Alabama Administrative Code

This policy has been developed to comply with the following "operating principles" or "standards" of the R.C. Consent Decree and it also addresses specific provisions of the Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act 1985 (COBRA, P. L. 99-272) and the Foster Care Independence Act of…

This policy provides guidelines and procedures related to the development of systematic, comprehensive plans to facilitate smooth transitions into adulthood for all youth who will age out of the system of care. Some youth may transition to the Adult Protective Services System whi…

(1) Appropriate transitional planning shall occur for all youth by using the individualized service planning process to develop and implement a systematic, comprehensive plan to prepare youth for the transition into adulthood. The individualized service plan (ISP) serves as the y…

(1) Program Components shall include: (a) Control over their future, by involving the youth in an Individualized Service Plan. Their involvement in planning steps and goals to be achieved will help to assess and identify skill they need for life. Through the provision of such ser…

(1) Discharge from the system of care occurs at the point in time when youth are no longer in DHR care, custody/planning responsibility, or supervision, and it also encompasses situations where youth age out of the system of care. (a) Aging out of the system of care occurs on a y…

(1) Youth, ages 18 to 20, who have previously resided in DHR foster care may request re-entry into the system following discharge if they are living in a situation where there is an identifiable risk of harm that would typically result in the provision of child welfare services i…

Behavior Management policy has been developed to comply with the operating principles or Standards of the R. C. Consent Decree with particular emphasis on principal VIII, 55. This Consent Decree is a part of a federal lawsuit settlement known as R.C. v. Fuller case (R.C. v. Horns…

(1) Purpose - This policy is designed to serve several functions for children, their families, DHR and provider staff when behavior management interventions are deemed necessary for children to manage existing or learn new behaviors. These functions are the identification of gene…

(1) Behavior Management Interventions - Interventions used to manage children's behaviors and must be authorized by the child and family planning team and documented in the individualized service plan. The most normalized least restrictive interventions must be used to manage beh…

(1) Restrictive Interventions - The more restrictive interventions for managing existing and teaching new behaviors include isolation, medication, seclusion, and restraint. (a) Isolation - Isolation, a less restrictive intervention than medication, seclusion or restraint, is desi…

(1) General Guidelines - Child care institutions, group homes, shelters, other facilities, and licensed child placing agencies responsible for approving foster homes that serve children in the custody and/or planning responsibility of the Department are to develop written behavio…

(1) General Guidelines - Plans designed to address behavioral needs must be systematic, based upon a careful assessment of the child's behavior, and utilize behavior management interventions which are in accordance with generally acceptable professional standards. Interventions w…

Among other things, this policy recognizes the need for family attachments, and is intended to promote visits to support and strengthen family attachments. Author: Jerome Webb Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-50-.01 New Rule: October 7, 2003; effective November 11, 2003. Statutory…

Visiting policy has been developed to comply with the following principles set forth in the R. C. Consent Decree: (1) "VIII 45. The system of care shall promote class members' visitation with their parents and family. (a) The matter of visitation shall be addressed in the class m…

(1) Age appropriate child - A child age 10 and older (except a child with severe mental retardation), or a child under age 10 who is intellectually capable of understanding and communicating ideas and opinions concerning the subject matter being discussed or considered. (2) Child…

- Court orders must be followed. (1) Sometimes there will be an existing court order (often from a divorce proceeding) in place at the time an ISP is being developed for a child and family. The existing order must be followed until modified or lifted. However, DHR must seek to ha…

(1) General Policy (a) This policy applies to all children in DHR custody or planning responsibility who have been removed from their home and placed in foster care {e.g., home of relatives (kinship care) or neighbors, foster family home, therapeutic foster family home, group hom…

(1) The child in foster care has the right to visit with parents, other family members, and friends unless visiting places the child's safety at risk; substantially inhibits attainment of the goals of the safety plan or the permanency goal of the ISP; or subjects the child to int…

(1) The Department of Human Resources must maintain contact by visiting frequently, but not less than once a month, with children to help ensure child safety, contact with family, a good working relationship with the family and foster family, and to help maintain best case practi…

(1) Written Notice To Parents - Parents who are not prevented from visiting their children by court order, safety issues or other reasons shall be granted visitation. If there is a change in visitation, the parent should receive written notice well in advance of the visitation da…

(1) The Department of Human Resources will provide services to encourage and support, as needed, the child's visits with the parent(s), other family members and friends. A list of possible services are, but not limited to: (a) Transportation or payment of transportation expenses …

(1) Purpose - DHR has developed these requirements for transitional and independent living programs to help provide consistency in the development and delivery of transitional and independent living services. All persons, groups of persons, or corporations desiring to provide tra…

