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Delaware State Subsidy Profile Updated March 2006 State Subsidy Contact Person Ana Prosceno NACAC Subsidy Representatives (parent/volunteer) Robyn Finnimore Mary Jo Wolfe Adoption subsidies are available for children with special needs. Federal subsidies were created by Congress (through Public Law 96-272—the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980) to encourage the adoption of special needs children and remove the financial disincentives to adoption for the families. Children may receive a federally funded subsidy under Title IV-E or a state-funded subsidy as per state guidelines. Below we have outlined information related to definitions of special needs, benefits available, and procedures in your state. Answers to select questions were made available by the Association of Administrators of the Interstate Compact on Adoption and Medical Assistance (AAICAMA) through the Child Welfare Information Gateway (www.childwelfare.gov). Profiles for each state’s subsidy program are available on our web site at www.nacac.org. If you have additional questions, please call the North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) at 651-644-3036 or our subsidy help line at 800-470-6665, or e-mail us at adoption.assistance@nacac.org. If you have state-specific questions, please call your State Subsidy Contact Person or the NACAC Subsidy Representative (listed above) for more information. Adoption Resources on the Web: www.state.de.us/kids/information/adoption.shtml Delaware’s state-specific medical assistance: www.state.de.us/dhss/dss/medicaid.html Delaware’s adoption assistance: www.state.de.us/kids/information/adoption.shtml 1. What specific factors or conditions does your State consider to determine that a child cannot be placed with adoptive parents without providing financial assistance? ("What is your State definition of special needs?") A child with special needs is defined as a child that has at least one of the following needs or circumstances that may be a barrier to placement or adoption without financial assistance:
Note: Children must be legally free for adoption, in foster care, and in the custody of the state of Delaware prior to adoption to be eligible for adoption assistance. 2. What are the eligibility criteria for the State-funded adoption assistance program? In order to be eligible for state-funded adoption assistance a child must be a special needs child as defined above, legally free for adoption, in foster care, and in the custody of the state of Delaware prior to adoption. 3. The maximum basic monthly adoption assistance maintenance payment in Delaware is based on the age of the child at time of adoption:
4. Specialized rates are based on the extraordinary needs of the child, and/or the additional parenting skill needed to raise the child. If Delaware offers these rates, the criteria used to define them are as follows: A child's level-of-care is determined when they enter foster care and re-determined about three months prior to the adoption petition being filed in the DE Family Court. This information plus the request for assistance is completed by the social worker and the specific day-to-day needs of the child are taken into consideration to assist in determining the subsidy rate for the special needs child. 5. Parents can receive payment or reimbursement for certain nonrecurring adoption expenses directly related to the finalization of an adoption. Below are the allowed expenses and the limit per child. DE may reimburse families for nonrecurring adoption costs up to $2,000 per family. This request must be prior approved by the adoption unit. 6. What Medicaid services are available in Delaware?
For additional information, the contact person for Medicaid is Emma Curtiss (302-255-9527). 7. Children who have federally funded (Title IV-E) subsidy are automatically eligible for Medicaid benefits. However, it is the state's decision whether state-funded (non-Title IV-E) children are eligible for Medicaid benefits inDelaware. Below is information on the Medicaid benefits available for state-funded children. Non-IV-E eligible children with special needs may receive a Delaware Medicaid card if they received Medicaid prior to their adoption (while in foster care) and they are approved for Medical/Psychological Subsidy. Once approved, children receive the same coverage as IV-E children. 8. What mental health services are provided by your State? Public mental health services for children in Delaware are administered by the DSCYF Division of Child Mental Health Services (DCMHS). DCMHS’s mental health services include the following examples: outpatient care, support and crisis services, day and residential treatment, and hospital treatment services. More information is available on the Division of Child Mental Health Service’s (DCMHS) website at www.state.de.us/kids/cmhs.htm or contact the DCMHS by phone at 302-633-2600 or e-mail: cmh.dscyf@state.de.us. Note: Not all services may be available in all cases. Contact your medical assistance specialist for information regarding process, eligibility, availability, and duration of services. 9. Does your State provide additional finances or services for medical or therapeutic needs not covered under your State medical plan to children receiving adoption assistance? Delaware offers an assistance known as a Medical/Psychological Subsidy. The program provides financial assistance for treatment of an identified medical or psychological problem, either existing or potential. Assistance is limited to $3,000 per year for expenses not covered by the family medical insurance plan or by Medicaid. Note: Not all services may be available in all cases. Contact your adoption assistance worker for information regarding process, eligibility, availability, and duration of services. 10. What types of post adoption services are available in your State and how do you find out more about them? Post adoption services in Delaware are administered by DSCYF through contracted agencies. Post adoption services include the following examples:
