The Maryland Senate passed a budget on March 13 cutting $126 million from the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) in fiscal 2027. When federal matching dollars are counted, the actual loss exceeds $250 million. Advocates rallied at the statehouse on March 25. The House took up the budget March 26. The conference committee meets Friday, March 27, to reconcile differences between the two chambers. That's the final decision point before the budget is locked.

If your family depends on DDA services in Maryland, you have days to influence the outcome.

What the DDA Is and Who It Serves

The Developmental Disabilities Administration runs Maryland's Medicaid waiver programs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In fiscal 2025, 19,100 Marylanders received services through DDA waivers. Services include personal care, residential support, day programs, job coaching, and respite care.

Unlike other Medicaid programs, waivers are not entitlements. States control enrollment and funding. Maryland has faced chronic waitlists, with thousands of people waiting years for services. The new cuts will reduce what's available to those already enrolled.

What the Senate Cut and What It Kept

The Senate's $126 million reduction is down from Governor Wes Moore's original proposal of $150 million. The state is closing a $1.5 billion budget gap. Senate President Bill Ferguson specifically cited DDA as "the place where the costs are escalating the fastest." The agency was underfunded by roughly $350 million over the past two fiscal years.

Advocates won one major fight: the Senate rejected a proposed $500,000 annual cap on person-centered plan budgets. That cap would have forced people with the highest medical and support needs out of community-based care. Advocates mobilized rallies, petitions, and direct lobbying. The cap is off the table.

But the Senate kept payment rate cuts of 2 percent or more across most services. For families who hire their own caregivers through self-directed services, wages could drop as much as 50 percent, according to providers quoted in Maryland Matters. Provider agencies face the same cuts. Some will reduce available slots. Others are scrambling to cover gaps through charitable fundraising.

This is the second year of cuts. Last year, the DDA absorbed $164 million in reductions after advocates fought down an initial $400 million proposal. Advocacy reduced the damage then, too. But each year's baseline is lower.

What Happens Next: Conference Committee and the Final Vote

The House passed its version of the budget on March 26. The conference committee, made up of members from both chambers, meets Friday, March 27, to reconcile any differences. After that, the budget goes to final votes in both chambers and then to the governor.

The conference committee is the last decision point where families can influence the outcome. Once the budget clears conference, changes are nearly impossible.

The committee must also address a separate $40 million deficiency in the current fiscal year (FY 2026), according to The Daily Record. The agency has spent more than budgeted for two consecutive years. That shortfall will be funded, but how it's covered affects what's available going forward.

How to Contact Your House Delegate Before Friday

Your House delegate can influence the conference committee's final budget. Contact them now.

Find your delegate: Go to msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/06hse/html/hsedist.html and search by county or district. Each district has three delegates.

How to reach them:

• Phone: Toll-free from Baltimore metro: 410-841-3000. From DC metro: 301-858-3000. Ask for your delegate by name.
• Email: Delegate email addresses follow the format firstname.lastname@house.state.md.us. You can confirm addresses through the General Assembly website.
• Appropriations Committee Chair: Delegate Anne R. Kaiser handles budget matters. Reach her at 410-841-3407 or toll-free at 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3407.

What to say:

• State your name, address, and that you're a constituent.
• Name your connection to DDA services: "My son receives residential habilitation through a DDA waiver" or "I employ a caregiver through self-directed services."
• Be specific about what the cuts mean: "A 50 percent wage cut will force my caregiver out. I can't replace her at that rate."
• Ask your delegate to restore DDA funding in conference committee.
• If you're comfortable, ask for a written response.

Keep it short. Two minutes on the phone. Three paragraphs in an email. Legislative staff log constituent contacts. Volume matters.

What the Cuts Mean for Your Services

If you receive DDA waiver services now, your service coordinator should contact you about changes. If you haven't heard from them by early April, call them. Ask:

• Will my services be reduced?
• Will my provider's reimbursement rate change?
• If I hire my own caregiver, what's the new wage ceiling?
• What happens if my provider stops accepting new clients or drops existing ones?

If you're on a Medicaid waiver waiting list, enrollment will likely slow further. The waiting list already runs years long in some counties. Reduced funding means fewer people moving from the waitlist into services.

If your provider gives notice that they're reducing hours or leaving the DDA system, you have the right to change providers. Your service coordinator can help. But if provider networks shrink statewide, that right becomes harder to exercise. When Medicaid providers stop taking patients, families face gaps in care while searching for replacements.

Maryland Isn't Alone

Indiana cut Medicaid waiver funding from $100 million to $40 million this year. Idaho's HB 863, a $22 million cut to residential habilitation rates, just passed the Senate and is waiting for the governor's signature. Colorado is capping caregiver hours under its Medicaid waiver program.

This is a pattern, not an anomaly. States facing budget shortfalls are cutting optional Medicaid programs first. Waivers are optional under federal law. They're politically easier to cut than entitlement programs with larger constituencies.

The question for Maryland families is whether the pattern holds or whether concentrated advocacy can force a different outcome. Last year, advocates reduced a $400 million cut to $164 million. This year, they killed the $500K cap. The conference committee vote on Friday will show whether that pressure holds again.

Contact your delegate. The window closes Friday.