Asking for Advocacy Help
In an ideal world, you would work as partners with the individuals providing services for your child. Your expertise would be respected, particularly since you are the person who knows your child best. But, in reality, things don’t always work that well.
Protection and Advocacy Centers are designed to help individuals with disabilities and their families. There is a center in each state and most territories. These centers provide information about your legal rights and make referrals to agencies or individuals who can help you. In some cases, they may even send representatives to meetings to help you and your child. Most have toll free numbers you can call for services in your area.
To find the Protection and Advocacy Center near you, type the words “protection advocacy” and your state into a search engine, like Google, Ask, or Yahoo.
Even if things are going well, it’s good to know what your legal rights are and to be familiar with the places you can find help. Becoming knowledgeable about Protection and Advocacy Centers and other resources might prevent a poor situation from becoming a lawsuit. Sometimes it’s just a matter of getting accurate and complete information.
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