The Virginia Alternative Financing Program

Abstract

Alternative financing programs represent a relatively recent and potentially cost-effective way of providing improved choice and control to people with disabilities who use or need assistive technology. Through the provision of incentives to financial institutions, resources are used to make loans to individuals with disabilities. These loans have repayment rates that are not standard in the financial community. Virginia's model consists of (a) low-interest loans with longer terms and flexible conditions and (b) loan guarantees. The program has leveraged limited public resources by a 6:1 ratio, showing that even states with limited funding can operate and sustain successful loan programs. This article describes financing options, strategies for leveraging and sustaining the funding pool, and future systems-change initiatives, including loans to businesses for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Individual Development Accounts, and microenterprise loans for people with disabilities.

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