51.44 Early intervention services.

(1) In this section:

(ag) “Case management services" means activities carried out by a service coordinator to assist and enable a child eligible for early intervention services under this section and the child's family to receive the rights and services authorized to be provided under the early intervention program under this section.

(ar) “Individualized family service plan" means a written plan for providing early intervention services to an eligible child and the child's family.

(b) “Local health department" has the meaning given in s. 250.01 (4).

(c) “Multidisciplinary evaluation" means the process used by qualified professionals to determine eligibility for early intervention services under this section based on the child's developmental status, the child's health, physical condition and mental condition or the child's atypical development.

(1m) The department is the lead agency in this state for the development and implementation of a statewide system of coordinated, comprehensive multidisciplinary programs to provide appropriate early intervention services under the requirements of 20 USC 1431 to 1444.

(3)

(a) From the appropriations under s. 20.435 (7) (bt) and (nL) the department shall allocate and distribute funds to counties to provide or contract for the provision of early intervention services to individuals eligible to receive the early intervention services.

(b) Funds that are distributed to counties under par. (a) may not be used to supplant funding from any other source.

(c) No county may contribute less funding for early intervention services under this section than the county contributed for early intervention services in 1999, except that, for a county that demonstrated extraordinary effort in 1999, the department may waive this requirement and establish with the county a lesser required contribution.

(d) From the appropriation under s. 20.435 (7) (bt), the department may pay the nonfederal share of Medical Assistance costs for services provided under s. 49.45 (54) (c).

(4) Each county board of supervisors, except in Milwaukee County, and the Milwaukee County mental health board in Milwaukee County shall designate the appropriate county department under s. 46.21, 46.23 or 51.437, the local health department of the county or another entity as the local lead agency to provide early intervention services under the funding specified in sub. (3).

(5) The department shall do all of the following:

(a) Promulgate rules for the statewide implementation of the program under this section that do all of the following:

1. Specify the population of children who would be eligible for services under the program.

2. Define the term “early intervention services".

3. Establish personnel standards and a comprehensive plan for the development of personnel providing services in the program.

4. Establish procedures for the resolution of complaints by clients in the program.

5. Specify data collection requirements, including a system for making referrals to service providers.

6. Establish monitoring and supervision authority.

7. Establish policies and procedures for the implementation of individual family services plans and case management services.

8. Develop requirements for local coordination and interagency agreements at state and local levels.

9. Establish requirements for public awareness activities and a statewide directory of services.

(am) Promulgate rules that define the term “service coordinator".

(b) Ensure that the children eligible for early intervention services under this section receive all of the following services:

1. A multidisciplinary evaluation.

2. An individualized family service plan.

3. Assignment of a service coordinator, as defined by the department by rule, to provide case management services.

(c) Annually, submit to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature for distribution to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2) a report on the department's progress toward full implementation of the program under this section, including the progress of counties in implementing goals for participation in 5th-year requirements under 20 USC 1431 to 1444.

History: 1991 a. 39, 269; 1993 a. 16, 27; 1995 a. 27; 1997 a. 27; 2001 a. 16; 2013 a. 20, 203; 2017 a. 59.