Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 281 - Education Department › Title XI - Vocational Rehabilitation Education › Chapter 56 - Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services › Rule 281-56.3 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
For the purpose of this chapter, the indicated terms are
				  defined as follows:
"Act"
means the federal Rehabilitation Act
				  of 1973 as amended and codified at
				  29 U.S.C. Section
				  701, et seq.
"Aggregate data"
means information about one
				  or more aspects of division job candidates, or from some specific subgroup of
				  division job candidates, but from which personally identifiable information on
				  any individual cannot be discerned.
"Applicant"
means an individual or the
				  individual's representative, as appropriate, who has completed the IVRS
				  Application for Services (R-412), a common intake application form through a
				  one-stop center requesting IVRS services, or has otherwise requested services
				  from IVRS; has provided to IVRS information necessary to initiate an assessment
				  to determine eligibility and priority for services; is available to complete
				  the assessment process; and has reviewed and signed the Rights and
				  Responsibilities (IPE-1).
"Appropriate modes of communication"
means
				  specialized aids and supports that enable an individual with a disability to
				  comprehend and respond to information that is being communicated.
"Assessment for determining eligibility or in the
				  development of an IPE"
means a review of existing data and, to the
				  extent necessary, the provision of appropriate assessment activities to obtain
				  additional information to make a determination and to assign the priority for
				  services or development of an IPE.
"Assistive technology device"
means the same
				  as defined in Section 3 of the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, as
				  amended.
"Assistive technology service"
means the
				  same as defined in Section 3 of the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, as
				  amended.
"Benefits planning"
means assistance
				  provided to an individual who is interested in becoming employed, but is
				  uncertain of the impact work income may have on any disability benefits and
				  entitlements being received, and is or is not aware of benefits, such as access
				  to health care, that might be available to support employment efforts.
"Case record"
means the file of personally
				  identifiable information, whether written or electronic in form, on an
				  individual that is collected to carry out the purposes of the division as
				  defined in the Act. This information remains a part of the case record and is
				  subject to these rules even when temporarily physically removed, either in
				  whole or in part, from the file folder in which it is normally kept.
"Community rehabilitation program"
or
"CRP"
means an approved program (agency, organization, or
				  institution, or unit of any one of these, that provides directly or facilitates
				  the provision of vocational rehabilitation services as one of its major
				  functions) that provides directly or facilitates the provision of one or more
				  of the following vocational rehabilitation services to individuals with
				  disabilities to enable those individuals to maximize their opportunities for
				  employment, including career advancement:
1. Medical, psychiatric, psychological, social, and
				  vocational services that are provided under one management.
2. Testing, fitting, or training in the use of prosthetic and
				  orthotic devices.
3. Recreational therapy.
4. Speech, language and hearing therapy.
5. Psychiatric, psychological, and social services, including
				  positive behavior management.
6. Assessment for determining eligibility and vocational
				  rehabilitation needs.
7. Rehabilitation technology.
8. Job development, placement, and retention services.
9. Evaluation or control of specific disabilities.
10. Orientation and mobility services for individuals who are
				  blind.
11. Extended employment.
12. Psychosocial rehabilitation services.
13. Supported employment services and extended
				  services.
14. Customized employment.
15. Services to family members if necessary to enable the
				  applicant to achieve an employment outcome.
16. Personal assistance services.
17. Other similar services.
"Comparable services and benefits"
means
				  services and benefits including accommodations and auxiliary aids and services
				  that are provided or paid for in whole or in part by other federal, state, or
				  local public agencies, by health insurance or by employee benefits; are
				  available to the individual at the time needed to ensure the individual's
				  progress toward achieving an employment outcome in accordance with the
				  individual's IPE; and are commensurate to the services that the individual
				  would otherwise receive from the division. For purposes of this definition,
				  comparable benefits do not include educational awards and scholarships based on
				  merit.
