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Effective: 2/23/2024

13.46 Continuation of Adoption Assistance After Age 18

Legal Authority

Introduction

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Adoptive parents may be eligible for adoption assistance for children with special needs after their eighteenth (18th) birthday in the form of a monthly subsidy, extraordinary medical expenses, and a Medicaid card. Adoption assistance may continue until high school graduation or the child’s nineteenth (19th) birthday, whichever comes first.

Practice Guidance

Procedure

The R&C worker:
  1. ​​Ensures that the adoptive family provides verification of the child's continued enrollment in high school after the child's eighteenth (18th) birthday; 
  2. Verifies the child was placed for adoption by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS/Cabinet), and the family received adoption assistance after the finalization of the adoption; 
  3. Contacts the child’s children’s benefits worker (CBW) to ensure continuation of Medicaid if the state-funded subsidy is continued beyond age eighteen (18); 1 
  4. Contacts the billing specialist to ensure the: 
    1. Continuation of adoption assistance for state-funded children; and 
    2. The child is placed on a state-funded subsidy, for children eligible for title IV-E funding. 
  5.  Completes a new DPP-1258 Adoption Assistance Agreement indicating the change from title IV-E funding to state funding, by checking the appropriate box on the top, right portion of the agreement; and 
  6. Prepares the DPP-1258 to extend adoption assistance as described above; however, back payments may not be issued more than four (4) months from the child's eighteenth (18th) birthday.

Footnotes

  1. Medical coverage is extended until high school graduation only if the child is enrolled full-time and is expected to complete their secondary schooling or equivalent before reaching age nineteen (19).​​

Documents

Revisions