Code of Massachusetts Regulations
606 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF EARLY EDUCATION AND CARE
Title 606 CMR 5.00 - Standards for the Licensure or Approval of Agencies Offering Child Placement and Adoption Services
Section 5.10 - Services to Adoptive Parents

Universal Citation: 606 MA Code of Regs 606.5

Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024

(1) Information to be Provided. The licensee shall provide in writing to all prospective adoptive parent applicants and upon request to any person the following information:

(a) information regarding the licensee's program and the needs of children in the Commonwealth for family foster care and adoption;

(b) its statement identifying all qualifications required of adoptive parents, and evaluation, approval and orientation procedures, as required by 606 CMR 5.10(3), (4), and (6);

(c) its statement of physical requirements for adoptive homes, as required by 606 CMR 5.10(5).

(d) grievance and appeal procedures as required by 606 CMR 5.04(3)(g) and (h);

(e) policy regarding financial responsibilities, including the agency's policy regarding financial assistance to expectant parents, the agency's policy for financial assistance to adoptive parent applicants, and the agency's estimate of costs for all services provided;

(f) The agency's policies and procedures to prevent the abduction, exploitation, sale or trafficking of children including, but not limited to, the agency's prohibition of employees or agents from giving money or other consideration, directly or indirectly, to a child's parent(s) or other individuals or entities as payment for a child or as an inducement to release the child for adoption;

(g) a statement of the adoption program budget (current year) as required by 606 CMR 5.03(2)(a)6. is available on request;

(h) a current list of the board of directors and advisory board (if different), including names and addresses;

(i) copies of interagency agreements describing services to the adoptive parent applicant, as applicable;

(j) the address and telephone number of the regional office of the Department of Early Education and Care.

(2) Before accepting any fee or payment for services from adoptive parent applicants, the licensee shall enter into a written service plan or contract for services with the applicants that specifies:

(a) the services that the licensee will provide directly for the adoptive parents;

(b) the services that will be provided to the adoptive parent applicants by other agencies or resources, through interagency agreement;

(c) the estimated cost, if any, to adoptive parents for each service to be provided, or the total cost of all services, if the agency uses a flat fee or sliding fee scale;

(d) anticipated timelines for the delivery of each service to be provided;

(e) the schedule for payment of all costs;

(f) the obligations or expectations of adoptive parent applicants necessary to enable the licensee to fulfill its responsibilities under the service plan and/or its contract for services.

(3) Orientation. The licensee shall provide an orientation for adoptive parent applicants. The orientation shall include general information on the following:

(a) ethical standards in adoption practice;

(b) the characteristics, needs and number of children available for foster care and adoption placement including, but not limited to, infants, older children, sibling groups and children with special needs;

(c) separation and loss, and the circumstances under which children require placement;

(d) the role of the placement agency, the children served by the agency, and the services provided by the placement agency;

(e) the agency philosophy and policy regarding discipline of children;

(f) the legal rights and responsibilities of adoptive parents;

(g) adopting children with special needs, as appropriate;

(h) the purpose, nature and types of adoption including, but not limited to, local, inter-state and international placements and the variety of communication arrangements that may be made between birth and adoptive families;

(i) current statistics regarding the choices made by expectant parents who receive agency services to parent or place their child for adoption;

(j) the number of adoptive parent applicants currently waiting for placement;

(j) the agency's procedures regarding domestic adoption placement, including the criteria and procedures used to identify a particular adoptive family for a particular child;

(l) current information regarding the average number of anticipated placements ("matches") per adoptive parent applicant that occur before a placement is made;

(m) the approximate duration of time from approval or assignment of a child to placement of a child, and the agency's assignment procedures;

(n) disclosure that the licensee cannot enforce any agreements (written and/or unwritten) entered into between birth parents and adoptive parents;

(o) the legal procedures for adoption, including information regarding the court's authority to enforce agreements regarding communication between birth and adoptive parents; and

(p) the process children may use to locate birth parents and that birth parents may use to locate children.

(4) Adoptive Parent Preparation.

(a) Prior to placement the licensee shall provide a minimum of ten hours of education to adoptive parent applicants about a range of issues that influence adjustment after adoptive placement including, but not limited to:
1. risk and protective factors shaping adopted children's physical, social and mental health adjustment and ways to meet their medical, mental health and developmental needs. Such information shall include the risks, consequences and prevention of lead poisoning;

2. loss and grief issues for themselves and their adopted children;

3. child development and parenting techniques;

4. differences between parenting adopted children and parenting children born into the family;

5. talking with children about adoption and addressing identity issues;

6. the benefits and responsibilities of openness in adoption and the range of related issues including, but not limited to, the evolution of relationships with birth family members, developing effective open relationships, and search and reunion supports;

7. the impact of adoption on child development and family adjustment throughout the life cycle;

8. community resources, both formal and informal, for post-adoption education, support, and therapeutic intervention; and

9. the importance of notifying the agency in the event of dissolution or disruption of the adoption.

