This bill amends various aspects of child welfare and foster care under the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. It introduces a new subparagraph to Section 97B.1A, recognizing employees of administrative services organizations, and modifies the appointment process for advocates representing patients involuntarily hospitalized due to mental illness. Key changes include clarifying definitions related to child foster care, such as the inclusion of fictive kin and the replacement of "licensed foster care provider" with "individual licensee," emphasizing individual responsibility. The bill also mandates the Department to adopt rules for the approval of relatives or fictive kin to provide child foster care, aiming to enhance the effectiveness of child welfare services in Iowa.

Additionally, the bill addresses confidentiality regarding dependent adult and child abuse information, allowing courts to authorize evaluations of dependent adults suspected of abuse, with expanded access to their financial records. It establishes that dependent adult abuse information is confidential, with exceptions for authorized personnel. The bill broadens eligibility for child abuse prevention funds to community-based entities and ensures continuity of care within the mental health and disability services system by appropriating funds from the region incentive fund. It also modifies the tax rate for health maintenance organizations administering the medical assistance program, reducing it from 2.5% to a specified percentage over the coming years. The provisions of the bill take effect immediately upon enactment and include retroactive applicability to certain dates.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 97B.1A, 229.19, 229.14, 232.78, 232.95, 232.102, 234.1, 232.2, 237.1, 237.3, 237A.1, 237.4, 237.9, 217.30, 237.12, 237.13, 237.15, 237A.3A, 237C.1, 237C.3, 282.19, 414.22, 423.3, 235A.1, 235A.15, 235B.2, 235B.3, 235B.6, 249A.4, 232.68, 225C.7A, 432.1B