Wyoming Funding Guide: ESA, Medicaid Waivers, and Homeschool Funding
Facts checked September 18, 2026 · 6-minute read · by the Brainrich Kids team
Wyoming's $7,000 education savings account started paying families in September 2026 after the state Supreme Court lifted an injunction, and a constitutional challenge is still in district court. The state's expense guidance disallows playground equipment by name. The developmental disability waivers carry a $4,000 a year equipment category.
The quick answer for Wyoming: Wyoming's Steamboat Legacy Scholarship ESA pays $7,000 per K to 12 student through Odyssey, homeschoolers included, with a yearly test requirement. Payments for 2026-27 began in early September 2026 while a constitutional challenge continues. The state's guidance disallows "Playground and lawn equipment," so a play gym is excluded. For a child with a developmental disability, the Supports and Comprehensive Waivers include "Specialized Equipment," limited to $4,000 a year with prior authorization.
Please read this first: program rules, amounts, and waitlists change every year, sometimes mid-year, and no vendor can promise that a program will approve a purchase. Every row below was checked against the linked source on September 18, 2026. Before you spend a dollar, confirm the current rules with the program itself.
Jump to: Wyoming facts table · Can this fund a Brainrich gym? · Next steps · FAQ · The full guides · Sources
Wyoming funding facts at a glance
Three kinds of public money can reach a family in Wyoming: an education account or scholarship, a Medicaid waiver for a child with a developmental disability, and any homeschool-specific tax benefit. Here is what each official source says.
| Question | What the official source says (Wyoming) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ESA or scholarship program | Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act Education Savings Account (HB 199, 2025). Active and paying. The Wyoming Supreme Court lifted a preliminary injunction in May 2026, and the constitutional challenge continues in district court. | Wyoming Dept. of Education |
| Who runs it | Wyoming Department of Education. | Wyoming Dept. of Education |
| Amount per student | $7,000 per student per year for 2026-27, paid quarterly. | Wyoming Dept. of Education |
| Who qualifies | Universal for K to 12: Wyoming residents not enrolled in public school, no income test. Pre-K at age 4 only at or below 250% of the federal poverty level. Seats are limited by appropriation. | Wyoming Dept. of Education |
| Can homeschoolers use it? | Yes. The handbook covers children in "home-based education." Parents must teach the core subjects, and the student must take the statewide or a nationally norm-referenced test every year and upload the results. | ESA Family Handbook |
| Curriculum | Allowed: curriculum, textbooks, supplemental materials, school supplies, and learning manipulatives. | Expense guidance |
| Therapies and therapy equipment | Therapy services are allowed (occupational, behavioral, physical, speech-language), as are assistive technology devices tied to a student's disability. "Medical services and supplies" are disallowed. | Expense guidance |
| PE and play equipment | Excluded. The guidance disallows "Playground and lawn equipment" and large trampolines. It allows sports fees, lessons, and a student-only gym membership. | Expense guidance |
| How purchases work | Odyssey marketplace. Purchases made elsewhere can be submitted for reimbursement in Odyssey within 30 days. | ESA Family Handbook |
| Medicaid waiver for children | Supports Waiver and Comprehensive Waiver, Wyoming Department of Health, both serving people with intellectual or developmental disabilities from birth. | Medicaid.gov |
| Equipment category to ask for | "Specialized Equipment": items that are functionally necessary for daily living or for perceiving, controlling, or communicating with the environment. $4,000 annual limit, with prior authorization. | DD Waiver Service Index |
| Waiver waitlist | As of August 31, 2026: 587 people on the Supports Waiver wait list, 442 of them children. There is no separate Comprehensive Waiver list. Wait time in years: confirm with the program. | WDH August 2026 report |
| Katie Beckett or TEFRA option | Confirm with the program. We could not verify this on an official source on September 18, 2026. | Ask the program |
| Other homeschool funding | None found on official sources. Wyoming has no income tax, so there is no credit or deduction. | Ask the program |
A row that reads "Confirm with the program" means we could not verify that fact on an official source, so we left it open instead of guessing.
Can this fund a Brainrich gym in Wyoming?
A Brainrich gym is a steel indoor climbing frame: ladders, monkey bars, rings, a rope, and a swing point, for ages 3 and up with a parent in the same room. Programs do not approve brands. They approve categories, one purchase at a time. Here is how each lane looks today.