(b) In addition, prior to placement of any infant in an adoptive home the adoptive parents must be trained in infant care and safety techniques.

(5) Physical Requirements for Adoptive Homes. The licensee shall establish physical requirements for adoptive homes which shall include, but need not be limited to the following:

(a) The home must be clean, safe, free of obvious fire and other hazards including, but not limited to, chipping, flaking or peeling paint or broken plaster; and of sufficient size to accommodate comfortably and appropriately all members of the household and the approved number of foster or adopted children to be placed;

(b) The home shall have a working stove for cooking and adequate lighting and ventilation, hot and cold water supply, plumbing, electricity, and heat;

(c) The home shall have sufficient furniture to allow each child to sleep in a separate bed and to have adequate storage space for his personal belongings;

(d) The home shall be equipped with smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors in working order;

(e) If the home uses well water, it shall be tested and determined safe, and a report of the test furnished to the licensee;

(f) Any firearms located in the home shall be registered and licensed in accordance with state law, trigger-locked or fully inoperable and stored without ammunition in a locked area. Ammunition shall be stored in a separate locked location.

(g) A working telephone for both incoming and out-going calls shall be available in the home at all times;

(h) All pets must be appropriate for the children in care, free from disease and parasites and licensed and/or vaccinated as prescribed by law.

(6) Evaluation of Applicants. The licensee shall, consistent with its current needs, promptly evaluate adoptive parent applicants. The assessment shall be completed by a social worker who meets the requirements of 606 CMR 5.06(3). The assessment shall include at least three in-person interviews with the applicants, including at least two meetings in the applicant's home. No assessment can be considered complete unless all of the requirements of 606 CMR 5.10(6) have been met, and for adoption approval, until 30 days have elapsed since the beginning of the assessment.

(a) The licensee shall interview applicants individually at least once, and as often as is necessary to determine the applicants' qualifications to adopt a child.

(b) The licensee shall interview all other members of the applicants' household, as appropriate to the age of the member of the household.

(c) The licensee shall determine that each applicant and each household member 15 years of age or older has a background free of conduct which in the judgment of the licensee, bears adversely upon his or her ability to provide for the safety and wellbeing of children. In making this determination, the licensee shall consider the following:
1. Engaging in, or having engaged in, conduct which results in his or her child being adjudicated in need of care and protection;

2. Use of alcohol or drugs to an extent or in a manner that impairs his or her ability to care for children properly;

3. Having engaged in conduct which results in a CORI (Criminal Offender Record Information) report or having engaged in any other conduct, criminal or otherwise, that is determined by the licensee to impair the individual's ability to care for children.
a. A CORI report shall consist of arrest, pending criminal charges or criminal charges that have been finally disposed of for any offense involving sexual or physical abuse, any offense involving children and violent or drug-related crimes, including driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

b. A CORI report shall also consist of the report of a restraining order entered pursuant to M.G.L. c. 209A, violations of such restraining orders and other arrests, pending charges or findings relative to abuse of adult or child family members.

4. Allegations of abuse or neglect, supported in a report issued pursuant to M.G.L. c. 119, § 51B.

5. Adjudication by the Sex Offender Registry Board as a registered sex offender.

6. Criminal record information from a Fingerprint-based check.

(d) The assessment shall be summarized in a written report and shall document the dates and location of assessment activities, and:
1. the applicant's previous experience with foster or adoption placement services, if any, and the outcome of such experience;

2. motivation for adoption;

3. emotional stability and compatibility of the applicants;

4. the social, education and health history of the applicant;

5. the family composition (including pets), a description of the home, including sleeping areas, and the adjustment of all children in the home, if any;

6. the family's attitude toward accepting an adopted child; the applicant(s)' relationships with extended family, and the attitudes of extended family members toward accepting an adopted child;

7. parenting ability, including child rearing and discipline, and the family's willingness and capacity to parent children with behavioral or emotional problems;

8. the applicants' attitudes toward parenting a child of a different racial, ethnic or cultural background, a child with a history/family history of substance abuse, mental health or medical disabilities, or a child of a different sexual orientation than the applicants, and the resources available to support the applicants in each case;

9. the network of personal and community supports available to support the adoptive parents and child, following placement;

10. the family's attitude toward the birth parents of the child, and about visitation and contact, if applicable;

11. characteristics of children desired, including age, sex, abilities or disabilities, behavior, and characteristics of children parents are not willing to adopt;

12. at least three written references;

13. a written statement from a licensed physician regarding the health of each member of the household;

14. evidence of birth certificates, marriage certificates and/or divorce decrees;

15. evidence of each person's compliance with 606 CMR 5.10(6)(c);

16. expectations for a child, including the family's plans to discuss adoption with the child;

17. review of the adoptive parent applicant's financial ability to care for an adopted child; and

18. the licensee's conclusions regarding the applicant(s)' ability to meet the physical, developmental, emotional and educational needs of a child or children; the licensee's recommendation as to the age, gender and characteristics of children which the applicant(s)' home can safely accommodate and which the adoptive parent applicant(s) can best serve.

