Post and Courier, November 29 - Hundreds of special-needs babies and toddlers are at risk of being cut from or left out of BabyNet, a state- and federally funded program that pairs developmentally disabled children with therapists who help them walk and talk.
South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness, the agency that oversees BabyNet, has proposed tightening the program's eligibility requirements. If the proposal passes, fewer children would be admitted to the program, which now serves about 4,000 special-needs babies.
Over the past year, South Carolina's funding for BabyNet has been severely cut, putting federal cash infusions at risk, said Dan Wuori, chief program officer for First Steps. State funding channeled through the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control has been cut in half, to $1.6 million this fiscal year, down from $3.2 million last year.
The eligibility proposal comes in response to a federal mandate requiring state governments to maintain year-to-year funding for BabyNet, Wuori said. The federal requirement can be waived if fewer children are admitted to the program, as would be the case if eligibility became stricter, Wuori said.
The eligibility change also is an attempt to rein in program costs, which have risen sharply in the past five years as reimbursement rates to therapists have increased, according to financial data provided by First Steps. In addition to making fewer babies eligible for the program, First Steps also is considering cutting reimbursement rates to therapists, Wuori said.
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