Funding a GPS tracker in California
In California, help for children with developmental disabilities runs through 21 regional centers overseen by the Department of Developmental Services. This page explains which of their services may help with a safety device, how to apply, and what to ask. It is general information, not advice, and we cannot tell you whether your child qualifies.
Last updated 7 October 2026. Written by StepSafe, which sells a GPS tracker for children who wander, so read the product parts with that in mind.
Read this first
This is general information, not legal or medical advice. We are not benefits advisors and we have no relationship with any program named here. No product of ours is covered, approved or endorsed by any of them, and we cannot tell you whether your child qualifies.
Programs change. Treat this page as a list of questions to ask, confirm everything with the agency before you spend money, and keep your receipts.
Last checked: 7 October 2026. The Department of Developmental Services website could not be opened from where we did this research, so we read its pages from archived copies saved earlier in 2026. The links below go to the live pages. Confirm the current version with your regional center.
Programs in California to ask about
None of the official pages we read names GPS trackers for children who wander. What they do list are services such as assistive technology, adaptive aids, specialized equipment and personal emergency response systems. Those are the words to use when you ask.
Regional center services
California Department of Developmental Services (DDS), through 21 regional centers
Regional centers assess eligibility, then help plan, coordinate and monitor the services a person needs because of a developmental disability. Once a person is eligible, a service coordinator helps build a plan with the family.[1]
The services regional centers provide include purchasing the necessary services written into a person's Individual Program Plan (IPP). DDS says most services and supports are free regardless of age or income.[1]
Safety devices: May cover safety or assistive technology; ask your coordinator. We did not find an official page that names GPS trackers for wandering.
HCBS Waiver for Californians with Developmental Disabilities
DDS, implemented by regional centers under the oversight of the state Medicaid agency
This is California's Medicaid (Medi-Cal) home and community-based services waiver for people served by regional centers. CMS approved a five year renewal effective 1 January 2023.[2]
Two of its services are worth asking about. Specialized Medical Equipment and Supplies includes devices that help a participant "perceive, control, or communicate with the environment in which they live".[3] Personal Emergency Response Systems (PERS) is a 24-hour emergency assistance service whose allowable items include monitoring services, but it is limited to people who have no regular caregiver or companion for periods of time.[3]
Safety devices: May cover safety or assistive technology; ask your coordinator. We did not find an official page that names GPS trackers for wandering.
Ability Tools
California's Assistive Technology Act program
Ability Tools runs device lending and demonstration centers and assistive technology reuse centers across the state.[6] It is a way to try equipment before anyone pays for it. We have not confirmed that any center lends GPS trackers.
Safety devices: Lends and demonstrates assistive technology; ask whether a locating device is available to try.
Who qualifies, in general terms
To be eligible for regional center services, a person must have a disability that begins before their 18th birthday, is expected to continue indefinitely and is a substantial disability. Qualifying conditions include intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy and autism.[1]
A child from birth to four years old may qualify provisionally, without a diagnosis, if they have significant functional limitations in at least two major life activities.[1]
Infants and toddlers under 3 with a developmental delay, or at risk of one, may be served through Early Start, California's early intervention program.[1],[5]
The HCBS waiver is a Medi-Cal (Medicaid) program.[2] Your service coordinator can tell you whether it applies to your child.
Only the agency can decide whether your child is eligible. These are the general rules as published, not a test you can apply yourself.
How to apply, step by step
- Find the regional center for where you live using the DDS regional center lookup.[4]
- Ask for an intake and an eligibility assessment. DDS says there is no charge for the diagnosis and eligibility assessment.[1]
- If your child is under 3, ask about Early Start instead.[5]
- Once your child is eligible, a service coordinator is assigned and a planning team builds the Individual Program Plan.[1] Ask for the wandering risk and the safety need to be written into it.
- Ask whether a safety device could be purchased under the plan, and under which service. Bring anything your child's doctor or therapist has written about wandering.
- While you wait, ask Ability Tools whether you can borrow or try a device.[6]
What to ask your case manager or service coordinator
Questions to take to the meeting
- Can a wearable locating device be written into my child's Individual Program Plan as a safety need?
- Would it come under Specialized Medical Equipment and Supplies, Personal Emergency Response Systems, or another service?
- What documentation do you need from my child's doctor or therapist about the wandering?
- Do you need quotes, a product description, or a specific vendor?
- Does the program pay for an ongoing service plan, or only for the device?
- If it is not approved, can I have the decision in writing, and how do I appeal?
For a sample request letter and a note on how wandering is recorded in a medical file, see what to say when you ask.
Programs change
Waiver services, eligibility rules and application steps are updated regularly. We last read these pages on 7 October 2026. Before you rely on anything here, confirm it with the agency or your coordinator. If you find something out of date, email support@stepsafekids.com and we will fix it.
Other states
- TexasPrograms, who qualifies and how to apply →
- FloridaPrograms, who qualifies and how to apply →
- New YorkPrograms, who qualifies and how to apply →
- PennsylvaniaPrograms, who qualifies and how to apply →
Not listed? Read the United States overview for the routes that exist in every state.
What we make
StepSafe makes a clip-on cellular GPS tracker for children who wander. StepSafe ships in early 2027. Nothing on this page means any program will pay for it.
See the shop, or start with our free safety toolkit, which works whatever device you choose.