Self-Advocacy Resources

Respite gives family members a break from caring for you and gives them time to do other things. The regional center pays for it. Sometimes the regional center may refuse to give you, stop or cutback respite. You can appeal this decision. This pub is a step-by-step guide to help you prepare for a regional center respite fair hearing.

This pub tells you about laws that bar discrimination based on disability. It tells you about the laws that apply to businesses open to the public. It tells you what discrimination is. If a business discriminates against you, it tells you what you can do about it. It gives you sample letters.

Federal and state law require employers to accommodate your disability. This publication gives you a sample letter to ask for an accommodation. It has a sample letter for your doctor. It tells you what to do if your employer will not give you an accommodation for your disability so you can do your job.

This tells you about your right to have an assistance animal when your housing does not allow pets.  Assistance animal means an animal you need lives in your home. It can be a service animal or an emotional support animal. This pub tells you what to do if your landlord will not let you keep your assistance animal and tells you where to get help.

You cannot bring emotional support animals into businesses or public places. You can bring service animals to those places. This pub tells you how to know if your animal is a service animal. If a business does not let you have your service animal, this pub tells you what you can do to keep your animal with you.

There are different Medi-Cal programs to help people with disabilities and seniors stay in their homes. These programs can help them return home from places like hospitals and nursing homes. This pub gives you information about these programs. It tells you what to do if you need help getting one of the programs.