Section 480-1-010 - PROCEDURES FOR INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN DEVELOPMENT, REVIEW, AND EVALUATION.010.01INITIAL INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN MEETING. For each infant or toddler with a disability, a meeting must be held to develop the initial Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) by a multidisciplinary team, which includes the parent and services coordinator, within the regulatory required timelines.010.02PERIODIC REVIEW. A review of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) must be conducted every six months or more frequently if warranted or requested by the family to determine the degree to which results or outcomes are being achieved, and whether modification or revision of services, results, or outcomes are necessary. 010.02(A)MEETING. This review may be carried out by a meeting or by another means acceptable to the family and other participants.010.02(B)INITIATION. All reviews are initiated by the services coordinator, but can be requested by any team member.010.03ANNUAL INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN MEETING. A meeting chaired by the services coordinator or the family must be conducted on at least an annual basis to evaluate and revise, as appropriate, the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). The results of any current evaluations and other information available from the assessments of the child and family must be used in determining the early intervention services that are needed and will be provided.010.04ANNUAL MEETING TEAM MEMBERS. Initial and annual Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meeting team members must include: (A) Family and family members, as requested by parent(s);(B) Advocate or person outside of family, as requested by parent;(C) Services coordinator;(D) As appropriate, person(s) who will be providing early intervention services to the child or family;(E) Person(s) directly involved in conducting evaluations and assessments: If this person(s) is unable to attend a meeting, arrangements must be made for the person's involvement through other means, including one of the following; (i) Participating in a telephone conference call;(ii) Having a knowledgeable authorized representative attend the meeting; or(iii) Making pertinent records available at the meeting; and(F) A representative of the school district or approved cooperative who has the authority to commit resources.010.05PERIODIC REVIEW TEAM MEMBERS. Periodic review team members must include: (A) Family and family members, as requested by parent(s);(B) Advocate or person outside of family, as requested by parent;(C) Services coordinator;(D) As appropriate, persons directly involved in conducting any additional evaluations or assessments, and service provision for the child; and(E) If changes in special education or related services are proposed, a school district representative who has the authority to commit district resources.010.06INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN TEAM MEETING AND PERIODIC REVIEW. For each initial and annual Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) team meeting and periodic review, the services coordinator must: (A) Arrange, conduct, and chair the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meeting with the family in a setting and at a time convenient for the family;(B) Provide written notice to all team members a reasonable time before the meeting. Written notice must be provided in the native language of the parent or other mode of communication used by the parent, unless it is clearly not feasible to do so;(C) Ensure the meeting is conducted in the native language, or primary mode of communication, of the family;(D) Draft the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) document, which must contain the following elements; (i) Information about the child's present levels of physical development; cognitive development; communication development; social and emotional development; and adaptive development based upon the information from the child's evaluation and assessments;(ii) With the family's agreement, the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) must include a statement of the family's priorities, concerns, and resources related to enhancing the development of the child as identified through the voluntary assessment of the family;(iii) The measurable results or outcomes expected to be achieved for the child and family, including the criteria, procedures and timelines used to determine progress toward achieving the results or outcomes;(iv) Specific early intervention services to achieve the desired results or outcomes of the child and family including; (2) Length of time the service is provided during each session of that service;(3) Intensity or the number of days or sessions the service is provided, and whether the service is provided on an individual or group basis;(5) The natural environments in which early intervention services will be provided;(6) Justification of the extent, if any, to which the services will not be provided in a natural environment. The justification must be made by the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) team and only when early intervention services cannot be achieved satisfactorily in a natural environment, and is based on the child's outcomes that are identified by the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) team;(7) Location where a service will be provided;(8) Payment arrangements, if any;(9) Projected dates for beginning of services; and(10) Anticipated duration of those services (projecting when a given service will no longer be provided, such as when the child is expected to achieve the results or outcomes of his or her Individualized Family Service Plan [IFSP]);(v) For children who are three years of age, the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) must include an educational component that promotes school readiness and incorporates pre-literacy, language, and numeracy skills;(vi) To the extent appropriate, the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) must include medical and other services that the child and the child's family may need or is receiving through other sources, but that are not required to be provided nor funded through early intervention. If those services are not currently being provided, include a description of the steps the services coordinator or family may take to assist the child and family in securing those other services. Identifying these services in the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) does not impose an obligation to any specific agency to provide the services free of charge;(vii) The name of the services coordinator who will be responsible for implementing the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP), including transition services, and coordinating with other agencies and persons; and(viii) The Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) must include the steps and services to be taken to support the transition of the child to preschool or other services as required in this chapter;(E) Fully explain the contents of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) to the parent(s). The Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) provides for the written consent of the parent to provide services to the child and family. If the parent(s) does not provide consent with respect to a particular early intervention service or withdraws consent after first providing it, that service may not be provided. Although the parent may accept or reject any part of the early intervention services offered, the child will not receive services until the parent(s) have signed the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). The early intervention services to which parental consent is obtained must be provided as soon as possible, but no later than 30 days from date of parental consent; and(F) Distribute a written copy of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) to each person attending within seven calendar days of the meeting. Parent(s) must give specific consent for distribution of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) document to any individuals or agencies not on the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) team. A written copy of the family assessment must also be distributed to the parent within seven calendar days of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meeting.010.07IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURES. Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) Implementation procedures conducted by the services coordinator must include: (A) Assisting the child and family to gain access to, and coordinate the provision of, the early intervention services and other services identified in the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) in settings most natural and within daily routines;(B) Coordinating the funding sources for services required under this part;(C) Monitoring implementation of the plan as written by the team members designated on the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP);(D) Advocating for the family;(E) Coordinating, facilitating, and monitoring the delivery of services required under this part to ensure the services are provided within 30 days of parental consent; and(F) Contacting the family at least monthly to review the progress of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) and to conduct follow-up activities to determine that appropriate early intervention services are being provided. This contact must be face-to-face contact with the family and child at least every other month.010.08PROVIDER RESPONSIBILITIES. Each agency or person who has a direct role in the provision of early intervention services is responsible for making a good faith effort to assist each eligible child in achieving the outcomes in the child's Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP); however, this does not require that any agency or person be held accountable if an eligible child or the child's family does not achieve the outcomes projected in the child's Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP).480 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 1, § 010
Adopted effective 10/3/2021