Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024
(a) A
child as defined in He-M 510.02(g),
who is a resident of New Hampshire shall be eligible for FCESS.
(b) Any person may make a referral to
FCESS.
(c) When a referral is made
by someone other than the parent, the FCESS program shall notify the parent
immediately both verbally and in writing.
(d) Participation in FCESS shall be
voluntary.
(e) The point of contact
for referral to FCESS shall be the area agency.
(f) An area agency shall designate an intake
coordinator to make initial contact with families who are referred for
FCESS.
(g) The intake coordinator
shall:
(1) Have at least 2 years' experience
with children and their families;
(2) Demonstrate the capacity to develop
rapport with families;
(3) Have
knowledge of resources available in the community; and
(4) Act as an interim service coordinator for
families applying for FCESS until eligibility is determined and a service
coordinator identified.
(h) The intake coordinator shall:
(1) Document the date the referral was
received;
(2) Provide information
relative to FCESS and other community services;
(3) Inform the family of the process for the
initiation of FCESS, including the family's rights under He-M 510 and He-M 310
and procedural safeguards under He-M 203;
(4) If the family decides to seek a
determination of eligibility for FCESS:
a.
Obtain parental consent for the initial evaluation and, if the applicant is
eligible, IFSP development;
b.
Request a release to obtain the applicant's medical records and a physician's
referral for evaluation;
c. Request
information about the applicant's insurance, including public and private
insurance; and
d. Request consent
to utilize private insurance pursuant to
He-M
510.14 (b)-(f); and
(5) If the family decides not to
seek a determination of eligibility for FCESS, make reasonable efforts to
ensure the parent:
a. Is fully aware of the
nature of the evaluation, the assessment, and the services that would be
available; and
b. Understands that
the applicant will not be able to receive the evaluation, the assessment, or
other services unless consent is given pursuant to (4)a. above.
(i) If a family decides
to seek a determination of eligibility for FCESS, the area agency shall conduct
a multidisciplinary evaluation pursuant to (k) below and a family directed
assessment.
(j) The purpose of the
multidisciplinary evaluation shall be:
(1) To
determine if the applicant is eligible for FCESS according to (a) above and
He-M
510.02 (g); and
(2) To provide information that will form the
basis of the IFSP if the applicant is eligible for FCESS.
(k) The multidisciplinary evaluation shall:
(1) Be based on informed clinical
opinion;
(2) Be conducted by an
evaluation team composed of the family, other persons requested by the family,
and professionals from 2 or more different disciplines identified in
He-M
510.11 (b)(1);
(3) Be conducted by professionals whose
expertise most closely relates to the needs of the applicant and
family;
(4) Be carried out in a
setting that is convenient to the family;
(5) Include the completion of the IDA
Institute's "Infant-Toddler Developmental Assessment-2 (IDA-2)", (Second
Edition) or Shine Early Learning's "Hawaii Early Learning Profile (HELP)
Strands 0-3" (1992-2013), available as noted in Appendix A;
(6) Include the components of the assessment
as defined in He-M 510.02
(c);
(7) Include the applicant's medical and
developmental history;
(8) Include
information from others sources such as family members, other caregivers,
medical providers, social workers, and educators, if necessary;
(9) Include a review of the applicant's
medical, educational, or other records;
(10) Include an evaluation of the applicant's
level of functioning in each of the following developmental domains:
a. Physical development, including vision,
hearing, or both;
b. Cognitive
development;
c. Communication
development;
d. Social or emotional
development; and
e. Adaptive
development;
(11)
Determined through the use of an assessment tool and a voluntary
family-directed personal interview, include identification of:
a. The family's resources, priorities, and
concerns; and
b. The supports and
services necessary to enhance the family's capacity to meet the developmental
needs of the applicant;
(12) Be conducted to:
a. Determine an applicant's eligibility or a
child's progress;
b. Define or
redefine services and expected outcomes; or
c. Plan for future needs;
(13) Be conducted in the
applicant's, child's, or family's native language if determined by qualified
personnel conducting the evaluation to be developmentally appropriate, given
the applicant's or child's age and communication skills; and
(14) Be selected and administered so as not
to be racially or culturally discriminatory.
(l) An applicant's medical and other records
may be used to establish eligibility prior to conducting a multidisciplinary
evaluation if those records contain information regarding the applicant's level
of functioning in the developmental areas identified in (k)(10)
above.
(m) Based on the results of
the multidisciplinary evaluation pursuant to (k) above or medical records in
(l) above, the evaluation team shall determine whether the applicant is a child
as defined in He-M 510.02 (g)
and is eligible for FCESS pursuant to (a) above.
(n) If the applicant is found eligible for
FCESS, the area agency shall, in writing, advise the family of its eligibility
status within 3 business days and include the name of, and contact information
for, the service coordinator.
(o)
If the applicant is found eligible based upon medical records in (l) above, the
area agency shall do an assessment of the child and a family assessment as
described in (k)(11) above.
(p) If
the applicant is found not eligible for FCESS, the area agency shall, in
writing, advise the family within 3 business days from date of eligibility
determination pursuant to
He-M
510.05 of the following:
(1) The findings of the evaluation and
recommendations;
(2) Other specific
supports and services that meet the needs of the family, including
parent-to-parent networks, and an explanation of how to access those supports
and services;
(3) The family's
right to file a complaint pursuant to He-M 203; and
(4) The names, addresses, and telephone
numbers of advocacy organizations, such as the Disabilities Rights Center,
Inc., that the family can contact for assistance in challenging the
determination.
(q) In
the event of exceptional family circumstances that make it impossible to
complete the initial evaluation and develop the IFSP within 45 calendar days of
the referral, the FCESS program shall:
(1)
Document the specific circumstances of the delay;
(2) Complete the multidisciplinary evaluation
as soon as family circumstances allow;
(3) Proceed pursuant to (m)-(p) above;
and
(4) Develop and implement an
interim IFSP, to the extent appropriate and consistent with
He-M
510.07 (a) and (g).
(r) Continued eligibility shall be
determined as noted in
He-M
510.08 (e) and (f).
(See Revision Note at part heading for He-M 510) #5745,
eff 12-1-93, EXPIRED: 12-1-99
New. #7234, eff 4-22-00; amd by
#7822, eff 2-8-03; amd by #8065, eff 3-25-04; ss by #9135, INTERIM, eff
4-22-08, EXPIRED 10-19-08
New. #9594, eff 11-11-09 (from
He-M
510.05); ss by #10325, eff
4-26-13
