Module 4, Handout 4: Agencies Working with Children

Module 4, Handout 4: Agencies Working with Children

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Includes more than 300 programs including:

- Supporting Military Families

- Health

- Financial Assistance: Child support, paying for child care, aid for children with disabilities, Head Start, temporary assistance for needy families (TANF), paying for home heating and cooling, HHS Poverty Guidelines, and eligibility for federal government benefits.

- Health Insurance: Group and individual health insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

- Safety: Prevent abuse and neglect, domestic or partner violence, substance abuse, and teen violence.

Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS)

The Department of Children and Family Services with public, private, and community partners, provides quality child welfare services and supports so children grow up safe, healthy, educated and with permanent families.

There are six goals for L. A. County Department of Children and Family Services:

- Improved Child Safety

- Decreased Timelines to Permanence

- Reduced Reliance on Out-of-Home Care

- Self-Sufficiency

- Increased Child and Family Well-Being

- Enhanced Organizational Excellence

Department of Mental Health, Multidisciplinary Assessment Teams (DMH)

Multidisciplinary Assessment Teams (MAT) is a collaborative effort between the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), the Department of Mental Health (DMH), and other community providers. It is designed to ensure the immediate and comprehensive assessment of children and youth entering out-of-home placement.

When a child is detained, he/she is eligible to receive a Multidisciplinary Assessment Team (MAT) assessment through DCFS. This assessment is meant to help a family meet the special needs children may have that place this family in danger of a lengthy separation.

The information gathered by this assessment will be used to determine what services are most needed by the children with the intention of using this information for the most appropriate placement of the child while ensuring that his/her needs will be met.

MAT Assessments address the following areas:

· Education

· Mental Health

· Family Caregiver

· Vocational

· Medical

· Dental

· Developmental

· Hearing/Language

According to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services’ MAT Procedural Guide, order to be eligible for MAT, all of the following criteria must be met:

· The child was detained by an office that has implemented MAT;

· The child must be Straight Medi-cal eligible;

· It must be a detention on a new referral-It cannot be a detention on an already open case, this includes failed VFM’s and Court FM cases; and

· The child must be placed in out-of-home care (relative or foster care)-Children placed with non-offending parent do not qualify.

Once the DCFS MAT Coordinator completes a referral package for the child, he/she contacts a provider from the MAT Provider list that best matches the needs of the family based on language, location and specialties. The DMH MAT Provider is required to conduct the standard DMH Child and Adolescent Assessment and complete the MAT Summary of Findings Report.

The information gathered by the assessment is used to determine what services are most needed by the child and what is the most appropriate placement thereby reducing the amount of time the child is separated from his/her family. The assessment process culminates in the MAT Summary of Findings Report and is incorporated into the child’s Case Plan presented to the court.

California Children’s Services (CCS)

The CCS program provides diagnostic and treatment services, medical case management, and physical and occupational therapy services to children under age 21 with CCS-eligible medical conditions. Examples of CCS-eligible conditions include, but are not limited to, chronic medical conditions such as cystic fibrosis, hemophilia, cerebral palsy, heart disease, cancer, traumatic injuries, and infectious diseases. CCS also provides medical therapy services that are delivered at public schools.[i]

Children qualify for CCS services if they meet the following requirements:

· is under 21 years old

· has a health problem that is covered by CCS

· is a resident of California

· and has one of the following:

o family income of $40,000 or less

o out-of-pocket medical expenses expected to be more than 20 percent of family's adjusted gross income

o a need for an evaluation to find out if there is a health problem covered by CCS

o was adopted with a known health problem that is covered by CCS

o a need for the Medical Therapy Program

o Medi-Cal, with full benefits

o Healthy Families insurance

Reference

[i] California Department of Health Care Services. California Children’s Services: Program Overview.