ODDS Services Oregon Turning 18: K Plan, CDDP, and Provider Navigation

The transition from school-based disability services to Oregon's adult system is one of the most confusing parts of turning 18. The Office of Developmental Disabilities Services (ODDS) administers everything from attendant care to residential placement, but the system runs through local intermediaries, and the gap between qualifying for services and actually receiving them catches families off guard.

Here's how the system actually works, and where the real bottlenecks are.

The Agency Map

Oregon's adult disability services run through a layered system:

• ODDS (state level): Administers Medicaid HCBS waivers, sets policy, authorizes funding through the K Plan
• Community Developmental Disabilities Programs (CDDPs): County-level case management offices. These are your entry point. The CDDP conducts eligibility screening, assigns a Service Coordinator, and manages the Individual Support Plan (ISP)
• Support Services Brokerages: Private regional nonprofits that provide an alternative case management model. A brokerage assigns a Personal Agent instead of a Service Coordinator

Your adult child must choose one case management entity — CDDP or brokerage — after eligibility is established.

Eligibility Screening

ODDS eligibility requires documented intellectual or developmental disability with:

• IQ score typically at or below 75
• Documented deficits in adaptive behavior
• Developmental history establishing onset before age 22

The local CDDP conducts the intake assessment. Start this process at least six months before the 18th birthday. Even though eligibility is theoretically immediate for qualifying individuals, the intake assessment, ISP development, and provider recruitment process takes months.

If eligibility is denied, you have 90 days to file a formal administrative hearing request through the ODHS appeals process.

The K Plan: Oregon's Core Funding Mechanism

Most in-home services for adults with I/DD are funded through the Community First Choice K Plan, authorized under Section 1915(k) of the Social Security Act. The K Plan is a Medicaid state plan entitlement, which means two important things:

1. No waiting list: Any individual who meets the institutional level of care criteria is entitled to receive authorized services. Oregon does not operate a statewide waitlist for K Plan services.
2. Enhanced federal funding: The federal government matches Oregon's base rate (58%) plus an additional 6%, for a total 64% federal match. This makes the K Plan the state's preferred funding mechanism.

K Plan services include:

• Attendant care and personal support
• Relief care (respite for family caregivers)
• Environmental modifications to the home
• Assistive technology
• Community transportation
• Transitional supports

CDDP vs. Brokerage: Which to Choose

If your adult child will live with your family or independently: either model works. The brokerage model is generally more personalized and responsive for families directing their own services.

If your adult child needs a group home, licensed adult foster care, or 24-hour residential placement: you must use the CDDP model.

The Provider Capacity Problem

Here's the uncomfortable truth about Oregon's system. Qualifying for services doesn't mean receiving them on time. The state has a severe shortage of:

• Certified provider agencies
• Direct support professionals (DSPs)
• Licensed foster home beds

In practice, the primary obstacle is not a state-level administrative waitlist — it's finding an approved provider with the actual staffing to deliver your authorized service hours. This is especially severe in rural counties, where a single CDDP office may serve an entire region with limited provider networks.

The Customer-Employer Program Workaround

The Customer-Employer Program (CEP) is Oregon's solution for the provider bottleneck. Under CEP, the person receiving services (or their representative) becomes the employer of record and can hire anyone — including family members — as a Personal Support Worker (PSW).

This means:

• Parents, siblings, or other family members can be paid caregivers
• You recruit from your own network instead of waiting for an agency placement
• Training requirements are minimal compared to agency providers
• Payment rates are set by the state, but you control scheduling and selection

For families in provider-shortage areas, CEP is often the only realistic path to receiving authorized service hours within a reasonable timeframe.

Oregon Health Plan: Apply Separately

A critical detail that trips families up: Oregon is a separate-application state for Medicaid. SSI approval does not automatically enroll your child in the Oregon Health Plan (OHP).

You must file a separate application using Form OHP 7210 directly with the Oregon Health Authority. The income cap for K Plan eligibility is 300% of the federal benefit rate — $2,982/month in 2026. The individual asset limit is $2,000. If income exceeds the cap, an Income Cap Trust (Miller Trust) can maintain eligibility.

Start this application simultaneously with the ODDS intake. K Plan services are funded through OHP, so your child needs both: ODDS eligibility for the service authorization and OHP enrollment for the funding.

The Oregon Adult Guardianship & Alternatives Guide includes an agency coordination timeline that maps the ODDS, OHP, and school-exit processes onto a single calendar, with specific deadlines for each application and assessment.

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