P/FDS Waiver: Person/Family Directed Support in Pennsylvania

The Person/Family Directed Support Waiver is the ODP waiver built for families who want to be in the driver’s seat. Unlike the Consolidated or Community Living Waivers — where services are coordinated through a structured provider network — P/FDS gives your family a budget and the authority to direct how it’s spent. You choose the providers. You set the schedule. You decide which services matter most for your loved one’s daily life.

For families who have been managing their adult child’s care for years, P/FDS doesn’t ask you to hand control to a system. It funds the control you already have.

How the Budget Works

Under P/FDS, the individual receives an annual budget allocation based on their assessed needs.  The budget can be spent across approved service categories: residential habilitation (in-home daily living support), community participation, respite care, supported employment, behavioral support, assistive technology, home modifications, and family-directed services where a family member provides and is compensated for approved care.

The family (or the individual, if able) manages how the budget is allocated across these categories. A fiscal management service handles the payroll and compliance side — taxes, withholdings, workers’ compensation — similar to the Agency with Choice model in CHC or the FMSA in Texas CDS.

Paying a Family Member Through P/FDS

P/FDS explicitly supports family members as paid providers. If your daughter has been providing daily habilitation support, your brother has been helping with community access, or you yourself have been the primary caregiver, P/FDS can compensate that care within the approved budget.
The pay structure and rates are determined within the budget allocation and ODP rate guidelines. The supports coordinator helps the family develop a spending plan that allocates the budget across services, and the fiscal management service processes payroll for the family provider.

In our experience, P/FDS families tell us that the combination of control and compensation changes their relationship with caregiving. It goes from “something we do because we have to” to” something we do because we’re good at it, and the system recognizes it.”

Who P/FDS Is Best For

P/FDS works best for families who are organized, engaged, and want to direct the care themselves.  The budget management component requires attention — the family needs to track spending against the annual allocation, ensure services are documented, and work with the fiscal management service on timely submissions.

If your family prefers a more hands-off approach where an agency manages the care plan and providers, the Consolidated or Community Living Waivers may be a better fit.

Waitlist and Access

P/FDS typically has a shorter waitlist than the Consolidated Waiver, making it more accessible for many families. The
supports coordinator can assess your loved one’s needs and help determine whether P/FDS is the right waiver to pursue.

Contact CareChoice →Pennsylvania team

Written by Gary Murray, Chief Marketing Officer | CareChoice