"Competitive integrated employment"
means
				  work in the competitive labor market that:
1. Is performed on a full-time or part-time basis, including
				  self-employment, in an integrated setting and for which the job candidate is
				  compensated at a rate that:
* Shall not be less than the higher of the rate specified in
				  Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 or the rate specified
				  in the applicable state or local minimum wage law;
* Is not less than the customary rate paid by the employer
				  for the same or similar work performed by other employees who are not
				  individuals with disabilities and who are similarly situated in similar
				  occupations by the same employer and who have similar training, experience, and
				  skills;
* Is eligible for the level of benefits provided to other
				  employees; and
* A self-employed individual with a disability in the
				  start-up phase of a business venture who is making less than the applicable
				  minimum wage can meet the definition of "competitive integrated
				  employment."
2. Is at a location where the employee interacts for the
				  purpose of performing the duties of the position with other employees within
				  the particular work unit and the entire work site, and, as appropriate to the
				  work performed, other persons (e.g., customers and vendors) who are not
				  individuals with disabilities (not including supervisory personnel or
				  individuals providing services to such employee) to the same extent that
				  individuals who are not individuals with disabilities and who are in comparable
				  positions interact with other persons; and
3. As appropriate, presents opportunities for advancement
				  that are similar to those for other employees who are not individuals with
				  disabilities who have similar positions.
"Competitive integrated work setting,"
with
				  respect to the provision of services, means a setting, typically found in the
				  community, in which applicants or eligible individuals interact with
				  nondisabled individuals, other than nondisabled individuals who are providing
				  services to those applicants or eligible individuals, and said interaction is
				  consistent with the quality of interaction that would normally occur in the
				  performance of work by the nondisabled coworkers.
"Customized employment"
means competitive
				  integrated employment, for an individual with a significant disability, that is
				  based on an individualized determination of the unique strengths, needs, and
				  interests of the individual with a significant disability; is designed to meet
				  the specific abilities of the individual with a disability and the business
				  needs of the employer; and is carried out through flexible strategies.
"Department"
means the department of
				  education.
"Designated representative"
means any
				  representative chosen by an applicant or eligible individual, as appropriate,
				  including a parent, guardian, other family member, or advocate, unless a
				  representative has been appointed by a court to represent the individual, in
				  which case the court-appointed representative is the designated
				  representative.
"Designated state unit"
or
"DSU"
means Iowa vocational rehabilitation services.
"Division"
or
"IVRS"
means
				  Iowa vocational rehabilitation services.
"Eligible individual"
means an applicant for
				  services from the division who meets the eligibility requirements.
"Employment outcome"
means, with respect to
				  an individual, entering, advancing in, or retraining full-time or, if
				  appropriate, part-time competitive integrated employment; supported employment;
				  or any other type of employment, including customized employment,
				  self-employment, telecommuting, or business ownership, that is consistent with
				  an individual's strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities,
				  capabilities, interests and informed choice.
"Extended employment"
means work in a
				  nonintegrated or sheltered setting for a public or private nonprofit agency or
				  organization that provides compensation in accordance with the Fair Labor
				  Standards Act.
"Extended services"
means ongoing support
				  services and other appropriate services that are needed to support and maintain
				  an individual with a most significant disability in supported employment and
				  that are:
1. Provided singly or in combination and are organized and
				  made available in such a way as to assist an eligible individual in maintaining
				  supported employment;
2. Organized or made available singly or in combination with
				  other services to assist an eligible individual in maintaining supported
				  employment;
3. Based on a determination of the needs of an eligible
				  individual, as specified in the individual's IPE;
4. Provided by an appropriate source after an individual has
				  made the transition from support provided by the DSU; and
5. Provided to a youth with a most significant disability by
				  the DSU for a period not to exceed four years, or at such a time that a youth
				  reaches age 25 and no longer meets the definition of a youth with a disability,
				  whichever occurs first. The DSU may not provide extended services to an
				  individual with a most significant disability who is not a youth with a most
				  significant disability.
"Family income,"
for purposes of calculating
				  the financial participation rate for services, means those who are financially
				  responsible for the support of the job candidate and may involve individuals
				  who live in the same or separate households including partners and
				  spouses.
"Family member,"
for purposes of vocational
				  rehabilitation services, means any individual who lives with the individual
				  with a disability and has a vested interest in the welfare of that individual
				  whether by marriage, birth, or choice. A family member is an individual who
				  either (1) is a relative or guardian of an applicant or job candidate, or (2)
				  lives in the same household as an applicant or job candidate, who has a
				  substantial interest in the well-being of the applicant or job candidate, and
				  whose receipt of vocational rehabilitation services is necessary to enable the
				  applicant or job candidate to achieve an employment outcome.
