Letter of Continuous Commitment from the Department of the Family to Our Participants with Disabilities

February 2, 2024

By Email: Linda.Colon@hhs.gov; reg2.ocrmail@hhs.gov

Linda C. Colon
Regional Manager
Eastern & Caribbean Region Jacob Javits Federal Bldg.
26 Federal Plaza, New York, NY 10278

Re: Letter of continuous commitment from the Department of the Family to our participants with disabilities

Dear Regional Manager Colon:

During this period the Department of Families Affairs has been working hand on hand with the Office for Civil Rights. This collaboration has led the Department of the Family to achieve the following:

  1. The Department of the Family revised its effective communication policies and procedures to address the requirements of the ADA and Section 504, and their implementing regulations. The revised policies and procedures:
    1. Identifies and provides the contact information, role, and responsibilities of a Department of the Family Disability Coordinator;
    2. Identifies resources and services that may be used in an effort to provide individuals with disabilities involved with the Department of the Family programs with auxiliary aids;
    3. Streamlines a process for requesting auxiliary aids and services within the local and regional ADFAN offices. Caseworkers now can request sign language interpreting services directly from the interpreting agency without prior approval from the regional ADFAN offices.
    4. Requires that the Department of the Family staff document the provision (or lack thereof) of auxiliary aids and services to participants with disabilities;
    5. Details a process for participants and their representatives to make a disability­ related complaint (including a complaint of disability discrimination) to the Department of the Family;
    6. Provides a process by which the Department of the Family's child protection agency, ADFAN, will request auxiliary aids for emergency visits/removals and contingency planning; and
    7. Acknowledges specific needs for some members of the deaf and hard of hearing communities in Puerto Rico for native/regional sign language resources.
  2. The Department of the Family entered into a contract with a sign language interpreting agency, which includes the availability of video remote interpreting, native/regional sign language interpreters, and interpreting services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
  3. The Department of the Family developed a training program that provides an overview of deaf culture and how to request and access sign language interpreter resources, including video remote interpreting;
  4. The Department of the Family provided training to all Department of the Family staff, including ADFAN's social workers.

However, we recognize our duty and reiterate our commitment to continue making improvements in terms of the disclosure and openness of the rights of our participants with disabilities and to foment their awareness to take their complaint to the appropriate forum in cases where they understand. that their rights have been violated. For that reason, we have agreed to implement during a period of no later than six months, from the date of this letter to implement the following:

  1. The Department of the Family will develop a Nondiscrimination Notice which will be a short, plain language document (at an appropriate literacy level) to notify individuals involved with ADFAN's child welfare program (including parents, foster parents, prospective parents, advocates, and attorneys) of the Department of the Family's Disability Effective Communication Policy, including, but not limited to, the process to make a request for auxiliary aids and services and the process to initiate disability discrimination complaints. The Nondiscrimination Notice should state that the Department of the Family is prohibited from placing a surcharge on a particular individual with a disability or any group of individuals with disabilities to cover the costs of the provision of auxiliary aids or other services that are required to provide that individual or group with nondiscriminatory treatment. We have enclosed the nondiscrimination Notice.

    The Nondiscrimination Notice will prominently display the contact information (including a mailing address, email address, phone number, TTY number, videophone number, and toll-free number) for the Disability Coordinator. The Nondiscrimination Notice should also make clear that the availability and use of the Department of the Family's disability complaint process do not prevent a person from filing a complaint of disability discrimination with the HHS and should include relevant contact information for HHS.
  2. The Department of the Family will create a policy that includes a process for reviewing what reasonable modifications and auxiliary aids and services have been provided, to date, to participants and whether they are still adequate and appropriate, at every case management and case planning meeting with the family. This process will include ongoing monitoring/auditing activities, which may include planned case file reviews of deaf and/or hard-of-hearing participants. The policy should make clear that this should be a collaborative, interactive process with the family, and that the Department of the Family must give primary consideration to the auxiliary aid or service requested by the individual with a disability.
  3. The Department of the Family will create a process for informing ADFAN's service providers, including its contractors and other state agencies, when a reasonable modification or auxiliary aid or service may be necessary to ensure equal opportunities for people with disabilities.
  4. The Department of the Family will continue to periodically update OCR on significant activities relating to the Department of the Family's implementation of the foregoing measures.

Our goal is to become an Agency of recognized excellence, in terms of services to the most vulnerable, including our participants with disabilities, for that we appreciate and continue to rely on your support.

Cordially,

/s/

Ciení Rodríguez Troche, MSW 
Secretary

Attachment

AVISO DE NO DISCRIMEN

Conforme a la Ley Federal y a las políticas y regulaciones de los derechos civiles sección 504 de la Ley de Rehabilitación del 1973, según enmendada, la Administración De Familias Y Niños Del Departamento De La Familia (ADFAN), prohíbe el Discrimen Contra participantes, Empleados Y Personas Por Razón De: Raza, Color; Origen Nacional, Edad, Discapacidad, Discapacidad Auditiva, ldentidad De Género, Religión Represalias Y Según Corresponda, Por Convicciones Políticas, Estado Civit Estado Familiar O Paternat Orientación Sexuat ldentidad De Género, Así Como Por lnformación Genetica Protegida De Empleo.

Los Clientes, Participantes Y Ciudadanos Con Discapacidad Auditiva tienen derecho a solicitar la Asistencia Y Servicio De La ADFAN, mediante El Sistema TYY en el número {Redactada}. Las personas con discapacidades que requieran medias de comunicación alternativos (por ejemplo, Braille, tetra agrandada, grabación de audio y lenguaje de señas americano o regional) deben comunicarse a {Redactada}La asistencia y servicios mediante este sistema es gratuito y no conlleva pago.

Si usted entiende que ha sido discriminado puede radicar su queja al siguiente correo electronicó: queiaspordiscrimen@familia.pr.gov; por correo regular a Servicio al Ciudadano, P.O. Box 194090 San Juan, PR 00919-4090 y/o la Oficina de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos a: https://ocrportal.hhs.qov/ocr/smartscreen/main.isf.

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