Adoptive Families with Information and Support (AFIS) is the contact agency for adoptive families in Delaware. Adoptive families can call the Delaware Help Line at 800.464.4357 or the AFIS Help Line at 302.239.6232 for information and support services. Respite Care—Funding for respite care is available for all children adopted from foster care in Delaware, for up to 14 days per year through the Medical/ Psychological program. In addition, many private organizations offer a variety of respite options. See the ARCH National Respite Network Respite Locator Service, search by state to locate Delaware’s respite programs, link: http://www.respitelocator.org/ Note: Not all services may be available in all cases. Contact your adoption assistance worker or post adoption services contact for information regarding process, eligibility, availability, and duration of services. 11. If the additional assistance (listed above in questions #8 -10) is to cover specific services (e.g., counseling/mental health services, respite care, etc.), must these services be explicitly identified in the adoption assistance agreement? The services covered by the Medical/Psychological Subsidy are specified in the application and identified prior to the finalized adoption while the child was in foster care. The adoption assistance agreement or state subsidy agreement only specifies that the child is eligible for medical/psychological services for the identified problem. Documentation from a licensed physician, psychologist, or other professionals is required. 12. How are residential treatment costs covered (if at all) for adoptive families? What procedures must a family follow to receive these services? Residential treatment is available through the Division of Child Mental Health, 302-633-2600. Inquirants should ask for the intake department or intake worker. There will be an evaluation. The family will be asked to help pay through their insurance, if possible. There must be a serious, significant need. The Medical/ Psychological Subsidy, which is $3,000 per year per child, may be used for this purpose with prior approval. 13. A deferred adoption assistance agreement is one in which the initial monthly maintenance amount is $0. Does Delaware offer such agreements? Yes, Delaware offers deferred adoption assistance agreements. 14. Does Delaware operate a subsidized guardianship program? No. The Title IV-E waiver ended on 12/31/02. Children previously active in the program will continue until they age out when they turn 18 years of age. In DE, there are two forms of guardianship. There is a standard guardianship and permanent guardianship for children approved for permanency who cannot return home, do not want to be adopted or have no relative resources available, etc. Payment is available to these families who qualify by applying to DHSS for a TANF grant for the child. For more information, contact Frank Perfinski at 302-633-2655.
15. Who makes the final determination of a child's subsidy eligibility in Delaware? What roles, if any, do workers and administrators at the county, district, or regional level play in eligibility determination and/or assistance negotiation? The Division of Family Services retains the authority to determine eligibility for the adoption assistance program. These determinations are made at the Central Office based on the information given by the child’s worker on the application for adoption assistance, the child’s level of care, and any other related documentation, if applicable. 16. Will Delaware consider my family income to determine my child's eligibility for subsidy? No. This is based on the child’s special needs, the services needed for the child and the family’s ability to meet those special needs. 17. When do subsidy payments begin? Adoption assistance payments begin after adoption finalization. 18. Do children adopted from private agencies in Delaware receive the same subsidies as those children adopted from public agencies? Most special needs children are in the custody of DFS. If an eligible child is in the custody of a private agency, requirements from ACYF-CB-PA-01-01 must be met in order to be eligible for adoption assistance. 19. When my child turns 18, which benefits, if any, are available to our family? Assistance payments and medical/psychological subsidies can be extended beyond the 18th birthday if the youth is enrolled in high school and attending classes (not post-secondary), living with the adoptive family and will graduate prior to age 21. If the state has determined that the child has a mental or physical disability that would warrant the continuation of assistance, payment will continue until 21 years of age. 20. A child's adoption assistance agreement may be periodically reviewed by the state. What is the typical process used in Delaware? Assistance agreements are reviewed annually. Additional reviews may be scheduled as well if circumstances warrant. Families provide the state agency with family financial information, educational status of child, changes within the adoptive family home, how the child is doing in the home, etc. for each adopted child. 