The Florida Senate

393.065  Application and eligibility determination.--

(1)  Application for services shall be made in writing to the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services, in the district in which the applicant resides. Employees of the department's developmental services program shall review each applicant for eligibility within 45 days of the date the application is signed for children under 6 years of age and within 60 days of the date the application is signed for all other applicants. When necessary to definitively identify individual conditions or needs, the department shall provide a comprehensive assessment. Only individuals whose domicile is in Florida shall be eligible for services. Information accumulated by other agencies, including professional reports and collateral data, shall be considered in this process when available.

(2)  In order to provide immediate services or crisis intervention to applicants, the department shall arrange for emergency eligibility determination, with a full eligibility review to be accomplished within 45 days of the emergency eligibility determination.

(3)  The department shall notify each applicant, in writing, of its eligibility decision. Any applicant determined by the department to be ineligible for developmental services shall have the right to appeal this decision pursuant to ss. 120.569 and 120.57.

History.--s. 1, ch. 77-335; s. 42, ch. 83-218; s. 7, ch. 88-398; s. 5, ch. 94-154; s. 120, ch. 96-410.

¹Note.--The Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services was redesignated as the Department of Children and Family Services by s. 5, ch. 96-403, and the Department of Health was created by s. 8, ch. 96-403.