§ 2545 — Individualized family services plans ("IFSP")

§ 2545. Individualized family services plans ("IFSP"). 1. If the\nevaluator determines that the infant or toddler is an eligible child,\nthe early intervention official shall convene a meeting, at a time and\nplace convenient to the parent, consisting of the parent, such official,\nthe evaluator, the initial service coordinator and any other persons who\nthe parent or the initial service coordinator, with the parent's\nconsent, invite, provided that such meeting shall be held no later than\nforty-five days from the date that the early intervention official was\nfirst contacted regarding the child, except under exceptional\ncircumstances prescribed by the commissioner. The early intervention\nofficial, at or prior to the time of scheduling the meeting, shall\ninform the parent of the right to invite any person to the meeting.\n 2. The early intervention official, initial service coordinator,\nparent and evaluator shall develop an IFSP for an eligible child whose\nparents request services. The IFSP shall be in writing and shall\ninclude, but not be limited to:\n (a) a statement, based on objective criteria, of the infant's or\ntoddler's present levels of physical development, including vision and\nhearing; cognitive development; communication development; social or\nemotional development; and adaptive development;\n (b) with parental consent, a statement of the family's strengths,\npriorities and concerns that relate to enhancing the development of the\ninfant or toddler;\n (c) a statement of (i) the major outcomes expected to be achieved for\nthe child and the family, including timelines, and (ii) the criteria and\nprocedures that will be used to determine whether progress toward\nachieving the outcomes is being made and whether modifications or\nrevisions of the outcomes or services are necessary;\n (d) a statement of specific early intervention services, including\ntransportation and the mode thereof, necessary to meet the unique needs\nof the child and the family, including the frequency, intensity,\nlocation and the method of delivering services;\n (e) a statement of the natural environments, including the home and\ncommunity settings where children without disabilities participate, in\nwhich early intervention services shall appropriately be provided and an\nexplanation of their appropriateness, and, where the child is in day\ncare, a plan for qualified professionals to train the day care provider\nto accommodate the needs of the child, where appropriate;\n (f) a statement of other services, including but not limited to\nmedical services, that are not required under this title but that are\nneeded by the child and the family;\n (g) a statement of other public programs under which the child and\nfamily may be eligible for benefits, and a referral, where indicated;\n (h) the projected dates for initiation of services and the anticipated\nduration of such services;\n (i) the name of the service coordinator selected by the parent who\nwill be responsible for the implementation of the IFSP and coordination\nwith other agencies and persons;\n (j) the steps to be taken supporting the potential transition of the\ntoddler with a disability to services provided under section forty-four\nhundred ten of the education law or to other services, to the extent the\nchild is thought to be eligible for such services, including:\n (i) discussions with and education of parents regarding potential\noptions and other matters related to the child's transition;\n (ii) procedures to prepare the child for changes in service delivery,\nincluding steps to help the child adjust to, and function in, a new\nsetting; and\n (iii) with parental consent, the transmission of information about the\nchild to the committee on preschool special education, to ensure\ncontinuity of services, if appropriate, including evaluation and\nassessment information and copies of IFSPs.\n 3. In developing the IFSP, consideration shall first be given to\nprovision of transportation by a parent of a child to early intervention\nservices. Other modes of transportation shall be provided if the parent\ncan demonstrate the inability to provide appropriate transportation\nservices.\n 4. If the IFSP team members, including the early intervention official\nand the parent agree on the IFSP, the IFSP shall be deemed final and the\nservice coordinator shall be authorized to implement the plan.\n 5. If the IFSP team members, including the early intervention official\nand the parent do not agree on an IFSP, the service coordinator shall\nimplement the sections of the proposed IFSP that are not in dispute, and\nthe parent shall have the due process rights set forth in section\ntwenty-five hundred forty-nine of this title.\n 6. The contents of the IFSP shall be fully explained to the parent,\nand informed consent from the parent shall be obtained prior to the\nprovision of the early intervention services therein. If the parent does\nnot provide such consent with respect to a particular early intervention\nservice, then only those early intervention services with respect to\nwhich consent is obtained shall be provided.\n 7. The IFSP shall be reviewed at six month intervals and shall be\nevaluated annually by the early intervention official, service\ncoordinator, the parent and providers of services to the eligible child.\nUpon request of a parent, the plan may be reviewed by such persons at\nmore frequent intervals.\n 8. If, at any time, the parent and the service coordinator agree, in\nwriting, that the child has met all the goals set forth in the IFSP or\nis otherwise no longer in need of services pursuant to this article, the\nservice coordinator shall certify that the child is no longer an\neligible child.\n 9. A parent may, at any time during or after development of the IFSP,\nselect a service coordinator who will become responsible for\nimplementing the IFSP and who may be different from the initial service\ncoordinator.\n 10. The service coordinator shall ensure that the IFSP, including any\namendments thereto, is implemented in a timely manner but not later than\nthirty days after the projected dates for initiation of the services as\nset forth in the plan.\n