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Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals | Bruce Greenstein, Secretary

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Traumatic Head & Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund Program

The Traumatic Head and Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund (TH/SCI) was created by the Louisiana Legislature in 1993 with Act 654, which imposes additional fees on motor vehicle violations in Louisiana for the offenses of driving under the influence, reckless operation, and speeding. These fees provide the funds for this program.

Louisiana's Traumatic Head & Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund Program provides services in a flexible, individualized manner to Louisiana citizens with traumatic head or traumatic spinal cord injuries.The program enables individuals to return to a reasonable level of functioning and independent living in their communities.

What is a traumatic head injury?

Traumatic Head Injury:  An insult to the head, affecting the brain, not of a degenerative or congenital nature, but caused by an external physical force that may produce diminished or altered state of consciousness that results in an impairment of cognitive abilities or physical functioning.

What is a spinal cord injury?

Spinal Cord Injury:  An insult to the spinal cord, not of a degenerative or congenital nature, but caused by an external physical force resulting in paraparesis/plegia or quadraparesis/plegia.

Eligibility

To be determined eligible for services, an individual must meet the definition of traumatic head injury or spinal cord injury:

  • Meet the definition of traumatic head injury or spinal cord injury as defined above.
  • Must be medically stable, including normal vital signs, no progression of deficits and/or no deterioration of physical/cognitive status; does not require acute daily medical intervention.
  • Must have a reasonable expectation to achieve a predictable level of outcome to achieve improvement in quality of life and/or functional outcome.
  • Must be willing to accept treatment from an advisory board-approved facility/program.
  • Must be a resident of Louisiana, a citizen of the United States, and officially domiciled in Louisiana at the time of injury and during the provision of services.
  • Must have exhausted all other governmental and private resources.
  • Must provide proof of denial from other sources.
  • Must complete and submit an application for services.

How to apply for services

Calling 225.219.2410 or 1.888.891.9441 to apply for services. The application is also available online.

Services

The following services are available to eligible individuals and will be provided on a first come, first serve basis:

  • Evaluations
  • Post-acute medical care rehabilitation
  • Therapies
  • Medication
  • Attendant care
  • Equipment necessary for activities of daily living
  • Other goods and services deemed appropriate and necessary

The Trust Fund will not provide any service that is experimental. The service providers must be approved by the Advisory Board, and in-state facilities/programs are given priority for approval as service providers. Services are provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Expenditures shall not exceed $15,000 for any 12-month period or $50,000 in total expenditures per individual.

Additional Resources