"IDEA"
means the Individuals with
				  Disabilities Education Act (
				  20 U.S.C. Section
				  1400 et seq.).
"Impartial hearing officer"
or
"IHO"
means an individual who:
1. Is not an employee of a public agency (other than an
				  administrative law judge, hearing examiner, or employee of an institution of
				  higher education);
2. Is not a member of the state rehabilitation council for
				  the designated state unit;
3. Has not been involved previously in the vocational
				  rehabilitation of the applicant or recipient of services;
4. Has knowledge of the delivery of vocational rehabilitation
				  services, the vocational rehabilitation services portion of the unified or
				  combined state plan, and the federal and state regulations governing the
				  provision of services;
5. Has received training with respect to the performance of
				  official duties; and
6. Has no personal, professional, or financial interest that
				  could affect the objectivity of the individual.
An individual is not considered to be an employee of a public
				  agency for the purposes of this definition solely because the individual is
				  paid by the agency to serve as a hearing officer.
"Independent living services"
or
"IL
				  services"
means services authorized under Title VII, chapter 1, part B
				  of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.
"Individualized plan for employment"
or
"IPE"
means a plan that specifies the services needed by an
				  eligible individual and the responsibilities of the individual with a
				  disability and other payers. An IPE includes specifics regarding the services
				  needed to lead toward competitive integrated employment, including the
				  following provisions:
1. Includes a description of the specific employment outcome
				  that is chosen by the eligible individual and is consistent with the
				  individual's unique strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities,
				  capabilities, career interests, and informed choices consistent with the
				  general goal of competitive integrated employment (except that in the case of
				  an eligible individual who is a student or a youth with a disability, the
				  description may be of the individual's projected postschool employment
				  outcome);
2. Includes a description of the specific rehabilitation
				  services needed to achieve the employment outcome and for a student or youth
				  with a disability, the specific transition services and supports needed to
				  achieve the individual's employment outcome or projected postschool employment
				  outcome;
3. Provides for services in the most integrated setting that
				  is appropriate for the services involved and is consistent with the informed
				  choice of the eligible individual;
4. Includes timelines for the achievement of the employment
				  outcome and initiation of services;
5. Includes a description of the entity or entities chosen by
				  the eligible individual or, as appropriate, the individual's representative
				  that will provide the vocational rehabilitation services and the methods used
				  to procure those services;
6. Includes a description of the criteria that will be used
				  to evaluate the progress toward achievement of the employment outcome;
				  and
7. Includes the terms and conditions for the IPE, including,
				  as appropriate, information describing the responsibilities of the DSU; the
				  responsibilities of the eligible individual in relation to achieving the
				  employment outcome and extent of financial participation (if applicable) as
				  outlined in subrule 56.6(5), as well as the responsibility of the individual to
				  apply for and secure comparable benefits and services; and the responsibilities
				  of other entities as the result of arrangements made pursuant to the comparable
				  benefits and services requirements.
"Individual with a disability"
means an
				  individual who has a physical or mental impairment, whose impairment
				  constitutes a substantial impediment to employment, and who can benefit in
				  terms of an employment outcome from the provision of vocational rehabilitation
				  services.
"Individual with a most significant
				  disability"
means an individual who is seriously limited in three or
				  more functional capacities (such as mobility, communication, self-care,
				  self-direction, interpersonal skills, work tolerance, or work skills) in terms
				  of an employment outcome.
"Individual with a significant disability"
means an individual who has a significant physical or mental impairment that
				  seriously limits one or more functional capacities (such as mobility,
				  communication, self-care, self-direction, interpersonal skills, work tolerance,
				  or work skills) in terms of an employment outcome or who is a recipient of
				  SSDI, SSI, or both due to the individual's disability.
"Institution of higher education"
or
"IHE"
means the same as defined in Section 102(a) of the
				  Higher Education Act of 1965.
"Job candidate"
means an applicant or
				  eligible individual applying for or receiving benefits or services from any
				  part of the division and shall include former job candidates of the division
				  whose files or records are retained by the division.
