State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HJ0046

 
                                              LRB9209077RHrhA

 1                       HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, The General Assembly supports a single system of
 3    early intervention services; and

 4        WHEREAS,  The  General  Assembly  further  supports   the
 5    sentiments  set  forth  under  the  Federal  Individuals with
 6    Disabilities Education Act Part C, which established  federal
 7    financial  assistance  for  states to develop and implement a
 8    statewide,  comprehensive,  coordinated,   multidisciplinary,
 9    interagency  system that provides early intervention services
10    to enhance the  development  of  infants  and  toddlers  with
11    disabilities   and   to   minimize   their  potential  for  a
12    developmental delay; and

13        WHEREAS, Child development research has established  that
14    the  rate  of human learning and development is most rapid in
15    the preschool years; and

16        WHEREAS, Research has also shown that early  intervention
17    results  in  a  child  requiring  fewer special education and
18    other habilitative services later in life, and  also  reduces
19    the possibility of the child being held back in school; and

20        WHEREAS,  In  addition  to enhancing the personal growth,
21    health,  and  opportunity  of  a  child,  Early  Intervention
22    provides a long-term cost-savings of  $5  to  $7  in  special
23    education  costs  for  every  $1  spent on early intervention
24    services per child; and

25        WHEREAS, The benefits of  these  services  have  recently
26    been  jeopardized  in  Illinois  by  unanticipated  growth in
27    enrollment, which has subsequently produced  a  shortfall  in
28    funds for the program; and

29        WHEREAS,  The  legislature  recognizes  that  in order to
30    maintain early intervention services for all eligible infants
31    and toddlers, and thus, continue to reap the  full  long-term
 
                            -2-               LRB9209077RHrhA
 1    benefits  these  services provide, both for the child and the
 2    State, the Department of Human Services must have a dedicated
 3    source of support  from  members  of  the  General  Assembly;
 4    therefore be it

 5        RESOLVED   BY   THE   HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES  OF  THE
 6    NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,  THE
 7    SENATE  CONCURRING  HEREIN,  that  the General Assembly shall
 8    convene and administer a legislative Advisory  Committee  for
 9    the Early Intervention Program; and be it further

10        RESOLVED,  The  Early  Intervention  Legislative Advisory
11    Committee shall be  responsible  for  providing  support  and
12    guidance  to  the  managing  body  of  the Early Intervention
13    program within the Department of Human Services and shall  be
14    further responsible for the following:
15             (1)  Serving  as the body to which the Department of
16        Human Services reports on the  progress  of  implementing
17        cost-containment   strategies   and  the  status  of  the
18        program;
19             (2)  Monitoring  the   ongoing   implementation   of
20        recommended cost-containment strategies;
21             (3)  Assessing     any    persistent    programmatic
22        weaknesses and assisting  the  Department  in  addressing
23        those weaknesses;
24             (4)  Monitoring    the   Department's   efforts   in
25        utilizing all resources  necessary  to  bring  the  Early
26        Intervention  Program  back  under fiscal control without
27        jeopardizing  services  to  all  eligible   infants   and
28        toddlers; and
29             (5)  Maintaining   ongoing  communication  with  the
30        Bureau of the Budget  and  the  Office  of  the  Governor
31        regarding the status of the program; and be it further

32        RESOLVED, That the Committee shall consist of a bicameral
33    and  bipartisan  membership  totaling  8  members,  with  two
 
                            -3-               LRB9209077RHrhA
 1    legislative  members  appointed by each Majority and Minority
 2    Leader in the House and Senate, and shall also consist  of  a
 3    representative  from each of the following: the Department of
 4    Human Services, the Department of Insurance,  the  Department
 5    of  Public  Aid,  and  the  University of Illinois at Chicago
 6    Division of Specialized Care for Children; and be it further

 7        RESOLVED, The  Department  of  Human  Services  shall  be
 8    responsible   for   reporting   to   the  Early  Intervention
 9    Legislative  Advisory  Committee  at  least  once   a   month
10    regarding the following information:
11             (1)  Number    of   children   enrolled   in   Early
12        Intervention;
13             (2)  Number of children covered by  Medicaid/Kidcare
14        and  the  number  of  children  who  may  be eligible for
15        Medicaid/Kidcare;
16             (3)  Number   of   children   covered   by   private
17        insurance;
18             (4)  Breakdown of enrollment by diagnosis (including
19        the number of  children  with  a  specific  developmental
20        disability diagnosis);
21             (5)  CFC/provider   capacity,   caseload,   and  any
22        caseload backlog;
23             (6)  Status  of  billing  for   private   insurance,
24        including insurance billing training procedures;
25             (7)  CFC funding breakdown;
26             (8)  Status  of  the  data management system and its
27        capacity to detect variances in the system (such  as  the
28        number  of  services  received and number of hours billed
29        for services);
30             (9)  Status of the IFSP process  under  the  service
31        guidelines,  including  any  concerns  that may have been
32        voiced regarding the process and how  the  Department  is
33        addressing those concerns;
34             (10)  Status  of  the  IMDN quality assurance review
 
                            -4-               LRB9209077RHrhA
 1        process, including any concerns that may have been voiced
 2        by either parents or providers and  how  they  Department
 3        may be addressing those concerns;
 4             (11)  Status  of  the  development  of  a  long-term
 5        strategic  plan  for  the Early Intervention Program with
 6        programmatic and outcomes-based goals; and
 7             (12)  Any  additional   information   requested   by
 8        members  of the Legislative Advisory Committee; and be it
 9        further

10        RESOLVED, The  Department  of  Human  Services  shall  be
11    responsible  for  submitting  an  official  interim report in
12    November 2001 and a final report in June 2002  to  the  Early
13    Intervention   Legislative  Advisory  Committee,  which  must
14    include, but not be limited to, the following:
15             (1)  Data analysis based on  data  provided  in  the
16        monthly update reports;
17             (2)  Enrollment  and cost projections for FY03 (with
18        rough estimates included in the November report and final
19        estimates to be included in the June report);
20             (3)  Comparisons of regional information/performance
21        (downstate vs. Chicago-area);
22             (4)  Analysis and achievement status  of  goals,  as
23        outlined   under   the  Department's  Early  Intervention
24        long-term strategic plan;
25             (5)  Identification of any programmatic  weaknesses,
26        including  strategies  the  Department  is considering to
27        address these weaknesses; and
28             (6)  Any additional information requested by members
29        of the Legislative Advisory Committee; and be it further

30        RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this  Resolution  shall
31    be  provided  to  the  Secretary  of  Human  Services and the
32    Associate Secretary  in  charge  of  the  Early  Intervention
33    Program.

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