Youth Community & Family Services

Coordinators assist Medicaid Home & Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver enrollees who have opted out of traditional MSC to stay enrolled by maintaining their individualized service plans and current level of care eligibility.

An intensive case management service that assists eligible children under age 18 to remain at home with their families by coordinating medical care, support and protective oversight.

Assists families with costs above the typical expenses incurred by their family member’s developmental disability that are not funded by Medicaid.

Provides aids, controls, appliances, or supplies that enable people to increase or maintain their ability to live at home and in the community with independence and safety.

Provides physical adaptations to the home that can increase or maintain an individual’s ability to live at home with independence (such as ramps, lifts, hand rails, and roll-in showers).

FREE’s trained counselors provide crisis intervention 24/7 to Long Island residents facing challenging behaviors in their home that require immediate response.

Enhanced crisis intervention with treatment team of a behavior intervention specialist, social worker and registered nurse to assist with behavioral/medical needs as well as provide caregiver training, referrals and behavior support.

FREE after-school respite is an integrated model that offers typical and developmentally disabled school-aged children and adults opportunities for recreation and socialization while receiving support and supervision from trained staff. In most cases, school children can be transported by bus from their schools to programs in both Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

FREE contracts with Suffolk County school districts to provide therapeutic recreation for students at FREE locations. We provide a variety of structured recreation and socialization activities to children with disabilities and autism. Services are overseen by certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists who work alongside school districts and participate in the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) process.

During school vacation weeks, we provide respite on site in our Bethpage location. Participants enjoy a variety of community recreational outings. FREE also operates specialty, weekend and evening respite programs in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, which offer socialization and recreational activities for individuals with developmental disabilities. The programs also specialize in working with children and adults who have autism.

Individuals stay at our respite home for brief periods to enjoy socialization, recreation, and respite from their routines, allowing their families a break from their daily activities.

Trained staff visit the homes of individuals receiving services to provide opportunities for recreation and socialization.

A Behavior Intervention Specialist provides a functional behavior assessment and a behavior support plan, plus up to 25 hours of additional training and support for individuals and caregivers.