"Job retention waiting list release"
means
				  the mechanism used to remove a job candidate from the division waiting list
				  when the individual is at immediate risk of losing the job and requires
				  vocational rehabilitation service(s) or good(s) in order to maintain
				  employment. This applies only for those service(s) or good(s) that will allow
				  the individual to maintain employment. After the individual receives said
				  service(s) or good(s), the individual's file will be closed if the individual
				  is satisfied with the services provided and requires no further services. If
				  there are additional services needed, the individual will return to the waiting
				  list, if necessary, until that point where the individual's priority of service
				  is being served.
"Maintenance"
means monetary support
				  provided to a job candidate for expenses, such as food, shelter, and clothing,
				  that are in excess of the normal expenses of the job candidate and that are
				  necessitated by the job candidate's participation in an assessment for
				  determining eligibility and vocational rehabilitation needs or the job
				  candidate's receipt of vocational rehabilitation services under an IPE.
"Mediation"
means the act or process of
				  using an independent third party to act as a mediator, intermediary, or
				  conciliator to assist persons or parties in settling differences or disputes
				  prior to pursuing formal administrative or other legal remedies.
"Menu of services"
means the services
				  provided by community partners to assist an individual with a disability in
				  achieving an employment outcome. Menu of services refers to various services
				  that the division is able to purchase from an approved CRP or other approved
				  provider on behalf of a job candidate. The services are selected and jointly
				  agreed upon by the counselor and job candidate of the division. Payments for
				  services are made based on a fee structure that is published and updated
				  annually, and there is no financial needs assessment applied toward the costs
				  of these purchased services from the community partner.
"Ongoing support services"
means services
				  that are written in the IPE; are needed to support and maintain individuals
				  with the most significant disabilities in supported employment; are provided by
				  the division from the time of job placement until transition to extended
				  services, unless postemployment services are provided following transition, and
				  thereafter by one or more extended services providers throughout the
				  individual's term of employment in a particular job placement; are provided, at
				  a minimum, twice monthly to make an assessment regarding the employment
				  situation at the work site and coordinate provision of specific intensive
				  services needed to maintain stability; are provided by skilled job trainers who
				  accompany the individual for intensive job skill training at the work site;
				  include social skills training, assessment and evaluation of progress, job
				  development and retention, placement services, and follow-up services with the
				  business and the individual's representatives; and facilitate development of
				  natural supports or any other service(s) needed to maintain employment.
"Personal assistance services"
means a range
				  of services provided by one or more persons, including, among other things,
				  training in managing, supervising, and directing personal assistance services,
				  that are designed to assist an individual with a disability to perform, on or
				  off the job, daily living activities that the individual would typically
				  perform without assistance if the individual did not have a disability. Such
				  services shall be designed to increase the individual's control in life and
				  ability to perform everyday activities on or off the job, necessary to the
				  achievement of an employment outcome, and provided only while the individual is
				  receiving other vocational rehabilitation services.
"Physical or mental impairment"
includes:
1. Any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic
				  disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body
				  systems: neurological, musculoskeletal, special sense organs, respiratory
				  (including speech organs), cardiovascular, reproductive, digestive,
				  genitourinary, hemic and lymphatic, skin, or endocrine; or
2. Any mental or psychological disorder such as an
				  intellectual disability, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness,
				  or specific learning disabilities.
"Physical or mental restoration services"
means:
1. Corrective surgery or therapeutic treatment that is
				  likely, within a reasonable period of time, to correct or modify substantially
				  a stable or slowly progressive physical or mental impairment that constitutes a
				  substantial impediment to employment;
2. Diagnosis and treatment of a physical, mental or cognitive
				  disorder by qualified personnel in accordance with state licensure laws to
				  include:
* Dentistry;
* Nursing services;
* Necessary hospitalization (either inpatient or outpatient)
				  in connection with surgery or treatment and clinical services;
* Drugs and supplies;
* Prosthetic and orthotic devices;
* Eyeglasses and visual services, including visual training,
				  and the examination and services necessary for the prescription and provision
				  of eyeglasses, contact lenses, microscopic lenses, telescope lenses, and other
				  special visual aids prescribed by personnel who are qualified in accordance
				  with state licensure laws;
* Podiatry;
* Physical therapy;
* Occupational therapy;
* Speech or hearing therapy;
* Mental health services;
* Treatment of either acute or chronic medical complications
				  and emergencies that are associated with or arise out of the provision of
				  physical or mental restoration services, or that are inherent in the condition
				  under treatment;
* Special services for the treatment of individuals with
				  end-stage renal disease, including transplantation, dialysis, artificial
				  kidneys, and supplies; and
* Other medical or medically related rehabilitation
				  services.
