Current through Vol. 42, No. 1, September 16, 2024
(a)
Purpose. Certification is
the process through which Child Care Services (CCS) licensing staff documents a
child care program meets certification requirements for a child with
disabilities.
(1) Certification is required
for a provider to receive the child care rate for a child with
disabilities.
(2) To qualify for
the higher rate the:
(A) program must be
licensed, have a provider contract, and be certified to care for the
child;
(B) child's family must be
eligible for Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) subsidized child care
services; and
(C) child must be
receiving benefits from at least one source listed in (i) - (iii) of this
subparagraph.
(i) Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) benefits;
(ii) Sooner
Start, early intervention program for children birth to 3 years of age;
or
(iii) Special Education
Services, public school program for children 3 years of age and
older.
(b)
Initial approval for
certification. For initial approval for certification the procedures
contained in this subsection are followed.
(1) Upon receipt of Form 08AD006E,
Certification for Special Needs Child Care Rate for Licensed Child Care Homes
and Centers, the licensing staff contacts the program by phone within five DHS
business days when a monitoring visit has been made in the last four months.
When a monitoring visit has not been made within the last four months the
licensing staff visits the child care program within 10 DHS business
days.
(2) Approval for
certification is based upon verification:
(A)
the program director or primary caregiver has completed Form 08AD006E, agreeing
to meet the individual needs of the child;
(B) the program has a previous record of
compliance with minimum licensing requirements. A program on a six-month permit
may be certified when currently in compliance with licensing requirements;
and
(C) the program personnel who
work with the child have received on-site consultation regarding the nature of
the child's disability and the development of a child care plan, to include
staffing, equipment, and specialized professional development needs. The
consultant provides resource materials to the program for future reference.
After initial certification, the program personnel who work with the child must
conduct and document annual conferences with the child's parent or guardian to
review the needs of the child. When the child's needs have changed, the
procedures in (4) of this subsection are followed; and
(D) within six months of certification,
appropriate personnel obtain six hours of specialized professional development
in areas addressing care of children with disabilities.
(i) Ther program director and at least one
personnel or primary caregiver who works directly with the child must receive
specialized professional development. It is preferable all personnel who work
with the child are trained.
(ii)
First aid, CPR, or informal professional development is not counted to meet the
specialized professional development requirement.
(iii) Recommended specialized professional
development includes Sooner Start training, specialized workshops, or
conferences addressing the care of children with special needs.
(3) Upon completion of
Form 08AD006E, the licensing staff sends the form to the Adult and Family
Services (AFS) Child Care Subsidy state office staff. Copies of Form 08AD006E
and the monitoring checklist and summary are sent to the licensing supervisor,
and copies are maintained in the program's file.
(4) Once the child is approved for one of the
special needs rates, a new Form 08AD006E is required when:
(A) the child's needs change;
(B) the child moves to a different child care
program;
(C) the child stops
attending the program approved for the special needs rate for more than six
months; or
(D) licensing staff
withdraw the provider's special needs certification per (d) of this Section and
the provider subsequently demonstrates compliance.
(5) When the licensing staff documents
certification requirements have not been met, the licensing supervisor reviews
the documentation and approves the denial. The licensing staff inform the
provider in writing within 30 calendar days of the initial receipt of Form
08AD006E of the certification criteria that have not been met and the right to
request an administrative review.
(6) A request for an administrative review
must be submitted in writing to the statewide licensing coordinator or designee
within 10 calendar days of notification. An administrative review is conducted
within 10 calendar days of receipt of the request.
(7) The administrative review committee
consists of the statewide licensing coordinator or designee and two staff from
CCS.
(8) The program and AFS are
notified in writing by the statewide licensing coordinator of the
administrative review decision.
(c)
Ongoing monitoring. The
procedure for ongoing monitoring contained in this subsection is followed.
(1)
Periodic monitoring visits.
