Section 441.201.3. Conditions of eligibility or ineligibility.

       201.3(1) The child is eligible for subsidy when the department or a private agency has documented that it has been unable to place the child in an appropriate adoptive home without a subsidy and the child is determined to be a child with “special needs” based on one or more of the following reasons:

        a.           The child has a medically diagnosed disability which substantially limits one or more major life activities, requires professional treatment, assistance in self-care, or the purchase of special equipment.

        b.           The child has been determined by a qualified mental retardation professional to be mentally retarded.

        c.           Effective April 20, 2004, or later, the child has been determined by a qualified professional to be at high risk of developing a qualifying medical, mental, or emotional condition as defined in this subrule. A child in this group is eligible for subsidy of nonrecurring expenses only.

        d.           The child has been diagnosed by a qualified mental health professional to have a psychiatric condition which impairs the child’s mental, intellectual, or social functioning, and for which the child requires professional services.

        e.           The child has been diagnosed by a qualified mental health professional to have a behavioral or emotional disorder characterized by situationally inappropriate behavior which deviates substantially from behavior appropriate to the child’s age or significantly interferes with the child’s intellectual, social and personal adjustment.

        f.            The child is aged eight or over and Caucasian.

        g.           The child is aged two or older and is a member of a minority race or ethnic group or the child’s biological parents are of different races.

        h.           The child is a member of a sibling group of three or more who are placed in the same adoptive home.

       201.3(2) A child who enters the United States from another country on the basis of a visa classifying the child as an orphan, in accordance with the Immigration and Naturalization Act, for the purpose of adoption by a specific United States family is not eligible for subsidized adoption maintenance payments, medical assistance, or special services except for nonrecurring expenses. A child entering the country for adoption may be eligible for subsidy for nonrecurring expenses, not to exceed $500, in the following situations:

        a.           Rescinded IAB 8/11/99, effective 10/1/99.

        b.           The child from another country who meets the criteria in subrule 201.3(1) and whose adoption is finalized after June 14, 1989, must file an application on Form 470-0744, Application for Adoption Subsidy, and complete Form 470-0749, Adoption Subsidy Agreement, before or at the time of a final decree of adoption. The claim for reimbursement must be filed on Form GAX, General Accounting Expenditure, within two years of the date of the adoption decree and must include receipts.

        c.           If the adoptive placement disrupts prior to finalization or if the parental rights of the adoptive parents are terminated after the adoption is finalized and the department is named guardian of the child, the child may be eligible for subsidy in another adoptive placement.

       201.3(3) Maintenance and child care subsidies for children who were determined to be eligible before January 1, 2004, shall continue unless one of the conditions for termination defined in 441—201.7(600) is present. The child care subsidy payment shall not exceed the applicable reimbursement rate under the child care assistance program as specified in 441—subrule 170.4(7).

       201.3(4) The determination of whether a child meets eligibility requirements is made by the Iowa department of human services. An adverse determination may be appealed according to rules in 441—Chapter 7.

       201.3(5) The department shall review the subsidy agreement when the child reaches the age of 17½ to determine whether the child is eligible to receive a subsidy through the age of 21 due to the child’s physical or mental disability.

        a.           The disability shall be diagnosed by a physician, a qualified mental health professional, or a qualified mental retardation professional.

        b.           The diagnosis shall be current within one year of the child’s eighteenth birthday.