In Montana, you will find beautiful mountains and pristine wilderness, and if you have a brain injury, the go-to organization that everyone knows about that serves people with brain injuries in Montana is the Brain Injury Alliance of Montana. Founded in 1985 by individuals impacted by brain injuries in the state, the group dedicated their time and money to start this statewide organization.
Fast forward 35 years later, the Brain Injury Alliance of Montana is more important than ever to people with brain injuries in the state. Over the years, public funding was added to this nonprofit as well. In 2003, a House bill was passed that added a checkoff process to donate $1 or more to a state special revenue fund for the organization.
This money, albeit modest, is used for a variety of brain injury education and prevention initiatives, as well as support. Today, the Brain Injury Alliance of Montana continues to help people with brain injuries thrive. Read on to discover exactly how they help this population.
Eligibility
The eligibility process for the Brain Injury Alliance is different from that of other state trust funds. Since most of the money is used for public education and the prevention of brain injuries, there are no strict eligibility requirements since no singular individual typically receives any funds from this organization.
There are some instances however when an individual with a traumatic brain injury does receive financial support for a specific need from the Brain Injury Alliance of Montana. In this case, the person must be a resident of Montana and have a medically documented traumatic brain injury.
Services Provided
While some of the money in the Traumatic Brain Injury Trust Fund in Montana is used to provide services to persons suffering from traumatic brain injury, the trust fund itself doesn't generate enough money to provide individuals large amounts of financial support. This trust fund is solely padded by a voluntary $1 donation that Montana residents can donate when registering a new vehicle.
Since 2003, the amount of money the trust fund hoped to generate is not the amount they had hoped for. Instead, this money collected is used for larger public services such as brain injury education and prevention. This money is doled out as a grant to various brain injury organizations in the state, who then plan, coordinate, and provide the services to the population.
Specifically, the Brain Injury Alliance funds the Brain Injury Helpline, which is a free statewide telephone service that helps people with brain injuries by providing support when transitioning back to their family life, or back to work or in the community. You can learn more about the telephone service here: https://www.biamt.org/services/brain-injury-helpline/
The trust fund also financially supports brain injury support groups in Montana. There are several brain injury support groups across the state that are pivotal to the lives of people with brain injuries. To find a support group near you, click here: https://www.biamt.org/support-groups/
The trust fund also supports the Brain Injury Alliance Speaker’s Bureau. This is a program that was established to help support educating the state about brain injuries. To learn more about the Brain Injury Alliance Speaker's Bureau, click here: https://www.biamt.org/services/speakers-bureau/
How to Apply
To apply for any of the services provided by the Brain Injury Alliance of Montana, you can contact them directly. They can be contacted at (406)-541-6442. Otherwise, their Help Line is 1 (800)-241-6442. You can find out more here: https://www.biamt.org/our-services/
- Learn more: https://www.biamt.org/