(1) Youth in DHR custody may reside in a transitional or independent living placement only if the program providing the placement is operated by a DHR-licensed child-placing agency or residential child care facility, or a DHR-approved foster family home. (2) Skill Building Compon…

(1) Transitional living placements are offered through a variety of residential on-campus living arrangements where youth have the opportunity to practice independent living skills with decreasing degrees of care and supervision. Apartment living may also be considered when the a…

(1) Youth who are in DHR custody and residing in a foster family home may be given the opportunity to live in a dwelling, separate from the foster family home, that is specifically designated as a transitional or an independent living placement when the youth's individualized ser…

(1) Child-placing agencies, residential child care facilities and foster family homes providing transitional and independent living placements shall complete documentation as described in this rule. (a) Independent Living Intake and Orientation Checklist - Providers shall complet…

This policy provides DHR staff with procedures to follow when assessing a child's need for inpatient psychiatric services (diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment), and when appropriate, the subsequent admission to and discharge from the hospital setting. This policy is not applicab…

(1) policy has been developed to comply with the following operating principles or standards of the R.C. Consent Decree: (a) Section VIII. 48(c). The "system of care" shall not initiate or consent to the placement of a class member in an institution or other facility operated by …

(1) The ISP team shall be fully involved when assessing the need for, and appropriateness of, inpatient services even though child welfare staff and supervisors have primary responsibility for completing the referral and admission process. The referral and admission process inclu…

(1) Discharge Planning - Discharge planning shall begin immediately upon a child's admission to the hospital and continue throughout inpatient service delivery. The ISP team shall partner with hospital staff responsible for the planning and delivery of services and make every eff…

(1) Financial resources must be explored to determine the appropriate payment method for inpatient services, and the following payment methods shall be considered in the order listed. (a) Private Pay/Insurance - Private payment/insurance is to be considered as the first method of…

Subject to the provisions of Chapter 660-5-53-.04 -.04ER, the following standards, which are divided into components, apply to all 67 counties within Alabama unless otherwise noted. (1) The "Intake" position in a county shall be staffed at 1 FTE (full-time equivalent position) pe…

Jefferson, Mobile, Madison and Montgomery Counties shall be allocated additional direct care staff persons equal to ten percent (10%) of the direct staff projected need to address the significantly higher turnover rates and large numbers of extremely complex children. Author: Bre…

(1) Each county shall have 1 worker for every 40 resource cases. (2) Infrastructure Supports. (a) Counties with populations larger than 80,000 shall receive 1 supervisor for quality assurance; 1 supervisor for resource development; and 1 account clerk. Jefferson and Mobile Counti…

(1) Notwithstanding any other provision in this Chapter, the responsibility for compliance with these caseload standards rests exclusively with the State of Alabama, and not with any individual employee or agent of the State of Alabama, including, without limitations, child welfa…

(1) For the purposes of this act, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (a) CHILD. A person under the age of 18 years. (b) COMMUNITY TREATMENT FACILITY FOR YOUTHS. A religious, faith-based, or church non-profit, other non-profit, or for profit youth residential f…

(1) Registration of Certain Youth Residential Institutions or Organizations (a) Commencing on January 1, 2018, the department shall register any religious, faith based, or church non-profit, other non-profit, or for profit affiliated youth residential facility, youth social rehab…

Any employee, volunteer, or applicant for employment or for a volunteer position at or with any religious, faith-based, or church non-profit, other non-profit, or for profit affiliated youth residential facility, youth social rehabilitation facility, community treatment facility …

(1) The department shall charge a fee of $100.00 for the registration. After the initial registration approval, the department shall charge a renewal fee of $50.00 annually on each anniversary of the effective date of the registration. The fees are for the purpose of administerin…

(1) Quarterly inspection. All youth residential facilities and organizations under this section shall be subject to a quarterly inspection by the department or its designee at a minimum and shall be responsible for providing necessary information as determined by the department t…

(1) The department shall have the authority to act in loco parentis for any child covered under this section in need of immediate health, welfare, protective, or other critical services until that child's parent or guardian can be contacted and is able to make those decisions in …

This rule shall not be interpreted to supersede any other law requiring the reporting or investigation of child abuse or neglect. Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-54-.07 Adopted by Alabama Administrative Monthly Volume XXXVI, Issue No. 06, March 30, 2018, eff. 4/27/2018. Author: G…

Emergency Welfare Services means assistance and services to meet human needs of individuals and families resulting from disasters, including, but not limited to: feeding; clothing; lodging in private and congregate facilities; registration; locating and reuniting families; care o…

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.01 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.02 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.03 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.04 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.05 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.06 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.

Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-9-.07 Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency repealer effective October 1, 1983. Permanent repealer effective January 9, 1984. Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 38-4-5, §§ 41-22-1 through -27.