Maine State Adoption Assistance Program

https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/support-for-families/fostering-adopting/resources-for-foster-or-adoptive-parents

Maine’s state-specific medical assistance:

https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ofi/programs-services/health-care-assistance

Maine rules for the adoption assistance program

http://www.maine.gov/sos/cec/rules/10/chaps10.htm

Scroll down to 10 148 Office of Child and Family Services, then click on the link for Ch. 13 Rules for the Adoption Assistance Program. This will download a small Word document

Maine Child and Family Services Policy, Section VIII. C. Adoption Assistance

http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/cw/policy/

In Maine 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 adoption without financial assistance. A child must:

• Be five years of age or older
• Be of minority ethnic/racial background
• Be a member of a sibling group of two or more children placed in the same household, which includes at least sibling who meets another hard to place criteria
• Have a physical, mental, or emotional handicap
• Have a medical condition
• Be at risk for future emotional difficulties due to having been a victim of physical, emotional or sexual abuse, or neglect
• Be at risk for future problems due to factors in his family background such as severe mental illness, substance abuse, prostitution, genetic or medical conditions or illnesses

Rates for adoption assistance are negotiated for each child based on the child’s needs and the family’s circumstances from $0 to $26.25 per day.

Maine offers an exceptional medical rate (up to $60 per day) for medically fragile children with a high level of medical need:

• that does or could lead to care in an “intermediate care nursing facility”
• where the issues will not improve and may become more severe over time and require specialized care to support activities of daily living.
• where the parent has obtained the training necessary to meet the child’s medical needs and is directly providing that level of care.

Examples of children who meet this criteria are children who require a feeding tube, have congenital heart disease/abnormalities requiring surgery and monitoring, weekly to monthly hospital/specialist monitoring, need kidney dialysis, have severe forms of cancer, and/or severe failure to thrive with long range effects.

At the state’s option, adoption assistance may be provided beyond the 18th birthday up until age 21 for children if the Department determines based on all available information that the support is necessary. Eligible children are those who are in need of educational benefits or have severe physical, mental, or emotional disabilities.

Some post-adoption services in Maine are administered by the Department of Health & Human Services through an eight-district system of DHHS and parent-sponsored programs.

Parents who want post-adoption services for children adopted from the Department of Health & Human Services can apply by phone through the office where the child was adopted or the DHHS office where the child is currently living. To find the DHHS office: https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/about-us/contact-us

Other organizations that offer post adoption assistance are:

• Adoption and Foster Families of Maine (AFFM): http://www.affm.net/

The Maine Children’s Home https://www.mainechildrenshome.org/post-adoption-services

Maine has a Permanency Guardianship program.  The subsidy rates will be the same as those offered in adoption assistance.  This is a program only for children who have been in the foster care system. The family must meet all of the same requirements as foster and adoptive families. The program is open to relatives and non-relatives.  AFFM has extensive support for kinship families,
https://affm.net/support/the-kinship-program/

Tuition Waiver—youth who were adopted from foster care AND whose parents are receiving an adoption subsidy from DHHS can apply for a waiver that can be used at State of Maine Universities, Community Colleges, or Maine Maritime. Waivers are awarded on first come, first served basis—apply early. The applicant must be a Maine resident and must reapply each year. The waiver is available for undergraduate degrees only, up to 5 years. Application available Feb. 1. Administered through FAME (https://www.famemaine.com/maine_grants_loans/tuition-waiver-program/)

Upon the death of both adoptive parents, adoption assistance may be transferred to the legal guardian as long as the child continues to be eligible for adoption assistance pursuant to the terms of the most recent adoption assistance agreement with the adoptive parents. The department shall enter into a new assistance agreement with the legal guardian.