(e) The written report shall be reviewed and approved by the supervisor of the social worker who completed the assessment.

(f) Notwithstanding 606 CMR 5.10(6)(e), home study assessment reports completed by Licensed Independent Clinical Social Workers must be reviewed by a person with equivalent qualifications and prior experience suitable to the goals of the licensee. These reports shall be considered complete when signed by the reviewer.

(g) Home study assessments for prospective adoptive parents shall be valid for a maximum of 18 months from the date of completion.

(h) In place of the complete home study assessment required by 606 CMR 5.10(6)(a), (b), and (c), the licensee may perform a limited assessment or home study assessment update in the following circumstances:
1. if the licensee receives an adoptive parent assessment from another agency licensed or approved by the Department completed not more than eighteen months prior to the current application for approval;

2. if the licensee receives an adoptive parent assessment performed in another state in accordance with the laws of such state, completed not more than eighteen months prior to the current application for approval;

3. if a placement does not occur within eighteen months of approval of the adoptive parent by the licensee.

(i) A limited adoptive parent assessment or home study assessment shall be a review of the previous adoptive parent assessment for compliance with 606 CMR 5.10(5) and (6), and must include:
1. the completion of new Background Record Checks for all household members;

2. a visit to the prospective adoptive parents' home;

3. interviews which are conducted in person with the prospective adoptive parent(s) to determine if there have been any changes since the last home study assessment. All information required by 606 CMR 5.10(5) and (6) must be reviewed with the prospective adoptive parents and confirmed or updated. Changes in financial status must be supported with current documentation;

4. a current statement from a medical professional about the health of all household members.

(j) The limited home study assessment or home study assessment update shall be summarized in a written report and shall document the dates and location of assessment activities. If any recommendations regarding placement have changed, the report shall document and explain such changes. It shall be signed by the social worker who conducted the home study assessment update and shall be reviewed, approved and signed by the social worker's supervisor or a second reviewer as provided by 606 CMR 5.10(6)(f).

(k) The licensee shall notify each adoptive parent applicant in writing of the results of the assessment within 30 days of the last visit to the applicant. The licensee shall provide the applicant with a copy of the home study assessment or home study assessment update upon completion.

(l) Adoptive parent applicants not approved for placement shall be provided an explanation in writing of the reasons for such disapproval. An explanation shall be documented in case notes whenever a home study is not completed in a timely fashion.

(7) Information Prior to Decision to Accept an Adoptive Child.

(a) The licensee shall document in case notes all discussions with the prospective adoptive parent(s) regarding their interest in parenting a particular child or children. Such case notes shall include the information provided about the child and his or her background, the dates such discussions occurred, and the prospective adoptive parent's interest in pursuing adoption of the child.

(b) When the licensee has identified prospective adoptive parents for a particular child, the licensee shall enter into a written pre-placement agreement to the prospective adoptive parents that specifies:
1. all available information regarding the child and his or her background including, but not limited to:
a. identifying information including child's first name;

b. sex and date of birth or estimated age;

c. reports of complete medical examination;

d. all information available regarding the medical history, mental health history, special talents, abilities or interests, race, religion and national origin of the child and birth family, and any other information which would be relevant to the growth and development of the child;

e. developmental history including a chronological summary of the child's reactions to any caretakers, any traumas (physical and/or emotional) in the child's life, including the potential implications of this history on the child's ongoing development and the need for special parenting skills and the availability of supportive resources;

f. information on the child's grade level, educational performance, and special skills or interests, if the child is of school age;

g. social report including the child's general responses to his or her peers, his or her general temperament, and responses to authority and discipline;

h. description of current living situation including a description of how the child came into care, type of placement setting (i.e., orphanage, private home, foster care), first names of any siblings in placement, if available, their ages and the continuing relationship of the birth family with the child, if any;

i. a summary of the child's current legal status, including any legal actions taken to establish the child's eligibility for adoption in accordance with laws of the state or foreign countries. The licensee shall inform adoptive parents that legal risk placements are foster care placements;

j. information, if any, on all previous caretakers including length of time in care, circumstances for placing the child and removing the child from the caretaker;

2. updated information regarding any estimated costs relative to the adoption for which the prospective adoptive parents may be held responsible including, but not limited to, the cost of birth parent transportation, living and support services; foreseeable medical costs for the child which may not be covered by insurance; legal costs relative to assuring that the child is free for adoption and relative to finalizing the adoption; travel and lodging in connection with any interstate or international adoption, and any other fees for services provided or arranged by the licensee;

3. a schedule for payment of anticipated costs;

4. an estimated date of placement;

5. an opportunity to meet the child prior to placement or, in the case of international adoption, a photograph of the child taken not more than three months prior to entering the pre-placement agreement;

6. a written explanation why any of the required information has not been provided.