"Plan for natural supports"
means a plan
				  initiated prior to the implementation of the supported employment program that
				  describes the natural supports to be used on the job; the training provided to
				  the supervisor and mentor on the job site; the technology used in the
				  performance of the work; the rehabilitation strategies and trainings that will
				  be taught to the mentor in order to support and direct the job candidate on the
				  job; the supports needed outside of work for the job candidate to be
				  successful; and the methods by which the employer can connect with the job
				  candidate's job coach/IVRS staff member, or the training program when the need
				  arises.
"Postemployment services"
means one or more
				  services that are intended to ensure that the employment outcome remains
				  consistent with the individual's unique strengths, resources, priorities,
				  concerns, abilities, capabilities, interests, and informed choice. These
				  services are available to meet the rehabilitation needs that do not require a
				  complex and comprehensive provision of services and, thus, are limited in scope
				  and duration.
"Potentially eligible"
for the purposes of
				  preemployment transition services means all students with disabilities. A
				  student is considered potentially eligible until the student has applied for
				  services and an eligibility decision has been determined.
"Preemployment transition services"
or
"pre-ETS"
means those services specified in
				  34
				  CFR Section
				  361.48(a).
"Recognized educational program"
includes
				  secondary education programs, nontraditional or alternative secondary education
				  programs (including homeschooling), postsecondary education programs, and other
				  recognized educational programs such as those offered through the juvenile
				  justice system.
"Rehabilitation technology"
means the
				  systematic application of technologies, engineering methodologies, or
				  scientific principles to meet the needs of, and address the barriers confronted
				  by, individuals with disabilities in areas that include education,
				  rehabilitation, employment, transportation, independent living, and recreation.
				  The term includes rehabilitation engineering, assistive technology devices, and
				  assistive technology services.
"Satisfactory employment"
means stable
				  employment in a competitive integrated employment setting that is consistent
				  with the individual's IPE and acceptable to both the individual and the
				  employer.
"Self-employment services"
means services to
				  assist individuals with disabilities to achieve a self-employment outcome
				  consistent with the individual's abilities, preferences and needs.
				  Self-employment is a vocational option through the division that is available
				  only to for-profit businesses intended for operation within the state of Iowa.
				  The division provides two options within the program, which include the full
				  self-employment program and micro-enterprise development. These services
				  provide information, strategies and resources to help the business become
				  self-sustaining while assisting the individual in assuring all necessary
				  supports are in place for long-term success.
"Status"
means the existing condition or
				  position of a case. The specific case statuses are as follows:
1. 00-0 Referral for services.
2. 01-0 Potentially eligible student.
3. 01-1 Closed from potentially eligible.
4. 02-0 Applicant.
5. 04-0 Waiting list.
6. 08-0 Closed before acceptance (from Status 02-0).
7. 10-0 Accepted for services (plan development)
				  adults.
8. 10-1 Accepted for services (plan development) high school
				  students.
9. 14-0 Counseling and guidance.
10. 16-0 Physical and mental restoration.
11. 18-__ Training.
* 18-1 Work adjustment training/assessment.
* 18-2 On-the-job training.
* 18-3 Vocational-technical training.
* 18-4 Academic training.
* 18-5 Secondary education.
* 18-6 Supported employment.
* 18-7 Other types of training (including nonsupported
				  employment job coaching, job development, ISE).
12. 20-0 Ready for employment.
13. 22-0 Employed.
14. 24-0 Services interrupted.
15. 26-0 Closed rehabilitated.
16. 28-0 Closed after IPE initiated (from Status 14-0 through
				  24-0).
