What is a Developmental Disability?

A "developmental disability" is a severe, chronic disability of a person five years of age or older which --

1. is attributable to a mental or physical impairment or combination of mental or physical impairments;
   
2. is manifested before the person attains age twenty-two;
   
3. is likely to continue indefinitely;
   
4. results in substantial functional limitations in three or more of the following areas of major life activity:
   
   • self-care,
     
   • receptive and expressive language,
     
   • learning,
     
   • mobility,
     
   • self-direction,
     
   • capacity for independent living, and
     
   • economic self-sufficiency and
5. reflects the person's need for a combination and sequence of special, interdisciplinary, or generic care, treatment, or other services which are of lifelong or extended duration and are individually planned and coordinated, (except that such term, when applied to infants and young children means individuals from birth to age 5, inclusive, who have substantial developmental delay or specific congenital or acquired conditions with a high probability of resulting in developmental disabilities if services are not provided).

Examples of developmental disabilities include children and adults with a wide range of diagnoses, including mental retardation, cerebral palsy, autism, spinal cord injury and severe head injury, so long as the condition began before age 22 and therefore affected the person's development.

This definition is taken from the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act)

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