Title: Family-Based Care Services Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Family-Based Care Services Act
This bill establishes a definition, under Medicaid, for "qualified therapeutic family care services." Specifically, such services are those provided for children younger than age 21 who need institution-level care but can instead be cared for in a community placement through a licensed and accredited program that: (1) provides children with certain structured daily activities, and (2) provides parents and caregivers with specialized training and consultation.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1357 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1357

  To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide a standard 
      definition of therapeutic family care services in Medicaid.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 14, 2017

  Ms. Baldwin (for herself, Mr. Portman, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Blunt) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                          Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide a standard 
      definition of therapeutic family care services in Medicaid.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Family-Based Care Services Act''.

SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF THERAPEUTIC FAMILY CARE AS MEDICAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 1905 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396d) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (28), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (29) as paragraph 
                (30); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (28) the following 
                new paragraph:
            ``(29) therapeutic family care services (to the extent 
        allowed and as defined in subsection (ee)); and''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(ee)(1) For purposes of subsection (a)(29), subject to the 
succeeding paragraphs of this subsection, the term `therapeutic family 
care services' means services provided for children who have not 
attained age 21, and who, as a result of mental illness, other 
emotional or behavioral disorders, medically fragile conditions, or 
developmental disabilities, need the level of care provided in an 
institution (including a psychiatric residential treatment facility) or 
nursing facility the cost of which could be reimbursed under the State 
plan but who can be cared for or maintained in a community placement, 
through a qualified therapeutic family care program described in 
paragraph (2).
    ``(2) A qualified therapeutic family care program described in this 
paragraph is a program that--
            ``(A) not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 
        this subsection, is licensed by the State and accredited by the 
        Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, 
        the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, 
        the Council on Accreditation, or by any other independent, not-
        for-profit accrediting organization approved by the Secretary;
            ``(B) provides structured daily activities, including the 
        development, improvement, monitoring, and reinforcement of age-
        appropriate social, communication and behavioral skills, 
        trauma-informed and gender-responsive services, crisis 
        intervention and crisis support services, medication 
        monitoring, counseling, and case management, and may furnish 
        other intensive community services; and
            ``(C) provides biological parents, relative and kinship 
        caregivers, adoptive parents, foster parents and, as 
        appropriate, other members of such parents or caregivers homes 
        with specialized training and consultation in the management of 
        children with mental illness, other emotional or behavioral 
        disorders, medically fragile conditions, developmental 
        disabilities, the impact of trauma on child and caregiver, 
        including trauma from substance abuse by a child or caregiver, 
        and specific additional training on the needs of each child 
        provided such services.
    ``(3) In making coverage determinations in accordance with 
paragraph (1), a State may employ medical necessity criteria that are 
similar to the medical necessity criteria applied to coverage 
determinations for other services and supports under this title.
    ``(4) For purposes of subsection (a)(29) and this subsection, 
therapeutic family care services shall not include reimbursement for 
any training referred to in paragraph (2)(C).''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to medical assistance furnished in calendar quarters beginning on 
or after the date of enactment of this Act.
    (c) GAO Study and Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall conduct a study and submit a report to Congress evaluating State 
efforts to ensure foster parents and other caregivers who are eligible 
for training described in paragraph (2)(C) of section 1905(ee) of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d(ee)) (as added by subsection 
(a)(2)) through a qualified therapeutic family care program described 
in such section and for which Federal payments are available under part 
E of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 670 et seq.) are 
provided with such training as is necessary and appropriate to meet the 
individual needs of children placed in their care, consistent with the 
requirements of sections 471(a)(24) and 477(b)(3)(D) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(24), 677(b)(3)(D)). The report shall 
include an analysis of, and recommendations to improve, State review, 
approval and oversight of all such training (whether provided directly 
by the State or under contract with a public or private agency 
responsible for finding, placing, or monitoring the placement of 
children in foster family homes).
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