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Respite Services for Children with Disabilities
Reviewed July 2025
Respite care provides short-term relief, or time off, from direct caregiving for your child with disabilities or special health care needs. A respite care provider gives parents or other caregivers time away from their direct caregiving responsibilities.
Why Respite is Important
Respite care gives parents and caregivers the opportunity to recharge, decrease stress and spend quality time with other family members. Parents can lose focus on their own health and well-being, which has consequences for the whole family. Respite care lets them find the time needed to decompress and think about their own self-care.
Comparing Respite Care and Personal Care Services
Respite care is not the same as personal care.
- Personal care services help with activities of daily living like feeding, toileting, bathing, dressing and preparing meals. It can be paid for by Wisconsin Medicaid. Medicaid requires that personal care services be done in your family’s home. To learn more, see our Family Voices Fact Sheet Medicaid Personal Care Services.
- Respite care can look like anything you and your child need to allow you to take time off of your caregiving duties. It is not a Medicaid benefit. Families who have children enrolled in the Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) Program often use CLTS funds to cover the cost of respite care. A respite provider can spend time with your child in your home or take them out in the community to places like a park or to attend an event.
Paying for Respite Care
The Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) Program and the Children’s Community Options Program (CCOP) can be used to cover the cost of respite care.
To learn more about the CLTS Program go to dhs.wisconsin.gov/clts/index.htm
To learn more about CCOP go to dhs.wisconsin.gov/ccop/index.htm
Your family may also qualify for some short-term, or emergency respite, from your local, or county respite care program. The Respite Care Association of Wisconsin (RCAW) at 608.222.2033 or respitecarewi.org can give you more information about programs in your area. RCAW also offers grants to help pay for respite care providers and fund crisis respite care needs. See respitecarewi.org/grants. For families who do not qualify for county-based programs or grants, paying out-of-pocket to get respite care is an option.
Tip for Families
To find interview questions and useful tips for hiring respite providers, go to the Respite Care Association’s KIT for Caregivers at respitecarewi.org/training-courses/kit-for-caregivers.
Respite Care Programs and Wait Lists
Many respite programs have wait lists because they cannot hire enough providers to meet the needs of families. Some programs make exceptions for families in crisis or who have an urgent need, so keep the respite program updated about changes in your family’s situation.
If you can pay directly, some respite programs will share their database of respite providers with you, even if you are still on their wait list.
Tip for Families
Sometimes parents are able to support each other by providing mutual respite. They take care of one-another’s children for a few hours at planned times. This can be a great way to bridge the gaps in care.
Finding Respite Care Providers
Think about looking outside formal programs when you are searching for respite care. This could mean getting care for your child from extended family, friends, neighbors, or asking for help from your faith community. Also ask other families or staff members at your child’s school. They may know of a respite provider or even someone who is qualified and available to provide short-term, or summertime, care for your child.
College students make great respite providers. Students may be willing to work a limited number of hours for free to fulfill class requirements or to gain real-world experience. If you live close to a technical college or university, use the school’s online job board to find students who are studying in these fields:
- Education
- Health Care
- Occupational Therapy
- Psychology
- Physical Therapy
- Speech Therapy
- Social Work
Overnight or Weekend Respite Care
There are some overnight respite programs for children with disabilities and other special needs. One example is the Easterseals Wisconsin respite program. These programs have fun camp activities for the participants and give families a break from caregiving.
Learn More about Respite Care
Respite Care Association of Wisconsin, respitecarewi.org: Helps families find providers and has materials on hiring and keeping respite providers. Grants are also available to pay for respite services.
Easterseals Wisconsin, eastersealswisconsin.com/programs-services/camps: Hosts respite programs and camps throughout the year.
ARCH ꟷ National Respite Network, archrespite.org/consumer-information: Creates and shares resources, and hosts programs and trainings for respite providers and families.
INFORMATION AND RESOURCES
Wisconsin Wayfinder: Children’s Resource Network, 877-WiscWay (877-947-2929): Wisconsin Wayfinder offers families one name and phone number to find services for children with special health care needs. Wayfinder connects you to a resource guide at one of the five Children’s Resource Centers in your area.
If you need this fact sheet as a pdf or other format contact Lynn at lynn@fvofwi.org.
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