State waiver system frustrates families of disabled

By GAIL KOCH, Star Press
gkoch@muncie.gannett.com

MUNCIE -- Six years is a long time to wait for anything.

For 22-year-old Chris Eldridge, who has Down's syndrome, six years is how long he's been on a waiting list for one of the state's developmental disabilities waivers.

The waiver is what his parents, Tom and Connie Honn, need to ensure Eldridge is cared for by the state when they die. It's also the document he needs to work full-time at Cannon Industries, the industrial division of Hillcroft Services, East Central Indiana's support services agency for the developmentally disabled.