17. 30-0 Closed before IPE initiated (from Status
				  10-_).
18. 32-0 Postemployment services (from Status 26-0).
19. 33-__ Closed after postemployment services (from Status
				  32-0).
* 33-1 Individual is returned to suitable employment or the
				  employment situation is stabilized.
* 33-2 The case has been reopened for comprehensive
				  vocational rehabilitation services.
* 33-3 The postemployment services are no longer assisting
				  the individual and further services would be of no assistance.
20. 38-0 Closed from Status 04-0 (individual does not meet
				  one of the waiting list categories, and the individual no longer wants to
				  remain on the waiting list or fails to respond when contacted because
				  individual's name is at the top of the waiting list).
"Student with a disability"
means an
				  individual with a disability in a secondary, postsecondary, or other recognized
				  education program who is not younger than 14 years of age and not older than 21
				  years of age; and is eligible for, and receiving, special education or related
				  services under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or is
				  a student who is an individual with a disability, for purposes of Section
				  504.
"Substantial impediment to employment"
means
				  a physical or mental impairment (in light of attendant medical, psychological,
				  vocational, educational, communication, and other related factors) that hinders
				  an individual from preparing for, entering into, engaging in, or retaining
				  competitive integrated employment consistent with the individual's abilities
				  and capacities.
"Supported employment"
means competitive
				  integrated employment, including customized employment, or employment in an
				  integrated work setting in which an individual with a most significant
				  disability is working on a short-term basis toward competitive integrated
				  employment. Such employment is individualized consistent with the strengths,
				  abilities, interests, and informed choice of the individual who is receiving
				  ongoing support services for individuals with the most significant disabilities
				  for whom competitive integrated employment has not historically occurred, or
				  for whom competitive integrated employment has been interrupted or intermittent
				  as a result of a significant disability; and who, because of the nature and
				  severity of the individual's disabilities, needs intensive supported employment
				  services and extended services after the transition from support provided by
				  the division in order to perform this work.
"Supported employment services"
means
				  ongoing support services, including customized employment, and other
				  appropriate services needed to support and maintain an individual with a most
				  significant disability in supported employment, that are organized and made
				  available, singly or in combination, in such a way as to assist an eligible
				  individual to achieve competitive integrated employment; based on a
				  determination of the needs of an eligible individual, as specified in an IPE;
				  provided by IVRS for a period of time not to exceed 24 months, unless under
				  special circumstances the eligible individual and rehabilitation counselor
				  jointly agree to extend the time to achieve the employment outcome identified
				  in the IPE; and following transition, as postemployment services that are
				  unavailable from an extended services provider and that are necessary to
				  maintain or regain the job placement or advance in employment.
"Transition services"
means a coordinated
				  set of activities provided to a student or youth with a disability and designed
				  within an outcome-oriented process that promotes movement from school to
				  postschool activities. Postschool activities include postsecondary education,
				  vocational training, competitive integrated employment including supported
				  employment, continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living,
				  and community participation. The coordinated set of activities must be based
				  upon the individual student's or youth's needs, taking into account the
				  student's or youth's preferences and interests, and must include instruction,
				  community experiences, the development of employment and other postschool adult
				  living objectives, and, if appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and
				  functional vocational evaluation. Transition services must promote or
				  facilitate the achievement of the employment outcome identified in the
				  student's or youth's IPE. Transition services must also include outreach to and
				  engagement of the parents or other representatives, as appropriate.
"Transportation"
means travel and related
				  expenses that are necessary to enable an applicant or eligible individual to
				  participate in a vocational rehabilitation service, including expenses for
				  training in the use of public transportation vehicles and systems.
"Vocational rehabilitation services"
means
				  those services identified under
				  34
				  CFR Section 361.48. For the benefit of groups
				  of individuals, "vocational rehabilitation services" means those services
				  listed in
				  34
				  CFR Section 361.49.
"Waiting list"
means the listings of
				  eligible individuals for vocational rehabilitation services who are not in a
				  category being served, otherwise known as "order of selection" under the
				  Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014.
"Youth with a disability"
means an
				  individual with a disability who is not younger than 14 years of age and not
				  older than 24 years of age.