Who it may help
A person receiving or pursuing Oregon I/DD attendant care who has a trusted adult they would like considered as their DSP.
Empowered Choice · Oregon I/DD Attendant Care
Choose someone you trust. Keep a care team behind you.
Empowered Choice helps a person receiving—or pursuing—Oregon I/DD attendant care ask that a trusted family member, friend, neighbor, or longtime supporter be considered as their paid Direct Support Professional. If the caregiver is hired and services are authorized, Empowered Services supports the relationship with training, payroll, supervision, and an ongoing care team.
Your choiceStart with someone you already trust
A care teamSupport after services begin
Your choiceSomeone you already know and trust
StatewideCustomer Intake across all 36 counties
Two pathsService intake + caregiver application
Care teamSupport after services begin
Empowered Choice at a glance
What Empowered Choice does.
Empowered Choice helps a person receiving or pursuing Oregon I/DD attendant care ask that someone they already know and trust be considered as their paid DSP through Empowered Services.
First step
Customer Intake tells us about the person receiving support, their county, service status, needs, and chosen caregiver.
Caregiver step
Official application lets the chosen caregiver upload their résumé and begin the Empowered Choice Provider hiring process in BambooHR.
Care-team support
If services begin, the caregiver has an employer and care team behind them for training, supervision, communication, and follow-through.
What it is
Your choice leads. Our job is to make that choice safe, supported, and workable.
You choose the relationship. Empowered Services supports the employment, training, payroll, supervision, and agency responsibilities around it.
The pathway may fit when the person has—or is working toward—authorized Medicaid/ODDS-funded I/DD attendant care and the chosen adult can meet employment and service requirements. Household, relationship, authorization, availability, and program rules apply. Empowered Services does not offer private-pay services.
Statewide first step
Start from any of Oregon’s 36 counties.
Customer Intake is open to every Oregon county. Every county has clear care-team accountability within Empowered Services’ regional model, and your intake is routed to the team responsible for your area.
Submitting intake starts a review—not a promise that services can begin right away. Authorization, caregiver eligibility, support needs, DSP availability, agency capacity, and fit determine what can move forward.
Your first two steps
Start with the person. Bring the caregiver alongside.
The service and employment steps can move at the same time, but the person receiving support stays at the center of every decision.
01
Person receiving support
Complete Customer Intake to tell us who needs support, where they live, their current Oregon I/DD service status, what support matters, and who they have chosen. The person, guardian, family member, the person and caregiver together, or case manager may complete it. Our intake or regional care team usually follows up within 1–2 business days.
Start Empowered Choice intake02
Chosen caregiver
Open the official Empowered Choice Provider application while Customer Intake is being reviewed. Upload your résumé and begin the employment process. Recruiting will review the application and explain references, background check, hiring, training, and next steps.
Upload résumé & applyCustomer Intake opens the service path. The BambooHR application opens the chosen caregiver’s employment path. Neither step authorizes services or guarantees employment.
Your customer journey
Four steps from choice to supported care.
You choose the relationship. We help you understand what must happen before paid support can begin—and who is responsible for each step.
1
Tell us who you chose
Share the trusted adult you would like considered, how they know the person, and whether they live in the same household.
2
Check what must be in place
Your local CDDP determines I/DD eligibility. Your Services Coordinator or Personal Agent helps you plan and manage authorized services. We review what applies to the caregiver relationship, household, support needs, availability, and agency fit.
3
Complete hiring and training
The caregiver completes the formal application, references, required background check, training, and service-documentation steps. Our recruiting and onboarding teams guide the process.
4
Begin support—with a team behind you
After authorization, hiring, training, and start requirements are complete, the caregiver may begin paid work as an Empowered Services DSP. The care team stays involved after support begins.
Why families choose it
Someone who knows you—with a team behind them.
- Someone who already knows youThe caregiver may already understand routines, communication, preferences, and what helps the person feel comfortable and safe.
- Your voice stays centralThe person receiving support remains at the center. Empowered Services supports the relationship without taking the choice away.
- Your caregiver is supported tooDSPs receive training, regular check-ins, clear communication, and a team they can turn to. Our wellness culture supports self-care and community care so caregivers do not have to carry the work alone.
- A real employer behind the caregiverEmpowered Services manages hiring, payroll, required records, supervision, and agency responsibilities. The caregiver completes required training and service documentation.
