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To assure that all waiting children have every opportunity for placement, social workers should be familiar with and be able to access all available resources which include, in addition to public agencies, all private child-placing agencies, both in and out of state.
All private child-placing agencies in North Carolina that are licensed by the Division of Social Services are available to provide adoptive placement for waiting children. The fees, costs and contracts associated with and required by these agencies vary. Due to these variations, social workers should contact the agency directly to discuss the referral process and purchase of service fee, if applicable. It should be noted that the Division has entered into a contract with some of the North Carolina private agencies and/or provides a grant or funds other services provided and available after placement. Services provided and available after placement also vary depending upon the agency and social workers must discuss and negotiate follow-up service responsibilities.
A number of specialized adoption agencies exists throughout the country which have become valuable resources in providing adoptive families for special needs children. Often these agencies do not charge fees to their adoptive applicants but rather charge the child's agency a fee for services. Workers should contact each agency directly to discuss the referral process and the fee for service. If a child is placed with an out of state family through one of these agencies, provisions of the ICPC apply.
With the objective of expanding adoption opportunities for some of North Carolina's children, State funds have been made available to assist county departments of social services with placement fees charged by specialized out of state agencies. Adoption Services may be purchased from out of state providers when adoption resources are not available for special needs children in the custody of a county department of social services. Purchased adoption services may include preplacement assessment, preparation of family, preplacement visits, placement services, post-placement services, recruitment, and adoption related legal services.(10A NCAC 70M.0501) .
1. Fees
The maximum amount available from the Division is $1,800 per child. Since the fees charged by many of the specialized agencies may be more than $1,800, the child's agency will need to have funds budgeted for this purpose or have access to funds locally to complete the total amount of the purchase fees.
The agencies base their fees on the actual average cost of the total services, which may include recruitment, preparation and assessment, training, post placement services and post finalization services. Many agencies are able to negotiate with the child's agency toward a fee somewhat lower than the actual average cost.
2. Procedures to Obtain Prior Approval and Reimbursement of Service Fees
Requests for assistance with payment of service fees should be submitted in writing to the Special Needs Adoption Coordinator of the Division of Social Services. The request should be sent at the point a decision has been reached to place the child with a specific family who has been studied and approved by the specialized adoption agency and when the two agencies have completed negotiations in regard to the total amount of the fee. Documentation of the total fee and of the following must be included in the letter of request:
• that the county department making the request has legal placement and
• consenting authority;
• that the child is legally cleared for adoption;
• that the child is considered hard to place due to such factors as age, race,
• physical, mental or emotional handicaps, and/or due to being a member of a sibling group to be placed together; and
• that the child is registered, with NCKids Adoption and Foster Care Network, if a family has not been identified for the child.
The Division of Social Services will notify the county department promptly of the action taken on its request for assistance with the adoption fee. If approval for payment is given, a copy of the signed Purchase of Adoption Services Agreement (DSS 5305) between the out-of-state adoption agency and the county department of social services must be sent to the Division of Social Services to document both the terms of the financial agreement and the approximate payment schedule.
When partial or full payment for services from an out-of-state agency to a child approved to receive this benefit is due, the county department should notify the Special Needs Adoption Coordinator in Children's Services. A copy of the bill or statement received from the out-of-state agency must be attached to the notification. A check will be issued to the child's agency for the previously agreed upon amount. Following payment to the out-of-state agency, a copy of the receipt must be sent by the child's agency to the Division of Social Services for its files.
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For questions or clarification on any of the policy contained in these manuals, please contact your local county office. |
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