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An Act To Ensure Medical Assessments for Youth in Foster Care
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §4063-A, as enacted by PL 1991, c. 194, is amended to read:
§ 4063-A.Medical and psychological examination; provision of medical information
 
1. Physical examination required.   The department shall ensure that a child ordered into its custody receives an appointment for a medical examination by a licensed physician or nurse practitioner within 103 working days after the department's custody of the child commences.
 
2. Psychological assessment.   If the physician or nurse practitioner who performs a physical examination pursuant to subsection 1 determines that a psychological assessment of the child is appropriate, the department shall ensure that an appointment is obtained for such an assessment within 30 days of the physical examination.
 
3.  Provision of medical information.     When a child ordered into the department's custody is placed in a foster home, the department shall provide to the foster parents an overview of the child's medical condition and the name and contact information of the child's health care provider at the time of placement, to the extent known by the department. The department shall provide to foster parents information regarding the scheduling of the child's medical examination required pursuant to subsection 1.
 
SUMMARY
This bill requires that, when a child is ordered into the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services, the department must provide to the foster home in which the child is placed an overview of the child's medical condition and the name and contact information of the child's health care provider at the time of placement. The bill also requires the department to ensure that a child receives an appointment for a medical examination within 3 working days of when the department's custody commences, instead of within 10 days as in current law, and requires that the department inform the foster parents of the appointment.