1. (a)

   1. (1) Developmental therapy services provide specialized instruction as outlined in IDEA, Part C to the parent and, or, or both caregiver present and participating and to the child to promote the caregiver’s ability to promote child development, participation, and skill acquisition and to support the child’s development across developmental domains including participation in typical child and, or, or both family routines, use of age-appropriate behavior to meet needs, daily living activities, and social interactions.

   2. (2) Special instruction (developmental therapy) includes (but is not limited to):

      1. (A) Ongoing assessment of child interests, strengths and needs, and functional skills in the context of child and family life;
      2. (B) The design of learning environments, strategies, and activities that promote child’s participation and acquisition of skills in a variety of developmental areas, including cognitive processes and social interaction;
      3. (C) Instructional and, or, or both curriculum planning, including the planned interaction with peers, caregivers, family, personnel, materials, and time and space, that leads to achieving the IFSP goals and objectives;
      4. (D) Providing families with information about child development and the progression of developmental skill acquisition;
      5. (E) Consulting with the family to support parent-identified concerns, interests, strengths, and needs to address in home and community visits (service sessions); and
      6. (F) Training, coaching, and mentoring parents and other caregivers to equip them with the support, knowledge, and skills needed to enhance their child’s participation in daily activities to promote early learning and development in accordance with 20 CAR § 1002-601.
   3. (3) Developmental evaluation. Under IDEA, Part C, the family of each child referred for early intervention has the right to receive a timely, CMDE to assesses the child’s strengths and needs and functional abilities in all five (5) areas of development in accordance with 20 CAR § 1002-408.
   4. (4) The CMDE is one (1) piece of information the IFSP team, which includes the parent, uses to determine initial program eligibility and must be completed prior to eligibility determination and IFSP development.
   5. (5) Parent consent must be documented in writing in the child’s electronic record prior to scheduling or conducting the CMDE or developmental evaluation (see 20 CAR § 1002-408(b)(2), parent refuses to grant consent for the CMDE).
   6. (6) Developmental evaluations must be performed by an individual who has been certified by First Connections as a Part C developmental therapist.
   7. (7) Developmental evaluations require a written prescription signed and dated by the child's primary care provider or attending licensed physician, documentation of PCP or attending physician’s refusal, or documentation of three (3) valid attempts to obtain the prescription.
   8. (8) Each completed CMDE report must be keyed into the child’s electronic record no later than twenty-one (21) calendar days from the date of parent consent for the evaluation. See 20 CAR § 1002-407.
2. (b) A developmental therapist or developmental therapy assistant must key in the delivered services note in the child’s electronic record in the state-approved data system within thirty (30) calendar days to document each home or community visit (service session) in accordance with 20 CAR § 1002-602.
3. (c) Developmental therapy services must be performed by an individual who has been certified by First Connections as a developmental therapist or developmental therapy assistant.

4. (d)

   1. (1)

      1. (A) To be certified by First Connections as a developmental therapist, an individual must have one (1) of the following:

5. (i) Early childhood special education certification;

   1. (ii) A Masters of Developmental Therapy or Early Intervention; or

      1. (iii) An alternate learning plan approved by and filed with the Department of Education.
      2. (B) To be certified by First Connections as a developmental therapist, the individual must have completed all First Connections Core Competencies for Therapists certification course and be up to date on all annual ongoing professional development and other training requirements.
      3. (C) A developmental therapist must be enrolled with the Arkansas Medicaid Program as both a DDS non-Medicaid local provider program (type 76) and also as a First Connections Medicaid local provider program (type 86).

   2. (2)

      1. (A) To be certified by First Connections as a developmental therapy assistant, an individual must have one (1) of the following:

         1. (i) Associate degree in early childhood development or a related field;
         2. (ii) Two (2) years of documented experience working with children under five (5) years of age; or
         3. (iii) Two (2) years of documented experience working with children with disabilities.
      2. (B) A developmental therapy assistant must be supervised by a certified developmental therapist service provider and have the supervising developmental therapist’s certification uploaded into the state-approved data system.
      3. (C) To be certified by First Connections, a developmental therapy assistant must have completed all First Connections Core Competencies for Therapists Certification course and be up to date on all ongoing professional development and other training requirements.
      4. (D) A developmental therapy assistant must be enrolled with the Arkansas Medicaid Program as both a division non-Medicaid service provider (type 76) and also as a First Connections Medicaid service provider (type 86).

6. (e)

   1. (1) A developmental therapist may supervise a maximum of three (3) developmental therapy assistants at any time.
   2. (2) A developmental therapist must work with the same local provider program as any developmental therapy assistant they are supervising, unless the Part C coordinator provides a documentation in writing of an exception to this policy to meet an urgent need of the statewide system of early intervention.
   3. (3) A developmental therapist must upload into the state-approved data system the certification of any developmental therapy assistant they are supervising.

Codification Notes: "PCP" means primary care physician.