21. Can adoption assistance agreements be modified if requested by adoptive parents? Adoptive parents can request a change in an adoption assistance agreement at any time. Requests for change should be made in writing with accompanying documentation supporting the request. The adoptive family must request the necessary documentation from a physician, psychologist, or other professional to substantiate the need for the change. This information is then presented to the Adoption Subsidy Specialist for review and approval. Agreements can be renegotiated by the family and the adoption assistance specialist at any time upon request or at the annual review. Assistance agreements are reviewed annually and additional reviews can be requested when necessary. In a review, adoptive parents furnish the state agency with information on the child’s well being and the family’s financial circumstance. Information regarding the child’s well being includes achievements of the previous year, goals for the coming year, and school grades and comments. Send requests for change to the following address: Adoption Unit If parents do not receive a requested change in the adoption assistance agreement, they can appeal the decision. Appeals or requests for fair hearing should be made in writing within thirty calendar days of the date of an adverse decision or notice. In the request for fair hearing, adoptive parents should explain the reason for the request and the relief they are requesting. 22. What are the exact steps a family must go through to access the fair hearing/appeal process in Delaware? Adoptive parents have the right to request a fair hearing whenever they wish to appeal a DFS decision affecting their child’s adoption assistance benefits. Requests for fair hearing are made by submitting a written request to the DFS Director within thirty days of the date of the decision or notice. Requests should explain the reason that parents are requesting a fair hearing and what relief (benefits) they are seeking. Denial of an application for assistance or of a request for the continuation of adoption assistance may be appealed by the adoptive parent(s) or by the agency submitting the application by requesting an administrative review of the case and the decision. The Division Director will conduct the review or appoint a member of their staff to do so. Families can be represented and bring witnesses and substantiating documentation of their claim with them to the hearing. The Director’s office will review the request to determine if the appeal was made timely and to determine that the request is being made by the person affected by the decision. A Hearing Officer is assigned to hear the appeal. The Hearing Officer is an impartial fact finder and decision maker who will create a respectful, non-adversarial environment with which to discuss the case. The Hearing Officer performs the following functions: schedules the fair hearing (appeal), ensures that all parties have been notified of the date, time, and location of the hearing, decides which evidence and witnesses will be considered, mediates the hearing, decides the merits of the appeal (reasons for the adoptive parent’s claims), writes an appeal decision, and ensures that all parties receive a copy of the decision within thirty calendar days of the final hearing date. Send requests for fair hearing to the following address: Director, Division of Family Services 23. Families may request a subsidy after the finalization of an adoption under certain circumstances. Below is the process by which families access a subsidy after finalization. The family needs to contact the Adoption Assistance/Subsidy Specialist to request a post-finalization subsidy. The case would then be negotiated with this person. For additional information, families can contact the state office at 302-633-2661.
24. How is the subsidy program operated and funded in Delaware? The program is state supervised/state administered. The Central Office administers the program statewide. Policy and regulations relating to subsidy and other programs are done at the state level. Also, decisions related to children’s eligibility are made at the state level. The federal contribution to Title IV-E-eligible children is 50.09% in Delaware. This is known as the Federal Financial Participation (FFP) rate. The remaining cost of the program is funded entirely with state funds. 25. Below are other programs that may delineate Delaware's adoption assistance program from others around the country. Delaware maintains contracts with a number of social service agencies throughout the state to provide post-adoption counseling and support. These services are available to any Delaware family created through adoption. Services include support and therapeutic groups, as well as individual, couple, and family therapy. For additional information on post-adoption services, please contact the AFIS Help line at 302-239-6232.
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North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC)
970 Raymond Avenue, Suite 106
St. Paul, MN 55114
phone: 651-644-3036
fax: 651-644-9848
e-mail: info@nacac.org
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