Tenn Care

Caleb’s Story

LAET recently represented a 16 year old client who is over 6 feet tall and weighs over 300 lbs. He is autistic and suffers from PICA, a disease that causes a person to crave and eat non-food items such as glass. Since he cannot be left alone, Caleb lives with his mother and sister.

Caleb’s mother approached LAET because she needed assistance finding someone to help care for her son, monitor his behavior, and implement the behavior plan developed by his Applied Behavior Analyst. In addition to dealing with the eating disorder, her son needed to acquire toilet training and develop many other everyday skills.
 
Despite the extent of his needs, Caleb was continually denied care because of a dispute between the Medical Care Organization and Behavioral Care Organization over 1) who should pay for his care and 2) the extent of care needed.
During this time, things at their home grew desperate. Caleb’s mother had to lock her daughter in her room at night for fear that her son would attack her. She slept on her son’s floor so he could not harm himself or his family. She was terrified he would learn to work the gas stove in her home.

After almost a year of appeals by Caleb’s mother and four months of appeals through LAET, the client received a directive from TennCare for 60 hours a week of Behavioral Care Specialist services.

Thanks to his mother’s dedication, and the work of the many professionals who assisted Legal Aid and the client, Caleb and his family are safe and back on track. 

Make a Difference

If you or someone you know can’t afford legal assistance regarding TennCare, contact LAET at (865) 637-0484. To help someone like Caleb with legal aid, click “Make a Difference.”