Michigan's Family Support Subsidy Program

The Michigan Family Support Subsidy (FSS) Program supports families caring for a child with developmental disabilities at home by providing a monthly payment to assist with expenses. The subsidy may also be used to help bring a child home from an outside placement.

What Can the Subsidy Be Used For?

Families decide how best to spend their Family Support Subsidy payment. They may choose, for example, to use their monthly payment (currently $300.36) to cover therapies, specialized equipment, transportation, respite care, or home modifications.

Who May Be Eligible?

Families may be eligible for the Michigan Family Support Subsidy if they have a child under age 18 who has been identified by Michigan’s public school system as having an educational eligibility category of:

• Severe Cognitive Impairment (SCI)
• Severe Multiple Impairment (SXI)
• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). ASD eligible students must be receiving services in an ASD, SCI, or SXI designated program.
• Families may be birth parents, adoptive parents, or legal guardians. Foster parents are not eligible unless they are also the child’s legal guardian.
• The family’s Michigan taxable income may not exceed $60,000, and families cannot receive both the Family Support Subsidy and the Medical Subsidy Program for Adoptive Children at the same time.

How to Apply

Families apply through their local Community Mental Health Services Program (CMHSP). For more information visit the Family Support Subsidy program website.