§ 32A-3A-14 — Notification to the department of noncompliance with a

plan of safe care. A. If the parents, relatives, guardians, custodians or caretakers of a child released from a hospital or freestanding birthing center pursuant to a plan of safe care fail to comply with that plan, the health care authority, a medicaid managed care organization insurance plan care coordinator or a care coordinator contracted with the health care authority shall notify the department within twenty-four hours of the failure to comply and the department shall conduct a family assessment. Based on the results of the family assessment, the department may offer or provide referrals for counseling, training, or other services aimed at addressing the underlying causative factors that may jeopardize the safety or well-being of the child. The child's parents, relatives, guardians, custodians or caretakers may choose to accept or decline any service or program offered subsequent to the family assessment; provided that if the child's parents, relatives, guardians, custodians or caretakers decline those services or programs, and the department determines that those services or programs are necessary to address concerns of imminent harm to the child, the department shall proceed with an investigation. B. As used in this section, "family assessment" means a comprehensive assessment prepared by the department at the time the department receives notification of failure to comply with the plan of safe care to determine the needs of a child and the child's parents, relatives, guardians, custodians or caretakers, including an assessment of the likelihood of: (1) imminent danger to a child's well-being; (2) the child becoming an abused child or neglected child; and (3) the strengths and needs of the child's family members, including parents, relatives, guardians, custodians or caretakers, with respect to providing for the health and safety of the child.

Legislative History

Laws 2019, ch. 190, § 4; 2025, ch. 156, § 6.