NEXT: Basic Eligibility Requirements
On July 1, 2014,
amendments to Ohio's Title IV-E adoption assistance program went into
effect. Given that IV-E adoption
assistance is a federal program, most provisions of the program remain the
same. The
most far reaching and problematic is a is a provision which would establishes a
statewide maximum adoption assistance payment.
According to an ODJFS staff member, a preliminary estimate of the statewide adoption assistance maximum is
$1,045 per month. As we will see, county agencies may ask for a
waiver to increase the amount of adoption assistance in cases where the child's
foster home payment rate exceeds the statewide maximum adoption assistance
payment.
NOTE: Recently, a
county agency agreed to ask for a waiver in the case of adoption assistance for
a high needs child. As a result, the adoption assistance agreement called for a
monthly payment of over $1,400 per month.
If your child's foster care payment rate is over the statewide adoption
assistance maximum request a waiver.
The official maximum adoption
assistance rate for the state fiscal year beginning July 1, 2014 was published
on June 26, 2014 in FCASPL 262 (Monthly Adoption Assistance Statewide
Maximum). One can find
that Procedure Letter by: Googling Ohio Department of Job and Family
Services. Click on M under Index of
Services. Click on Manuals. Click on
Family Children and Adult Services Manual. Click on Management and
Administration. Click on FCASM Procedure
Letters. We will discuss this provision
in some detail in when we address the procedures for negotiating the amount of
adoption assistance.
The following series
of blogs will explore the federal Title IV-E adoption assistance program as it
exists today. We will begin with eligibility issues, then proceed to
consider the current policy on negotiating adoption assistance agreements in
light of the imposition of a statewide maximum adoption assistance
payment. Finally, we will consider other
pertinent topics such as appeal and hearings and applying for adoption
assistance after finalization.
The Eligibility
Section will include:
Part
1: Basic Eligibility Requirements
Part
2: SSI, An Alternative Road to Adoption Assistance
Part
3: Substantial Risk as a Special Needs
Requirement
Part
4: Reasonable Attempt to Place Without
Adoption Assistance as a Special Needs Requirement
Part
5: Practical Advice and Questions
Part
6: More Practical Advice and Questions
Part
7: Barriers
to obtaining adoption assistance when relatives, foster parents or prospective
adoptive parents assume custody of the child.
Each topical section
will contain discussions of practical issues and questions. We urge readers to
contact us with questions of their own. Readers are invited to pose questions
on the Blog Site or send them to Tim O'Hanlon at tpohanlon@gmail.com.
We hope to follow the
blogs with statewide webinars. The
larger purposes of this project is to build a better informed statewide network
of adoptive and foster families who contemplate adoption. Once we establish an audience we may ask you
for specific information about foster care and adoption assistance payment
rates in your county as well as characteristic issues and problems.
