Washington State Department of Services for the Blind

6002.00 Distinction Between Title I, Vocational Rehabilitation Services, and Title VII, Independent Living Services

The Title I, Vocational Rehabilitation Program, is designed to meet the needs of individuals with disability, whose ultimate goal is employment. According to Federal guidelines, a "homemaker" goal is considered a viable employment goal for Vocational Rehabilitation services. Since resources for Title I funds are significantly greater than that of Title VII, Independent Living, all individuals with employment goals should be referred to the Vocational Rehabilitation program. Making a distinction between referral of an individual to Independent Living program or Vocational Rehabilitation/Homemaker program, can at times be a difficult one. The following guidelines should be used to assist in determining appropriateness of a referral to the VR program.

1. The individual with visual impairment must live in his/her own residence.
2. The individual may live alone. It is not necessary for the individual to have the responsibility of caring for other family member(s).
3. The individual's age is not a factor in determining appropriateness for VR referral.
4. In determining eligibility for VR Homemaker services, the applicant must have identified deficits in the area of Home Management as outlined in the Adaptive Skills Assessment and Training (ASAT) home making module. (Appendix 3)
5. These deficits must have a direct impact on the applicant's ability to function independently as a Homemaker.
6. The applicant may or may not have identified deficits and needs in other areas of the ASAT. In most instances, individuals will require some amount of counseling and guidance to adjust to vision impairment.
7. As an outcome of service provision, the individual must be performing homemaker tasks at the conclusion of services.
8. Pre and post service functioning must show substantial improvement in the participant's ability to perform homemaker tasks.

The responsibility for eligibility determination for the VR Homemaker program rests with the DSB VRC/RT.

Information to respond to the first five items listed above can be obtained either at the time of referral or shortly after the initial contact. It may be necessary to administer the Home Management module of the ASAT to identify needs and deficits to address criteria number 4. Since each individual presents a unique set of circumstances, there will be cases where a clear-cut distinction is not possible. In these instances, consultation with the IL Program Coordinator and/or VRC/RT serving the area is appropriate.

If the referral is determined appropriate for VR Homemaker Program, the Referral Intake Form (DSBVR 254) (Appendix 4) should be completed and forwarded to the appropriate VRC/RT with a copy to the DSB IL Program Coordinator. Title VII (Independent Living) funds should be utilized only when skills training and adjustment services can benefit the individual with visual impairment and the individual is not eligible for Title I, Vocational Rehabilitation services.