As long as you are physically and mentally able to benefit from ILP services, you are eligible for ILP. Only a doctor or mental health professional can determine whether you cannot physically and mentally benefit from ILP. Your county social worker (CSW) cannot make this determination. Even if you have been found to be unable to benefit from ILP, your CSW must still ask every six months whether you want to participate in ILP. Your doctor or mental health professional must reassess your eligibility every six months as well.
NOTE: If your doctor decides that you cannot benefit from regular ILP classes and other services because of an illness or disability, your CSW must work with you to provide “ILP Equivalent Services” instead, by making an alternative plan to help you learn the skills to live independently. For example, if you have a developmental disability, there are special Life Skills classes to help you prepare for independent living, and there are Regional Center services and placements for teens and young adults. There are also mental health, day treatment, and in-home support services programs designed to help youth with disabilities live independently.