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Bed Holds (Temporary Absence)
[EAS 45-302.23 and 82-812]
State regulations allow foster care placements to continue to receive AFDC-FC funding for a child during which the child is temporarily away from an eligible foster care facility. This continuation of funding is referred to as a “Bed Hold.”
The temporary absence from the placement may be due to school, work, hospitalization, training, visits, vacations, emergency circumstance or the child has left the placement without authorization (runaway).
A JPD youth placed in a foster care placement is eligible for the bed hold policy. Youth detained in Juvenile Hall are not eligible for the bed hold policy.
The child's/youth’s social worker must follow DFCS bed hold policies which cannot exceed 14 days. The documentation must remain in the Service File (the SW file) and will not be sent to FCE unless the Bed Hold exceeds 14 consecutive days.
Note: This policy only applies to Foster Care placements and does not include AAC or Kin-GAP and only applies to Wraparound when the child is in an eligible foster care placement.
Policy
Basic policy guidelines are intended to maintain the placement that best serves the needs of the child, while adhering to allowable bed hold time frames. The basic policy guidelines are:
If the child is AFDC-FC (Foster Care) eligible, State and Federal funds can be used to pay for a bed for a child on a temporary absence for 14 days within a calendar month during which the temporary absence takes place.
When an AFDC-FC eligible child is temporarily absent from an eligible facility such as for school, work or training program, hospitalization, visiting, vacationing, emergency circumstances, the county may make the payment to the eligible facility from which the child is absent in order to meet the child’s need.
- A child is determined to be temporarily absent when he/she is absent for no more that 14 days in calendar month. The facility is eligible for a full month’s payment if the brief absence does not exceed 14 days. Otherwise the benefits must be pro-rated.
- A child who is in a public hospital shall be considered temporarily absent from an eligible facility when, on the first of the month which the ADFC-FC payment is due, the child has not been the public hospital for two full calendar months, irrespective of the when he or she entered that facility.
Below are three scenarios relating to Bed Holds:
A FC youth runs away from placement on January 24th. The child returns to the same home 14 days later on February 7. Because the child was not absent in January for more than 14 days and was not absent in February for more that 14 days, the county could provide two full months of FC payments to the provider.
A FC youth runs away from placement on January 24th and returns to the same home 18 days later on February 11th. The county could pay the full months of January and February since the child was not absent more than 14 days in each month.
Note: In order minimize confusion regarding the “Bed Hold” policy, DFCS SWs are advised to use the “Bed Hold” policy only when the foster care youth’s absence does not exceed 14 days for any given time. When the FC EW has determined the youth falls in the above example, it may be noted in the case that the above rule applies.
A FC youth runs away from placement or is hospitalized from January 2nd to the 14th and then again from January 20th through 27th. Because the youth was absent from placement for more than 14 days in a calendar month, the county must pro-rate the maintenance payment to reduce the payment by the number of days exceeding 14 days in the calendar month.
Following the calendar month during which the temporary absence began, State and Federal funds cannot be used to pay for the child's bed, if the absence continues and exceeds the maximum allowed days. County funds may be utilized to pay for a bed hold that extends longer than 14 days in calendar month.
Documentation Required for Payment
Bed holds which occur in the first 14 days do not require any documents to FCE however, it must be documented in the Service File. If the bed hold extends past the allotted 14 days and the SW worker wishes to continue payment, a “DFCS Request - Placement Expenses” form (SCZ 414Z) to pay using all county funds is required along with an explanation regarding the use of the Bed Hold policy. The EW will pay the first 14 days with either federal for state funding and begin using county funding for the period exceeding 14 days.
Note: An updated SOC 158A is only required when the placement is being terminated. Use of the Bed Hold policy is included on the SOC 158A under the rationale description. Documentation regard the use of the Bed Hold policy must be maintained in the Service File.
Related Topics
Aid Payments and State Administered Rates