During periodic monitoring visits, the licensing staff completes Form 07LC008E,
Special Needs Rate Monitoring Report, and verifies certification requirements
are met for each child certified, including:
(A) annual conference with the child's parent
or guardian;
(B) director and
personnel or primary caregiver have specialized professional development
relative to care of children with disabilities; and
(C) observations indicating the program is
meeting the individual needs of the child as recorded on Form
08AD006E.
(2)
Violations. All violations observed are documented on Form
07LC080E, Licensing Services Supplemental Information, and a plan of correction
is developed with agreed-upon time frames for correction of violations. When
there are serious or ongoing violations of certification requirements, a letter
is sent to the operator documenting the violations, plan of correction, and a
copy is sent to the parent(s) of the child with special needs who is affected
by the violation(s).
(3)
Changes in program personnel. As personnel changes occur, a new
director, personnel, or primary caregiver who work directly with the child must
obtain specialized professional development within six months of that
assignment.
(d)
Withdrawal of certification. Withdrawal of certification occurs
when there is documentation of serious or ongoing violations of certification
requirements or when DHS has issued an Emergency Order or a notice of proposed
denial or revocation of license. Violations of certification requirements are
different from non-compliance with licensing requirements, although they may
involve the same issue, for example, understaffing. When violations are not
corrected and represent a potential risk to the child, such as serious
understaffing in the child's room or personnel without first aid training, the
procedure in this subsection is followed.
(1)
The licensing staff reviews the case with his or her supervisor.
(2) An office conference is held with the
provider at which time the provider is notified certification is being
withdrawn and has the right to request an administrative review of the
decision.
(3) A letter is sent to
the provider documenting withdrawal of certification and the right to request
an administrative review of the decision. When the provider did not attend the
office conference, the letter is sent by certified mail. A copy of the letter
is sent to the appropriate county office staff responsible for child care
assistance who is responsible for notifying the parent and provider of the rate
change and its effective date.
(4)
A request for an administrative review must be submitted in writing by the
program to the statewide licensing coordinator or designee within seven
calendar days of receipt of the letter. An administrative review is conducted
within 10 calendar days of receipt of the request.
(5) The administrative review committee
consists of the statewide licensing coordinator or designee and two staff from
CCS.
(6) The program and AFS Child
Care Subsidy are notified in writing by the statewide licensing coordinator or
designee of the administrative review decision.
(7) A provider may reapply for certification
when compliance with certification requirements has been
reestablished.
Added at 13 Ok Reg
325, eff 5-18-95 (emergency); Added at 13 Ok Reg 499, eff 11-14-95 (emergency);
Added at 13 Ok Reg 2663, eff 6-28-96; Amended at 16 Ok Reg 2527, eff 7-1-99;
Amended at 16 Ok Reg 3511, eff 7-13-99 through 7-14-00
(emergency)1; Amended at 18 Ok Reg 165, eff 12-1-00
(emergency); Amended at 18 Ok Reg 2144, eff 6-11-01; Amended at 19 Ok Reg 2274,
eff 6-27-02; Amended at 20 Ok Reg 1259, eff 6-1-03; Amended at 21 Ok Reg 910,
eff 6-1-04; Amended at 22 Ok Reg 1304, eff 6-1-05; Amended at 23 Ok Reg 1092,
eff 6-1-06; Amended at 24 Ok Reg 1351, eff 7-1-07; Amended at 25 Ok Reg 1962,
eff 7-1-08; Amended at 28 Ok Reg 1669, eff 7-1-11; Amended at 29 Ok Reg 1229,
eff 7-1-12
1This emergency action
expired without being superseded by a permanent action. Upon expiration of an
emergency amendatory action, the last effective permanent text of the Section
is reinstated. Therefore, on 7-15-00 (after the 7-14-00 expiration of this
emergency action), the text of
340:110-1-9.1 reverted back to
the permanent text that became effective 7-1-99, as was last published in the
1999 OAC Supplement, and remained as such until amended again by emergency
action on 12-1-00
