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Upcoming Changes to the Community Pathways Waiver Program

Several changes are planned for the Community Pathways Waiver program for the 2027 fiscal year (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027). These changes are required to comply with federal guidelines, adhere to the State’s 2027 budget, and ensure the Maryland Department of Health's Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) can continue delivering essential services to Marylanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Some of these changes took effect on July 1, 2026. Others take effect in the coming months.

Some of these changes require approval from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, through a formal waiver amendment process. On July 1, 2026, DDA submitted a waiver amendment application to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) after holding a mandatory 30-day public comment period that ran from April 29, 2026 through May 28, 2026. Read more about our application to the federal government, what we heard from the public during the comment period, and how we responded to comments by visiting our 2026 Community Pathways Medicaid Waiver Amendment Submission webpage.


CMS has up to 90 days to review DDA’s application.


Archive of Stakeholder Engagement Activities on the Proposed Waiver Amendment

Past Webinars on the Waiver Changes

Monday May 4, 2026

Monday May 11, 2026

Tuesday May 12, 2026

Tuesday May 5, 2026

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​Past webinars on Self-Directed Services and Changes to Reasonable And Customary Standards and Wage Exception Process 

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Monday, May 11, 2026

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