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HB 484, Ohio's Adoption and Safe Families Act, established important new policy for PCSAs and the Drug and Alcohol Services Community. Not only did
it establish tough new requirements for parents and caregivers to engage in
treatment if their children are at a safety risk due to substance abuse requirements, it set non-engagement in such treatment as grounds for
termination of parental rights. HB 484 also tightened the timeframe communities had to provide "Reasonable Efforts" to assist families in
achieving a safe, stable home environment for their children.
Thus, Public Children Services Agencies, the Drug and Alcohol Treatment community and Juvenile Courts have tremendous pressures to assure timely
assessments, services and permanency decisions for children of substance abusing parents. The clear coordination
language for all stakeholders, both at the state and local level hold us to high standards.
The legislative language requiring ADAS and ADAMHS Boards to prioritize treatment services for these families, and the related HB 484 funds ($4 M /
year, statewide) give us the beginning tools to provide effective services.
ODADAS, ODJFS, PCSAO, the Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities, and the Ohio
Judicial Conference have worked together on implementation issues. Confidentiality between the systems has been a
challenge for all involved. Attached you can access a set of Frequently
Asked Questions on Confidentiality issues, and a slide presentation authored by Sara Vollmer, ODADAS Chief Legal
Counsel, to assist in this challenge.
PCSAO is continuing to partner with all involved, to further our effectiveness, given importance is this issue, the great policy developed in
HB 484, and the common value we all share for this issue. There will be a workshop on this issue at the PCSAO Conference, on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at
the Worthington Holiday Inn. Conference brochures should be in the mail by the end of July, 2002.
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