children with disabilities

Parents wait for state-covered services designed to their children foster independence and job skills for adulthood. But they must think years ahead while their families are under stress.

Katie Seeright's daughter, Adeline, suffers from Aicardi syndrome, which prevents the 6-year-old from being able to take care of herself.

The Justice Department is urging a federal appeals court to uphold a ruling aimed at keeping children with complex medical conditions out of nursing homes.

The state appealed a federal judge's ruling about whether it was improperly institutionalizing children who often require 24/7 care and have needs such as ventilators, feeding tubes and breathing tubes.

Even on a fast track, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says, the arguments between the state and DOJ will not happen until after final briefs are filed on Dec. 6.

The Justice Department urged the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to turn down the state's request for a stay of an injunction issued in July.

The state seeks a stay on an injunction that would require Florida's Medicaid program to provide 90% of the private-duty nursing hours to help children live in family homes instead of nursing homes.

After the school district agreed to pay $440,000 to resolve a lawsuit over its use of the Baker Act on students, some advocates want more protections for children.

The federal judge wrote that he is “not persuaded that Florida will suffer irreparable damage without a stay," but that noncompliance can bring substantial harm to institutionalized children.

A key part of the decision would require the state to increase the availability of private-duty nursing that could help children receive care outside of nursing homes. The state says complying is "impossible."