The priority for vocational rehabilitation services in America is to individuals with the most severe disabilities. The eligibility criteria for services from the American state-federal rehabilitation program are as follows:

(1) A medical disability (which includes autism, mental retardation and psychiatric disabilities) which presents a substantial handicap to employment.
(2) A reasonable expectation that the person will benefit from rehabilitation services.

While the most typical rehabilitation objective is employment in the competitive labor market, other objectives, depending on the disability and circumstances of the consumer, include: (1) supported employment, (2) sheltered employment, (3) self-employment, and (4) in some cases rehabilitation as a homemaker.