In the last post we
discussed use of level of care assessment instruments such as the Children and
Adolescents Needs and Strengths (CANS) tools to assess foster care payment
rates in several states. Dan Shook, the
policy chief of foster care and adoption assistance at ODJFS, informed me that in
2014, House Bill (H.B.) 452 funded a level of care pilot program.
Specifically,
The bill creates the Child
Placement Level of Care Tool Pilot Program and requires the Ohio Department of
Job and Family Services (ODJFS) to implement and oversee use of the pilot
program. The bill requires that the pilot program be implemented in up to ten
counties selected by the Department and must include the county and at least
one private child placing agency or private noncustodial agency.
According to Mr.
Shook, the pilot assessment tool is being created from the CANS instruments at
the PRAED Foundation web site at http://www.praedfoundation.org/. On February 23, 2015, he told me,
. . . . the “pilot will begin within
the next month and last up to 18 months. The law also requires an
evaluation of the pilot. After this is completed, I am hopeful that Ohio
will implement a statewide standard LOC system for placement.
At his point, we don’t know exactly how
a level of care instrument, once adopted might be used to evaluate children’s
foster care payment rates across Ohio.
Knowing that a pilot program is in the works, however, raises some
interesting possibilities. In addition
to contacting Mr. Shook for information about the pilot, foster and
pre-adoptive parents might consider the following tactics while the program is
being implemented. Mr. Shook can be reached at Dan.Shook@jfs.ohio.gov
The
Use of Existing Level of Care Instruments to Evaluate Foster Care Payments
In practice, there are no uniform statewide
procedures for determining levels of care in Ohio. This means, there are no generally recognized
procedures for determining if a child’s foster care payment rate is consistent
with his or her care needs. My impression,
however, is that some private foster care providers and perhaps some public
agencies, either employ standardized level of care assessment instruments or
recognize their validity. If that is the
case, foster and pre adoptive parents should try and determine what methods or
tools are being used to classify their children’s level of care and foster care
payment rates. Verifying that the
child’s foster care payment is consistent with his or her level of care is
important, in-so-much as the foster care payment rate establishes the maximum
amount of adoption assistance which may be negotiated.
Imagine a child receives a foster care
payment of $700 per month. The parents believe that the child should receive a
specialized foster care payment due to changes in the child’s care needs. The
specialized care rates might be defined by Levels of care needs or by terms
such a therapeutic care. The parents ask
the county agency for a level of care assessment. They copy Dan Shook on this request,
mentioning they are aware of the state’s plans to pilot a CANS assessment
tool. They also ask Dan Shook to help
them reach agreement on the instrument that will be used and a neutral
professional to apply it until the state’s assessment procedure is in
place. If it is acceptable to the
parents, the most obvious instrument may be one employed by a private foster
care provider in the county.
Suppose the assessment confirms that
the child’s level of care is consistent with Level 4 care needs. Children with
Level 4 care needs receive monthly foster care payments of $1,000 per month.
The parents have grounds for requesting an increase in their child’s foster
care payment rate. Will this work? If increasing numbers of foster parents
request level of care assessments and inform Dan Shook, it might increase
momentum toward the use of level of care assessments to evaluate children’s
foster care payments.
Level
of Care Assessments and the Negotiation of Adoption Assistance.
Parents involved in difficult adoption
assistance negotiations with a county agency might request the use of a level
of care assessment tool to support their argument that the family’s
circumstances and the child’s current and anticipated needs warrant a certain
amount of adoption assistance. An
assessment does not replace negotiations but might be used to show:
·
The child’s current foster care rate is
too low, or
·
The agency’s proposal for an adoption
assistance payment is too far below the child’s foster care rate. Suppose the child’s foster care payment rate
is $800 per month. The agency has proposed an adoption assistance payment of
$400 per month. A level of care
assessment could help support that parents’ contention that the child’s needs
and family circumstances merit an adoption assistance payment at or near the
child’s foster care payment rate.
Level
of Care Assessments and Mediation
In previous posts, we have discussed
the possible use of the mediation process as a tactic when negotiations are
obviously stalled and the parents believe that the agency’s offer of adoption
assistance is inadequate. Even if the
actual mediation process leaves a lot to be desired, the parents’ authority to
request mediation, at the very least, threatens to prolong the negotiation. The prospect of going through the mediation process
may cause the agency to reconsider its adoption assistance proposal.
While there are no guarantees, it does
appear that informed parents, determined to go through the mediation process
has helped in a few cases with which I am familiar. The agency well knows that
following a failed mediation is the opportunity for the parents to request a
state administrative hearing, which adds more weeks to the case. The outcome of the hearing also may be an
order to resume negotiations.
Suppose, in addition to mediation, the parents
also request a level of care assessment as a means of “objectively” helping
reach a settlement in the adoption assistance negotiation. Once again, it might be helpful to contact
Mr. Shook and inform him of this idea. The
request for a level of care assessment might support the parents’ case in the
mediation. Asking for an assessment
would extend the mediation process and perhaps increase the pressure on the
agency to each an adoption assistance agreement that is closer to the amount
sought by the parents.
For information about CANS in Wisconsin, see http://www.wafca.org/CANS.htm. You can find CANS information applicable to individual states. Google the name of the state and CANS or the name of the state and CANS forms. Massachusetts CANS forms for example, brings you to http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/commissions-and-initiatives/cbhi/child-and-adolescent-needs-and-strengths-cans/cans-forms.html
According
to an Indiana policy letter dated January 14, 2013, “CANS reassessments are
required every 180 days and at critical case junctures.” Foster
parents may not only request a CANS review, including situations in which there
are “supervision or behavioral concerns that are not adequately addressed by
the CANS.” If the assessment indicates a “higher category of
supervision,” the foster care rates will increase.
For information about CANS in Wisconsin, see http://www.wafca.org/CANS.htm. You can find CANS information applicable to individual states. Google the name of the state and CANS or the name of the state and CANS forms. Massachusetts CANS forms for example, brings you to http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/commissions-and-initiatives/cbhi/child-and-adolescent-needs-and-strengths-cans/cans-forms.html
Minnesota
has developed the Minnesota Assessment of Parenting for Children and Youth tool
(MAPCY), which will soon be in use throughout the state to determine foster
care payment rates on an ongoing basis. MAPCY includes
an emphasis on the amount of care and supervision that the parents need to
provide and obtain for their child. The
inclusion of the scope of parental responsibilities captures elements of family
circumstances. Interested parties may
contact Josh Kroll at NACAC at 651-644-3036.