(a) The state of Tennessee shall develop, coordinate, and implement a healthy start pilot project within ten (10) or more counties of the state. The healthy start pilot project shall be based upon the nationally recognized model, shall focus on home visitation and counseling services, and shall improve family functioning and eliminate abuse and neglect of infants and young children within families identified as high risk. Healthy start services for participating families shall extend at least through a child’s first three (3) years of life. However, family participation shall be voluntary; and, if a family refuses healthy start services, then such refusal shall not be admissible in evidence for any subsequent cause of action.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 37-3-703

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) Healthy start pilot projects shall ensure that:

(1) Families are educated about child health and child development;
(2) Families receive services to meet child health and development needs;
(3) Families receive services as identified and prioritized by the family and the project; and
(4) Services focus on empowering the family and strengthening life-coping and parenting skills.
(c) Specific objectives for healthy start pilot projects shall include that:

(1) Family stress is reduced and family functioning is improved;
(2) All of the children receive immunizations by two (2) years of age;
(3) All of the children receive developmental screening and follow-up services;
(4) All of the children are free from abuse and neglect; and
(5) Mothers are enrolled in prenatal care by the end of the first trimester of any subsequent pregnancy.
(d) The state of Tennessee shall conduct ongoing evaluations of the healthy start pilot project and shall file a joint report, on or before December 31 of each year, with the governor and the chairs of the health and welfare committee of the senate and health committee of the house of representatives. All state agencies that provide services to children shall make available nonidentifying information about healthy start participants for the purpose of conducting the evaluation. The report shall include the following information for the preceding fiscal year:

(1) The number of families receiving services through the pilot project;
(2) The number of children at risk of abuse and neglect prior to initiative of service to families participating in the pilot project;
(3) Among those children identified in subdivision (2), the number of children who have been the subjects of abuse and neglect reports;
(4) The average cost of services provided under the pilot project;
(5) The estimated cost of out-of-home placement, through foster care, group homes or other facilities, that reasonably would have otherwise been expended on behalf of children who successfully remain united with their families as a direct result of the project, based on average lengths of stay and average costs of such out-of-home placements;
(6) The number of children who remain unified with their families and free from abuse and neglect for one (1), two (2), three (3), and four (4) years, respectively, while receiving project services; and
(7) An overall statement of the achievements and progress of the pilot project during the preceding fiscal year, along with recommendations for improvement or expansion.
(e)

(1) When offering healthy start services to a family, the state or its contractor shall provide that family with a written statement and oral explanation. Both the statement and explanation shall describe the following information:

(A) The purpose of the healthy start project;
(B) Project services that may be offered;
(C) The voluntary nature of participation and the family’s right to decline services at any time;
(D) The project records to be maintained with respect to participating families; and
(E) The family’s right to review project records pertaining to that family.
(2) After providing the oral explanation, the state or its contractor shall, on the written statement, obtain signed consent from the parents or caretakers of a child. The parents or caretakers shall receive a copy of the signed statement and a copy will be maintained in the family’s record.
(3) Each participating family shall have the right to review project records pertaining to that family. The state or its contractor shall make such record available for review during regular office hours.
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