Frequently Asked Questions
Have a question about Disability Rights Wisconsin, your rights, or how to get help? Start here.
If you are looking for help with a specific disability-related concern, visit our Get Help page.
Disability Rights Wisconsin (DRW) protects and advocates for the rights of people with disabilities across Wisconsin. Our services are available to eligible people with disabilities. We may also give information and resources to family members, supporters, professionals, and others who are helping a person with a disability understand or protect their rights.
There is no charge for DRW’s advocacy or legal services.
DRW works on disability rights issues that affect people’s ability to live safely, make their own choices, and participate fully in their communities.
We work on issues like:
- Abuse, neglect, and safety
- Disability discrimination
- Access to services and supports
- Education rights
- Employment rights
- Housing and community living
- Accessibility
- Self-determination and decision-making
- Rights in institutions and other service settings
- Public policies and practices that affect people with disabilities
- Rights and options as members of SSI-Managed Care Health Maintenance Organizations and long-term care programs Family Care, Family Care Partnership, and IRIS
- Crime victims’ rights and support
Because DRW has limited resources and specific funding requirements, we cannot help directly with most disability-related concerns. Most of our work is giving people information about their disability rights in society.
Learn more about our Areas of Focus and current advocacy priorities.
If you have a disability-related concern and want to find out if DRW can help, visit our Get Help page. This page has information about the types of issues DRW handles and how to contact us.
If you are a member of Family Care, IRIS, or Family Care Partnership, our FCIOP program may be able to give more extensive services than other programs.
Depending on your concern, DRW may give information, advocacy help, legal advice, or representation. We may also direct you to resources that can help you better understand your rights or next steps.
DRW uses several approaches to protect and advance disability rights.
Depending on the issue and our capacity, our work may include:
- Giving information about disability rights
- Helping people understand their options
- Supporting people to advocate for themselves
- Giving advocacy or legal help in eligible cases
- Investigating abuse, neglect, or rights violations
- Monitoring facilities and programs serving people with disabilities
- Giving education and training to groups and organizations
- Working to improve policies, laws, and practices
- Addressing issues that affect many people with disabilities
Most people who contact DRW will not get individual representation. Our staff consider the issue, our current priorities, available resources, and the requirements of our Protection and Advocacy programs when deciding which cases to take on for direct help.
Knowing your rights can make it easier to recognize when something is wrong and decide what to do next.
DRW gives information and resources about disability rights, including topics such as education, employment, community living, discrimination, accessibility, services, and self-advocacy.
Visit our Resources section to find:
- Fact sheets and guides
- Frequently asked questions
- Videos and training materials
- Self-advocacy tools
- Information about disability rights laws
- Links to other trusted resources
If you cannot find what you need, you can also search the website or visit our Get Help page.
DRW cannot give individual legal representation to everyone who contacts us. Because so many people contact us every day, most of our work is short-term in nature - such as information and referral or brief rights coaching.
When deciding how we may be able to help, DRW considers factors like:
- Whether the issue falls within our legal authority and funding requirements
- Whether it aligns with our current priorities
- The seriousness and urgency of the concern
- Whether advocacy could help address a broader problem affecting other people with disabilities
- The staff and resources available
Sometimes an individual concern also helps DRW identify a larger pattern or problem that may require broader advocacy.
DRW cannot give direct help with every issue.
If your concern falls outside our current priorities, legal authority, or available resources, information on our website may still help you understand your rights and possible next steps. We may also be able to identify other organizations, legal resources, or community services that could be useful. Visit our Resources page to explore other sources of information and help.
Every state and U.S. territory has a Protection and Advocacy organization, often called a P&A. Disability Rights Wisconsin is Wisconsin’s designated Protection and Advocacy agency.
P&A organizations were created to protect the rights of people with disabilities. They have authority under federal law to investigate certain concerns, monitor places where people with disabilities get services, give advocacy and legal help, and address policies or practices that affect disability rights.
DRW is independent from the state agencies and service providers whose programs or practices it may review.
Federal Protection and Advocacy laws give DRW certain authority to access facilities, programs, records, and people with disabilities when specific legal requirements are met.
This authority helps DRW protect people from abuse and neglect and monitor whether their rights are being respected.
Depending on the circumstances, DRW may be able to visit places where people with disabilities live, get services, attend programs, or get treatment. These may include:
- Group homes
- Nursing homes
- Hospitals and treatment facilities
- Residential programs
- Day programs
- Schools
- Correctional or detention settings
- Other settings serving people with disabilities
DRW may use this authority to speak with people getting services, give information about their rights, monitor conditions, or investigate concerns about abuse, neglect, or rights violations.
DRW cannot address every disability rights issue in Wisconsin, so each year we set priorities to help guide our work.
These priorities are informed by several sources, including:
- Input from people with disabilities
- Concerns shared by families, advocates, and community organizations
- Issues people bring to DRW
- Emerging disability rights concerns
- Changes in laws, policies, and services
- Patterns or problems affecting many people with disabilities
- Requirements of our Protection and Advocacy programs
DRW’s Board of Directors reviews and approves the organization’s Protection and Advocacy priorities.
We want to hear directly from people with disabilities and others in Wisconsin’s disability community.
You can share information about:
- Barriers you are experiencing
- Problems with disability-related programs or services
- Policies affecting you or your community
- Rights concerns you believe DRW should know about
- Changes that could improve the lives of people with disabilities
You do not need to be asking DRW for legal help to share your experience. Your input helps DRW identify emerging issues, understand how policies and services affect people in real life, and decide where broader advocacy may be needed.