Through my outreach, I’ve met many caring foster families who face challenges accessing necessary care for their foster children. They receive children with open arms but are often not provided with the appropriate resources to help foster children on their path to permanency.
Some of the resources foster parents are left without are related to accessing healthcare services for foster children. I’ve talked with foster parents who did not have TennCare cards for their foster children, did not know which providers to take their foster children to, experienced a delay in their foster child’s enrollment in TennCare, or had a foster child who was waiting for dental care or glasses.
I encourage foster parents to insist that TennCare provide the care their foster children need by filling out a TennCare appeal form. Foster parents have a right to file TennCare appeals and doing so can go a long way towards helping a foster child get needed care. Sadly, many foster parents don’t know that they have this right and feel powerless watching their foster child wait for needed care.
That’s where the LEASE project – Legal Education, Advocacy, Services and Empowerment – comes in. The LEASE project helps middle Tennessee foster children enrolled in TennCare obtain needed health and mental health services. LEASE assists middle Tennessee foster families with legal advocacy techniques and individualized legal advice. Through the LEASE project, I’m lucky to have the chance to help folks like Rebecca.*
* See yesterday's (9/16/09) post to read Rebecca's story
Some of the resources foster parents are left without are related to accessing healthcare services for foster children. I’ve talked with foster parents who did not have TennCare cards for their foster children, did not know which providers to take their foster children to, experienced a delay in their foster child’s enrollment in TennCare, or had a foster child who was waiting for dental care or glasses.
I encourage foster parents to insist that TennCare provide the care their foster children need by filling out a TennCare appeal form. Foster parents have a right to file TennCare appeals and doing so can go a long way towards helping a foster child get needed care. Sadly, many foster parents don’t know that they have this right and feel powerless watching their foster child wait for needed care.
That’s where the LEASE project – Legal Education, Advocacy, Services and Empowerment – comes in. The LEASE project helps middle Tennessee foster children enrolled in TennCare obtain needed health and mental health services. LEASE assists middle Tennessee foster families with legal advocacy techniques and individualized legal advice. Through the LEASE project, I’m lucky to have the chance to help folks like Rebecca.*
* See yesterday's (9/16/09) post to read Rebecca's story
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