Legal Authority/Introduction

LEGAL AUTHORITY:

• 922 KAR 1:050. State funded adoption assistance.

State funds may be available when a finalized adoption (for which adoption assistance has not been previously approved) is near dissolution due to the need for extraordinary medical care, but a monthly subsidy is not an option available in state funded post finalization requests.

Approval is contingent on the following criteria:

• The child was placed for adoption by the Cabinet;
• The child was considered special needs prior to the adoption;
• The parents have made a reasonable effort under the circumstances to meet the needs of the child without assistance; and
• The child is under eighteen (18) years of age.

Procedure

The R&C worker: 

1. Must explore other resources including Medicaid eligibility prior to submitting a post finalization adoption assistance request;
2. Contacts the central office (CO) adoption specialist to request that the adoption file be pulled from archives and to discuss the situation;
3. Negotiates the assistance request and submits a Post Finalization Adoption Assistance Request Form to the CO adoption specialist through appropriate supervisory channels;
4. Attaches supporting documentation  to the request form; 1
5. Sends the adoptive parent a DPP-154 Protection and Permanency Service Appeal with the denial letter from the Commissioner if the request is not approved. 2

The central office adoption specialist:

1. Reviews the file to make a preliminary determination of eligibility as well as to determine which funding stream  will be accessed; 3
2. Notifies the SSW of the initial determination and funding eligibility;
3. Reviews the request to verify eligibility and submits it for the Commissioner's approval.

Practice Guidance

• The adoptive parents bear the burden of proving extenuating circumstances and adoption assistance eligibility in a fair hearing.
• If the hearing decision supports the complaint, adoption assistance is approved for payment no earlier than the date of the request for fair hearing.

Footnotes

1. E.g. educational, mental health, medical reports.
2. A request for a service appeal must be filed within thirty (30) days of the determination.
3. E.g., state or IV-E.