Pennsylvania Code › Title 55 - HUMAN SERVICES › Part VI - Mental Health/Intellectual Disability/Autism Manual › Subpart A - Statements of Policy › Chapter 4000 - FOSTER CARE › Subchapter A - FOSTER FAMILY CARE › Section 4000.114 - Process of implementation

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
(a)
					 Prior to placing a child with MH/MR needs in another county, the C&Y
					 intercounty coordinator will contact the MH/MR intercounty coordinators in the
					 custodial and receiving counties, and the C&Y private provider, if any, to
					 notify them of: the proposed date of the child's placement; whether the child
					 is known to the MH/MR system; a description of the child's MH/MR service needs;
					 and what services, if any, the child is currently receiving.
(b) The C&Y intercounty coordinator will
					 notify the MH/MR intercounty coordinators in the custodial and the receiving
					 county programs of each child who was receiving MH/MR services prior to being
					 placed out-of-county. These children are entitled to receive comparable
					 services in the receiving county within 4 weeks of placement. The C&Y
					 intercounty coordinator's obligations will include: arranging for the services
					 with the receiving county's MH/MR intercounty coordinator and arranging for
					 funding from the custodial county. The C&Y intercounty coordinator will
					 also be responsible for following up with the custodial and receiving county
					 MH/MR intercounty coordinators to assess whether the child has received
					 comparable services within 4 weeks of placement.
(c) If the C&Y intercounty coordinator is
					 unable to secure comparable services and funding therefore within 4 weeks of
					 placement, the C&Y intercounty coordinator shall immediately notify the
					 Secretary or a designee. The Secretary will have 20 working days to secure
					 compliance with this chapter, which includes the Secretary taking all steps
					 available to him under State law. This subsection does not preempt plaintiff
					 class members' rights to seek relief under
					 2
					 Pa.C.S. §§
												551-555 (relating to
					 practice and procedure of local agencies). A foster-parent, a C&Y private
					 provider or a child advocate can also trigger this resolution mechanism by
					 notifying the Secretary.
(d) The
					 C&Y intercounty coordinator is responsible for determining whether children
					 who were not receiving MH/MR services prior to placement are treated as if they
					 are residents by the receiving county's MH/MR office. The C&Y intercounty
					 coordinator is responsible for arranging for the immediate assessment of the
					 child by the appropriate county MH/MR office to determine eligibility for
					 services if they are not previously established. The C&Y intercounty
					 coordinator shall also monitor the child to determine that a case manager is
					 appointed, and that services are initiated, as if the child were living in the
					 county with the child's birth family. The date of application is the date the
					 child applied for MH/MR services in the custodial or the receiving county,
					 whichever is earlier. If the C&Y intercounty coordinator is unable promptly
					 to obtain the services described in this paragraph for a child, the coordinator
					 shall immediately refer the case to the Secretary or a designee who shall
					 resolve the problem as described in subsection (c).
(e) The C&Y intercounty coordinator is
					 responsible for reporting to the Secretary or a designee a failure on the part
					 of the receiving MH/MR office to provide or arrange for services on the same
					 basis as resident children, and a failure on the part of the custodial MH/MR
					 office to make payment for these services in a reasonable manner. These
					 problems are to be resolved by the Secretary and a designee as set out in
					 subsection (c). As in subsection (c), the resolution mechanism may also be
					 triggered by a foster parent, a C&Y private provider or a child
					 advocate.