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Navigate Life Texas: Resources for kids with disabilities and special needs
Navigate Life Texas: Resources for kids with disabilities and special needs
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Until your child turns 18 years old, you have legal control over all major decisions in their life: housing, finances, school, health care and other everyday decisions. Then, at 18 years old, your child gains legal control over all these areas.
Maybe you realize your child won’t be ready to manage these important decisions at age 18. Some adults with disabilities or special health care needs might never be able to manage some or all major life decisions without help.
You have choices and legal tools that can help protect and support your child. Making the right decision for your family can be an emotional and complicated process.
As the Texas Parent to Parent team said:
“Some parents avoid these decisions. But if you do nothing, there could be problems later for your child and family. For example, one parent shared with us that a nonprofit was granted guardianship of her adult son by his father while the son was living with his mother. His mother didn’t know she needed to protect her child from something like that. And the nonprofit then had the legal right to make decisions for the young man.”
We want to help you understand all your choices — and know how to make plans.
There are formal and informal ways to help your child. Some are as simple as getting a joint bank account to help your child manage their money. Others might involve getting a lawyer or going to court.
Here are a few options that can give you the legal right to help your child without involving the court system. See our Legal Help for People with Disabilities page for more information.
There are also less formal options for supporting your adult child — like finding supportive housing and creating a personal network. Your child could also use a Medicaid waiver program to get support services for living at home or in the community.
Each legal tool has its benefits and risks. We included some basic information below that we gathered from other parents to help you learn more, but it shouldn’t be considered legal or financial advice.
Supported Decision-Making: Texas was the first state to have supported decision-making as a legal option. This allows adults with a disability to get help managing their lives without guardianship restrictions.
If your family is interested in this option, your child can sign an agreement that allows you (or another trusted person) access to information to help make decisions in health care, education, housing or finances. You can help your child understand and consider options and help make and communicate their decisions.
In some of the same ways, a power of attorney lets you share control over certain life decisions with your child. Children can give parents or guardians the legal power to make certain decisions for them if they cannot.
Guardianship: If you believe your adult child is incapacitated — meaning he or she isn’t able to manage living independently with the supports listed above — you can ask the court for guardianship. Read more about the process on our guardianship page or in one parent’s story.
Informal or No Supports: This choice gives your child full independence and doesn’t cost much money. However, it’s important to think about your child’s needs and abilities for adulthood well before he or she turns 18.
If your child isn’t ready to manage their life on their own, there are risks to having no legal protections in place. For example, children can choose where and how they want to live, or make other financial or legal decisions, on their own. If they can’t make these decisions safely, someone else can step in and ask the court for legal protections like guardianship.
No choice is permanent. You can start with no legal tools and then use a supported decision-making agreement, powers of attorney, or file for guardianship if you see a need when your child is older. Or you might ask your child to sign a supported decision-making agreement or power of attorney for health care at 18 years old but not get involved in housing decisions. Know you can use different options as your child changes and develops.
Other parents have found these questions helpful to ask themselves:
Who is affected by your decisions? Who can help you make these choices?
Legal issues affect many families of children with disabilities and special health care needs as their children approach age 18. Information here is not specific legal or financial planning advice. Rather, it’s information learned from talking to experienced parents and lawyers. Talk to a lawyer or financial advisor for advice on your situation. The State Bar of Texas can recommend a lawyer.
“Before my daughter turned 18, I was worried about how to support her as an adult. I was so thankful to learn about a supported decision-making agreement. This legal document allows me to gather information and discuss it with my daughter, so she has all the information she needs to make an informed decision. She still makes the final decision, but I have a part in helping her get there.”
“I was ecstatic and relieved when I obtained guardianship for my daughter because I knew it was time, due to her change in needs. It took a lot of work and it gave me peace of mind.”
“My son turned 21 last year. I dreaded him turning 18 because I knew that it was the start of him transitioning into adulthood. I often told people that I felt the same way I did when he was born. So many new terms and new systems to learn and navigate. There is less support in finding those answers [for older children], especially when your child has significant health care needs. We did guardianship because it was the best option for my son. But I hated having to prove that we were capable of caring for him, especially since we had been doing it for 18 years.”
“When my son was in his early teens, he started having mental health issues. Because he struggled with making decisions, I was concerned about how to handle things when he turned 18. I learned about the different powers of attorney that could be obtained with his approval and how they would allow me to speak on his behalf for medical, financial, educational and other issues. We have been successfully using powers of attorney for several years. It has brought so much peace to me knowing I can continue to speak on his behalf and he trusts me to do that.”
“I've spoken to many parents who are unaware and completely overwhelmed by the transfer of legal rights at 18. They reach out to us (a parent organization) in fear, unaware of the options. Many parents are relieved to know there are more options than guardianship. They don't want their young adult’s rights removed, worry that guardianship is expensive, or are so unfamiliar with the legal options that they would rather wait and see. They're always grateful to have someone to talk to about options.