1. A.

   1. 1. Except as otherwise provided by law, the Department of Human Services or the Department of Juvenile Justice shall not place a child in out-of-home placement prior to completion of:

      1. a. a foster parent eligibility assessment on the foster parent applicant,
      2. b. a national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints for any adult residing in the home, as required by the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act and the Oklahoma Foster Care and Out-of-Home Placement Act, and

      3. c. a check of any child abuse registry maintained by a state in which the prospective foster parent or any adult living in the home of the prospective foster parent has resided in the preceding five (5) years.

         Provided, however, the state agencies may place a child in the home of a foster parent, pending completion of the national criminal history records search, if the foster parent and every adult residing in the home of the foster parent have resided in this state for at least five (5) years immediately preceding placement.

   2. 2.

      1. a. The Department of Human Services shall be the lead agency for disseminating fingerprint cards to courts and child-placing agencies for obtaining and requesting a national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. The Department of Juvenile Justice may directly request national criminal history records searches as defined by Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation for the purpose of obtaining the national criminal history of any individual for which such a search is required pursuant to this section.
      2. b. Courts and child-placing agencies may request the Department of Human Services to obtain from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation a national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints for foster parents and other persons requiring such search pursuant to the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act and the Oklahoma Foster Care and Out-of-Home Placement Act. Any fees charged by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation or the Federal Bureau of Investigation for such searches shall be paid by the requesting entity.
      3. c. Either the Department of Human Services or the Office of Juvenile Affairs, whichever is applicable, shall contract with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to obtain national criminal history records searches based upon submission of fingerprints.

      4. d.

         1. (1) If the Department of Human Services or the Office of Juvenile Affairs is considering placement of a child with an individual in an emergency situation and after normal business hours, the Department may request local law enforcement to conduct a criminal history records search based upon submission of the individual’s name, race, sex, date of birth and social security number.
         2. (2) Within five (5) business days of the name-based search, the Department shall submit fingerprints on the individual to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. In the event the individual refuses to submit to a name-based or fingerprint search, the Department shall either not place or shall remove the child from the individual’s home.
      5. e. Upon request for a national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shall forward one set of fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the purpose of conducting such a national criminal history records search.
   3. 3. The Department of Human Services, pursuant to Section 7003-5.3 of this title, and the Department of Juvenile Justice, pursuant to Section 7303-5.2 of this title, shall conduct an assessment of each child in its custody which shall be designed to establish an appropriate treatment and service plan for the child.

2. B.

   1. 1. A child-placing agency shall not place a child who is in the custody of the agency in out-of-home placement until completion of a foster parent eligibility assessment or a national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints has been completed for each individual residing in the home in which the child will be placed, as required pursuant to the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act or the Oklahoma Foster Care and Out-of-Home Placement Act, and a check of any child abuse registry maintained by a state in which the prospective foster parent or any adult living in the home of the prospective foster parent has resided in the past five (5) years; provided, however, the child-placing agency may place a child in a foster family home pending completion of the national criminal history records search if the foster parent and every adult residing in the home have resided in this state for at least five (5) years immediately preceding the placement.
   2. 2. In addition, a satisfactory assessment of the out-of-home placement shall be conducted by the child-placing agency prior to foster placement.

3. C.

   1. 1. Whenever a court awards custody of a child to an individual or a child-placing agency other than the Department of Human Services or the Department of Juvenile Justice, for placement of the child, the court shall:

      1. a. require that when custody is placed with an individual, a foster family eligibility assessment be conducted for the foster parents prior to placement of the child, and
      2. b. require that if custody is awarded to a child-placing agency, a foster family eligibility assessment be conducted as required by the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act.
   2. 2. A child-placing agency other than the Department of Human Services or the Office of Juvenile Affairs shall, within thirty (30) days of placement, provide for an assessment of the child for the purpose of establishing an appropriate treatment and service plan for the child. The court shall require the treatment and service plan to be completed in substantially the same form and with the same content as required by the Oklahoma Children's Code for a deprived child or as required by the Juvenile Justice Code for a delinquent child or a child in need of supervision.
   3. 3. The child shall receive a complete medical examination within thirty (30) days of initial placement unless a medical examination was conducted on the child upon the removal of the child and the court finds no need for an additional examination.
   4. 4. The child may receive such further diagnosis and evaluation as necessary as determined by the court to preserve the physical and mental well-being of the child.

