Section 4000.114. Process of implementation

(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.

The provisions of this § 4000.114 adopted December 20, 1991, effective December 21, 1991, apply retroactively to November 22, 1991, 21 Pa.B. 5849.