Appendix A: California Department of Education (CDE) K.C. Settlement Agreement and Legal Advisory 1401 (a) .) California law sets the same standard for educating individuals with exceptional needs as the reauthorized IDEA. ( Cal. Ed. Code secs. 56000, 56363(a) .)
A. Eligibility
The IDEA requires LEAs to conduct “child find” activities to ensure that children with diabetes are identified, located, and evaluated. ( 20 USC sec. 141 2(a)(3) .) Under the IDEA, a child with diabetes is evaluated for eligibility under one of the 13 categories of disability, including the disability of “other health impaired” (OHI). ( 20 USC sec. 1401(3)(A); 34 CFR sec. 300.8; Cal. Ed. Code sec. 56026; Cal. Code Regs., Tit. 5, sec. 3030 .) The reauthorized IDEA defines “child with disability” in the following way:
The term “child with a disability” means a child -
(i) with ... other health impairments ... and (ii) who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services. ( 20 USC sec. 1401(3)(A).)
The term “other health impairments” (OHI) is further defined in the recently promulgated regulations as follows:
(c) Definitions of disability terms. The terms used in this definition of a child with a disability are defined as follows:
(9) Other health impairment means having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the education environment, that-
(i) is due to chronic or acute health problems such as diabetes and (ii) adversely affects a child’s educational performance.
Hence, an individualized education program (IEP) team can determine that a child with diabetes is eligible under the disability of OHI because high or low blood glucose levels can cause symptoms giving him/her limited strength, limited alertness, and creating chronic or acute health problems that adversely affect the student’s educational performance. (See Helping the Student with Diabetes Succeed - A Guide for School Personnel , U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2003). Fluctuations in blood glucose levels may have an adverse effect on education in a variety of ways, including the effect on concentration, comprehension, and energy levels. It should be noted that the IEP team “must make an individual de termination as to whether, notwithstanding the child’s progress in a course or grade, he or she needs or continues to need special education and related services.” ( 34 CFR sec. 300.101(c) .)
B. Special Education Defined
BP 2006 – Provision of Healthcare Services
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Desert Mountain Special Education Local Plan Area (DMSELPA) (rev. 11/16)
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