New Technical Assistance from HHS and DOJ on Parents' with Disabilities

In the wake of the finding by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) that the Massachusetts Department of Children of Families had violated a mother's rights under the American with Disabilities Act, the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the DOJ have issued a joint 18-page technical assistance to helps child welfare agencies and courts ensure that the rights of parents' with disabilities are protected.

The recommendations in the technical assistance include the following principles:

Individualized treatment.  Individuals with disabilities must be treated on a case-by-case basis consistent with facts and objective evidence.  Persons with disabilities may not be treated on the bases of generalizations or stereotypes.  For example, prohibited treatment would include the removal of a child from a parent with a disability based on the stereotypical belief, unsupported by an individual assessment, that people with disabilities are unable to safely parent their children.  Another example would be denying a person with a disability the opportunity to become a foster or adoptive parent based on stereotypical beliefs about how the disability may affect the individual's ability to provide appropriate care for a child. 

Full and equal opportunity.  Individuals with disabilities must be provided opportunities to benefit from or participate in child welfare programs, services, and activities that are equal to those extended to individuals without disabilities.  This principle can require the provision of aids, benefits, and services different from those provided to other parents and prospective parents where necessary to ensure an equal opportunity to obtain the same result or gain the same benefit, such as family reunification.

The Parental Defense Alliance recommends that are parental defense attorneys familiarize themselves with the substance of this report so that they can seek the necessary accommodations for their clients in the appropriate circumstances.

You can read the full technical assistance HERE.