4. D.

   1. 1. When the court awards custody of a child to an individual or a child-placing agency as provided by this subsection, the individual or child-placing agency shall be responsible for the completion of and costs of the national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints, the foster parent eligibility assessment, the preparation of a treatment and service plan, and the medical examination required by this subsection.
   2. 2. The Department of Human Services and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be responsible for the completion of and costs of the foster parent eligibility assessment and any national criminal history records search based upon submission of fingerprints, preparation of a treatment and service plan, and the medical examination required by this subsection only for the children placed in the custody of the state agency. The state agency may provide for reimbursement of such expenses, costs and charges so incurred pursuant to the Oklahoma Children's Code and the Juvenile Justice Code, as applicable.

5. E.

   1. 1. Upon any voluntary out-of-home placement of a child by a parent into foster care with a child-placing agency, the child-placing agency shall conduct an assessment of the child in its custody which shall be designed to establish an appropriate plan for placement of the child. Following the assessment, the child-placing agency shall establish an individual treatment and service plan for the child. A copy of each plan shall be provided to the child if the child is twelve (12) years of age or older and to the child's parent or guardian. The plan shall at a minimum:

      1. a. be specific,
      2. b. be in writing,
      3. c. be prepared by the agency in conference with the child's parents,
      4. d. state appropriate deadlines,
      5. e. state specific goals for the treatment of the child,
      6. f. describe the conditions or circumstances causing the child to be placed in foster care,
      7. g. describe the services that are necessary to remedy and that have a reasonable expectation of remedying the conditions or circumstances causing the child to be placed in foster care,
      8. h. state to whom the services will be delivered and who will deliver the services, and
      9. i. prescribe the time the services are expected to begin and the time within which expected results can reasonably be accomplished.
   2. 2. The child shall receive a complete medical examination within thirty (30) days of placement in foster care.
6. F. The child may receive such further diagnosis and evaluation as is necessary to preserve the physical and mental well-being of the child.
7. G. Subsequent to initial placement, the child placed in foster placement shall have a medical examination, at periodic intervals, but not less than once each year.
8. H. Prior to any proposed counseling, testing or other treatment services, the court or child-placing agency shall first determine that the proposed services are necessary and appropriate.

9. I.

   1. 1. If the assessment and medical examination disclose no physical, mental or emotional reasons for therapeutic foster care, a child voluntarily placed with a child-placing agency shall be placed in a regular foster family home. If therapeutic foster care is required, the child may be placed only in foster homes that are certified as therapeutic foster homes pursuant to the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act.
   2. 2. No child shall be eligible for any reimbursement through the state Medicaid program for placement in therapeutic foster care unless such placement has been reviewed and approved pursuant to rules regarding medical necessity for therapeutic foster care placement promulgated by the Oklahoma Health Care Authority Board.

Laws 1996, HB 2960, c. 353, § 9, eff. November 1, 1996; Amended by Laws 1997, HB 1927, c. 386, § 14, emerg. eff. June 10, 1997 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 1998, HB 2826, c. 414, § 10, emerg. eff. June 11, 1998 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 1999, SB 428, c. 2, § 3 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2002, SB 1661, c. 237, § 4, emerg. eff. May 9, 2002 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2003, SB 705, c. 213, § 2, emerg. eff. July 1, 2003 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2007, SB 553, c. 196, § 6, emerg. eff. July 1, 2007 (superseded document available).