Excluded by the program
Steamboat Legacy Scholarship ESA
The Wyoming Department of Education's expense guidance disallows "Playground and lawn equipment" by name. The physical side of the list is sports fees, lessons, and a student gym membership. Keep in mind that a district court ruling on the program is expected this fall.
Case by case
Supports and Comprehensive Waivers
Ask your case manager about "Specialized Equipment." The category has a $4,000 annual limit, needs prior authorization, and excludes items without a direct medical or remedial benefit, so the clinical documentation carries the request. Approval is decided case by case in your child's individual service plan, usually with an OT or PT recommendation attached, and most waivers pay only after regular Medicaid or private insurance has said no. No state approves play equipment automatically.
Needs a Letter of Medical Necessity
HSA and FSA dollars (the same in every state)
HSA and FSA rules are federal, so Wyoming families follow the same path as everyone else: with a qualifying diagnosis and a Letter of Medical Necessity, a play gym may be eligible. Your plan administrator makes the final call. Start with is a play gym HSA/FSA eligible? and the Letter of Medical Necessity template.
What Brainrich does, and does not do. We never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program. Applications, service plans, and therapist letters are the family's and their professional's work.
The one document we provide is an itemized invoice or quote. Email info@brainrichkids.com with (1) your full name, (2) your address, and (3) the model and color. We send back the invoice with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total, ready for a case worker or a program portal.
🧩 A budget does not have to cover the whole build
Every Brainrich gym is modular. A Model T3 that fits this year's budget becomes a Spider V3 the day you add the Monkey Bars, and each add-on is its own purchase with its own invoice. Families fund the frame from one budget cycle and the expansion from a later one, out of pocket, or as a gift. That means matching real purchases to real budget cycles. It never means splitting a single purchase to slip under a review threshold, which programs treat as a red flag.
Next steps for Wyoming families
1. If your child has a developmental disability, apply for the Supports Waiver through the Wyoming Department of Health. Children make up most of the current wait list, so the application date matters.
2. ESA families: spend the account on what the guidance allows, and watch for the district court's ruling before planning next year around it.
3. When a case worker, support broker, or program portal asks for pricing, request an itemized invoice from us: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color. We reply with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total.
Frequently asked questions: Wyoming
Does Wyoming have an ESA (education savings account)? Yes. The Steamboat Legacy Scholarship ESA pays $7,000 per K to 12 student per year through Odyssey. The Wyoming Supreme Court lifted an injunction in May 2026, payments for 2026-27 began in early September 2026, and a constitutional challenge is still pending in district court.
Can Wyoming homeschoolers use the ESA? Yes. Home-based education is covered. Parents must teach the core subjects, and the student must take the statewide assessment or a nationally norm-referenced test each year and upload the results to keep eligibility.
Can the Wyoming ESA pay for a play gym or PE equipment? No. The Department of Education's expense guidance disallows "Playground and lawn equipment" and large trampolines. It allows sports fees, lessons, and a student-only gym membership.
Which Wyoming Medicaid waiver can fund sensory or adaptive equipment? The Supports and Comprehensive Waivers include "Specialized Equipment," with a $4,000 annual limit and prior authorization. As of August 31, 2026, 587 people were on the Supports Waiver wait list, 442 of them children.
Does Brainrich work with Wyoming funding programs? We provide the itemized invoice or quote that Wyoming programs and case workers ask for: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color, and we send it back with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total. We do not prepare applications or service plans, and we never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program.
📚 The full funding guides
Can You Buy PE and Play Equipment With ESA Funds? · State Disability Waiver Programs: All 50 States · Homeschool Grants and Funding, State by State · Is a Play Gym HSA/FSA Eligible? · Letter of Medical Necessity Template · Financial Assistance: every door in one place · Funding guides for other states
Sources
All sources checked September 18, 2026. Wyoming Department of Education. Education Savings Accounts. · Wyoming Department of Education. ESA Family Handbook. · Wyoming Department of Education. Allowable and Disallowable Expense Guidance. · WyoFile. Program status, September 11, 2026 (secondary). · Wyoming Department of Health. DD Waiver Service Index, July 22, 2026. · Wyoming Department of Health. Community Programs Report, August 2026. · Medicaid.gov. Wyoming waiver factsheet.