by region.

Coordinator assignment is separate from funding. An individual can have a CCS while on the DDA waiting list, although a Future Needs placement may not receive active case management until services are needed. The Governor's Transitioning Youth Initiative (GTYI) provides one year of dedicated funding for students exiting school, and its application should be coordinated with the assigned CCS.

What Families Should Expect

Annual person-centered planning meetings. The coordinator schedules and facilitates a meeting at least once per year to review the individual's goals, services, and satisfaction. The individual and their support network attend. The plan should reflect what the individual actually wants — not what the system finds convenient to provide.

Service authorization and budget management. The coordinator helps coordinate specific services (day programs, employment support, residential, respite, etc.) within the individual's DDA budget allocation. If you want to change services or select a different provider, the coordinator is who you work with to make that happen.

Crisis response. If there is a service disruption — a provider drops the individual, staffing falls through, or a health crisis changes care needs — the coordinator should be your first call. They can help identify alternative providers and raise urgent service needs with the DDA.

Documentation and compliance. The coordinator maintains records that DDA requires to continue funding. Missing paperwork or lapsed authorizations can interrupt services. Stay in contact with your coordinator and respond to requests promptly.

How the Coordinator Relates to Guardianship

A DDA coordinator is not a legal decision-maker. They coordinate services, but they do not have authority to make medical, financial, or personal decisions on behalf of the individual. The individual — or their guardian, if one is appointed — retains that authority.

If the individual has a supported decision-making agreement, the coordinator should work with the designated supporters during planning meetings. If a guardian has been appointed, the coordinator works with the guardian on service decisions, but the guardian's authority comes from the court, not from the DDA system.

Importantly, DDA services do not require guardianship. An individual can access the full range of DDA waiver services — community pathways, self-directed services, employment support — through an SDMA, a power of attorney, or simply by making their own decisions with informal support.

Common Problems and What to Do

Unresponsive coordinator. If your coordinator is not returning calls, missing planning meetings, or failing to process service authorizations, contact the CCS agency directly and ask about a new coordinator assignment.

Inadequate person-centered planning. If the annual plan does not reflect the individual's actual preferences and goals, push back during the planning meeting. The person-centered planning process is supposed to start with what the individual wants, not what services happen to be available.

Service gaps during transitions. The transition from school services to DDA adult services is the highest-risk period for gaps. The coordinator should be engaged well before the student exits school — ideally during the GTYI application window — to ensure services start without interruption.

The Maryland Adult Guardianship & Alternatives Guide includes an agency communication log designed specifically for tracking interactions with DDA coordinators, service providers, and other agencies involved in the transition to adulthood.

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