(c) Limits on Pre-placement Agreement.
1. The licensee shall not enter into a pre-placement agreement with adoptive parent applicants prior to the expectant parent's second trimester of pregnancy.

2. The pre-placement agreement shall not obligate the licensee to place, nor the prospective adoptive parents to accept the placement of a child for adoption.

3. The pre-placement agreement may be terminated by either party with 72 hours written notice of intent to terminate the agreement.

4. The licensee may not enter into a pre-placement agreement regarding a particular child with more than one prospective adoptive parent or couple concurrently.

(8) Payment of Expectant Parent Expenses. The licensee shall not place a child with any potential adoptive parent who has provided payment, money, consideration or services to that child's birth parent or to anyone on behalf of the child's birth parent, except through the licensee.

(9) Information Prior to Placement. Prior to placement of the child in the prospective adoptive home, the licensee shall provide the prospective adoptive parents in writing any additional information available regarding the child since the pre-placement agreement and any updates or corrections to the information provided in the pre-placement agreement.

(10) Rights and Responsibilities of Adoptive Parents. Prior to placement, the licensee shall inform the adoptive parents in writing of their rights and responsibilities regarding the child prior to legalization of the adoption. Such information shall include, but not be limited to, medical care, travel outside the state and any other areas where law requires consent of parents or guardians.

(11) Responsibilities of the Social Worker for the Adoptive Home. The licensee shall assign a social worker who will be responsible for providing direct services to the adoptive family until the adoption is finalized. The social worker shall assist the adoptive parents and the child with any adoption-related matters and shall:

(a) prior to placement, make contact at least quarterly with applicants who have been approved for placement;

(b) following placement, assist the adoptive parents and the child with any adoption-related matters;

(c) following placement, make monthly supervisory contacts with the adoptive parents, beginning no later than two weeks after placement, and continuing until the adoption decree is entered. Beginning no later than six weeks after placement, such contacts shall be face to face at least every other month. At least two contacts shall be in the adoptive parent home with the child and parents;

(d) following placement, and as appropriate to the age of the child, talk privately with the child to explore the child's safety and well-being, feelings and concerns about placement;

(e) inform the adoptive parents in writing of any postponement of the legalization of the adoption, the reasons for such postponement, the actions which the licensee determines are needed to remedy such postponement and the time frames within which such actions must be taken;

(f) provide updated medical and/or psychological information regarding the birth family to the adoptive family. Relevant information about siblings shall be included;

(g) assist the adoptive parents and the child in obtaining any needed services;

(h) inform the adoptive parents of their right to update the information in their case record at the agency at any time;

(i) document in case notes in adoptive family records all contacts with children and adoptive families, including post placement supervision, if applicable;

(j) assist the adoptive parents in maintaining, when appropriate, contact with siblings and;

(k) providing support services for older sibling groups.

(12) Emergency Removal of Child. In cases of emergency when the licensee determines that the health or safety of the child or children would be endangered by remaining in the adoptive home the child(ren) may be removed immediately. The licensee shall maintain a written record of such removal which shall be available to the Department. The licensee shall notify the adoptive parents in writing of the specific reasons for the removal.

(13) Legal Procedures for Adoption. The licensee shall inform the adoptive parents in writing of the legal procedures involved in petitioning for and legalizing a decree of adoption. The licensee shall represent or assist in arranging for representation of the adoptive parents in such legal procedures.

(14) Post-adoption Services. The licensee shall provide, either directly or by referral, post adoption services to the family and child as their needs demand that shall include, but need not be limited to:

(a) education regarding the impact of adoption on children's development over the life cycle, particularly in relation to identity, loss, and coping with stigma or questions from peers and adults, and in understanding and meeting the particular needs of their own adopted children;

(b) supportive services to assist parents in their adjustment to adoption, in integrating their adopted child into the nuclear and extended family, and in developing a secure attachment with the adopted child by means that include, but are not limited to, support groups, mentor programs, organized social activities for adoptive parents and/or children, retreats and camps;

(c) information, referral and advocacy services;

(d) clinical services, including clinical evaluations, brief problem-solving counseling, individual and family therapy and residential treatment;

(e) search, reunion and mediation services to assist, facilitate and support adoptive and birth family members as they locate each other, establish communication and build and maintain positive relationships.

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