- A care team stays connectedA Regional Care Manager welcomes new customers and DSPs. Your Care Manager and Care Coordinator stay involved with changes, questions, required reporting, backup planning, and community connections after services begin.
Your choice matters—and safeguards still matter. We review support needs, communication, safety, household factors, and what will help the relationship work over time. Learn about the Empowered Match Method.
“I have experience both as the parent of a young adult with autism receiving services, and as a DSP for my son. They guided me through training, always available for support—I truly feel like part of a wonderful family.”
Founded on relationships
Empowered Services was founded in Oregon in 2018 on a simple belief: people thrive through trusted care relationships supported by systems that protect choice, dignity, and continuity.
That belief shapes how we onboard caregivers, coordinate with case-management teams, and stay involved after support begins. Empowered Choice is that relationship-first approach in action.
Read our storyQuestions, answered
Questions people ask before they begin.
Plain answers about who may qualify, what the caregiver must do, and what happens next.
Who can I choose as my caregiver?
Many trusted adults may be considered, including relatives, friends, neighbors, or longtime supporters, if they can meet employment and service requirements. Oregon rules do not allow an agency to employ someone to provide these services to their spouse. Household, authorization, and conflict-of-interest rules may also apply, so Empowered Services reviews each situation with the person’s case-management team.
Can a parent or guardian be paid to support a minor child?
Yes, through Oregon’s Children’s Extraordinary Needs Program when all program conditions are met. Oregon ODDS lists Empowered Services as a provider agency interested in hiring parent caregivers through CEN. The program is for eligible children under 18 with very high medical or behavioral support needs. Enrolled children can receive up to 20 hours of paid care per week from a parent or guardian. The program can serve 230 children at a time and has a waitlist. The child’s Services Coordinator helps with next steps, and ODDS confirms program eligibility. Parent and guardian providers must complete required training and a criminal background check. Learn more about the CEN Program on Oregon.gov.
Who can use the Empowered Choice Program?
Empowered Choice may fit a person who receives or is pursuing Oregon I/DD attendant care and has chosen a trusted adult who can meet employment and DSP requirements. Community Developmental Disabilities Programs determine I/DD eligibility. A Services Coordinator or Personal Agent helps the person plan and manage authorized services. Empowered Services does not determine eligibility or authorize service hours. We accept Customer Intake from all 36 Oregon counties and explain what must be in place before support can begin.
Does the chosen caregiver get paid and trained?
Yes, once the caregiver is hired and approved to begin. The caregiver becomes an employee of Empowered Services and is paid for authorized work. They complete the required background check, training, and service documentation. Empowered Services provides payroll, supervision, training support, and agency systems.
Can the caregiver live with the person receiving support?
Sometimes. Living in the same household can affect how the role is reviewed, authorized, and set up. Share the household arrangement during Customer Intake so Empowered Services and the case-management team can explain what applies.
How much does Empowered Choice cost?
There is no charge to ask a question or submit Customer Intake. Empowered Services provides Medicaid/ODDS-funded attendant care and does not offer private-pay services. Approved services are funded through Oregon’s I/DD system for eligible people. Authorization, program requirements, service availability, agency capacity, and fit apply.
Does choosing someone guarantee that they will be hired or that services will start?
No. The chosen person must meet employment, background-check, training, relationship, and service requirements. Services must also be authorized and available. Empowered Services explains barriers as early as possible and helps identify the next appropriate step.
How do we get started?
Start with Customer Intake for the person receiving support. A customer, guardian, family member, the customer and caregiver together, or a case manager may complete it. The chosen caregiver should also open the official Empowered Choice Provider application, upload their résumé, and begin the employment process in BambooHR. Customer Intake opens the service path; the BambooHR application opens the employment path. The intake or regional care team usually follows up within 1–2 business days.
Program information updated August 2026. Rules can change, and each authorization is individual. Review the current Oregon community living supports rules and Children’s Extraordinary Needs Program and waitlist, or ask our team to explain what applies.
Ready when you are
Start with the person receiving support.
You do not need every answer before you begin. Tell us who needs support, where they live, what services they have or are pursuing, and who they would like considered as their caregiver.
Customer Intake opens the Empowered Choice service path. The chosen caregiver can upload their résumé and begin the official BambooHR application at the same time. Neither step guarantees authorization, service availability, or employment.
Use Customer Intake for personal service details. Avoid sending sensitive medical, Medicaid, financial, or customer-specific information through ordinary email or text. Privacy policy.