PARENT CONSENT

Prior to sharing IDEA related information electronically with parents, the AEA/LEA must obtain written informed parental consent. Each parent can make their own request for an option independent of the other parent. 

"Electronic communication" may include, but is not limited to, email, online applications, and other web services or websites utilized by a school district and/or an AEA to share information about a student.

IDEA related information includes all electronic communication that concerns a child’s eligibility for and/or receipt of special education services, including, but not limited to, evaluations and reevaluations, Individualized Education Program (IEP) services and accommodations, prior written notices (PWN), meeting notices, procedural safeguards, and due process notifications.

Consent does not pertain to other electronic communications that are unrelated to a child’s special education services. The school district and/or AEA may send other electronic communications at any time without consent, consistent with their respective technology policies. 

The Consent to Receive Electronic Communication is a one time consent and applies to any district and/or AEA in the state. 

When a disability is suspected and consent for evaluation is received, consent to receive electronic communication should be obtained.

If, after multiple attempts to obtain written parent consent, an IEP team is unable to obtain a signature, the team should document such on the consent form. A lack of a signature is treated in the same manner as non-consent or revocation. Thus, LEA and AEA staff may not share special education matters electronically, rather they should communicate by alternative means such as U.S. mail.

An age of majority student may give consent to receive electronic communication. IEP teams should continue to provide information to parents as they would for any age of majority student, including sending emails.

Additional information on the Consent to Receive Electronic Communications is available in the Questions and Answers Regarding Consent and IDEA Administrative Matters.

Prior to the initial provision of special education services, the AEA or LEA must obtain informed written consent from the parent(s).

If the parent(s) fails to respond to a request for or refuses to consent to the initial provision of special education and related services, the AEA or LEA:

• May not use procedural safeguards in order to obtain consent or use a ruling from a hearing, mediation, or state complaint to provide services to the child.
• Will not be considered in violation of the FAPE requirement because of the failure to provide special education services.
• Is not required to convene an IEP team meeting or develop an IEP.

Prior to completing a reevaluation, an IEP team reviews the existing information and identifies what additional data, if any, are needed to determine:

1. Whether the child continues to have a disability, and the educational needs of the child;
2. The present levels of academic achievement and related developmental needs of the child;
3. Whether the child continues to need special education and related services; and
4. Whether any additions or modifications to the special education and related services are needed to enable the child to meet the measurable annual goals set out in the IEP of the child and to participate, as appropriate, in the general education curriculum.

If the IEP team determines that no additional data is needed, the Consent for/Notice of Reevaluation form must be completed in order to inform parents of:

• The determination that no additional data is needed and the reasons for the determination.
  • The LEA and AEA are not required to conduct additional assessments unless requested to do so by the parents.
  • Parents do not need to sign the form when no additional assessment procedures are being requested.
• Parents must be notified of their rights as parents to request additional assessments to determine whether the child continues to be a child with a disability and has a need for special education and related services.

If the IEP team determines that additional information is necessary, then the following must be done:

• The Consent for/Notice of Reevaluation form must be completed and parental consent to evaluate must be obtained and documented by the signature on this form.
• A copy of the Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents should be made available and reviewed with the parents either in person or via phone.
• Parents must be notified of their right to request assessments in addition to those proposed if they so desire.

If the IEP team determines that additional assessment is necessary and the parent refuses to provide the signed consent, the following steps should be followed:

1. The LEA/AEA staff will contact the parent(s) to discuss their concerns with the reevaluation process. This contact may be made by any appropriate IEP team member.
2. If the parent(s) refuses to consent to the reevaluation and the IEP team has decided that additional assessment information is essential, the following options are available but should only be pursued with the knowledge and support of the AEA Director of Special Education or designee:
   1. Pursue the reevaluation by utilizing the procedural safeguards including mediation (this is not an option for children who are homeschooled or placed in private schools by their parents at their own expense)
   2. Decline to pursue the reevaluation with the belief that it does not violate its obligations

If reasonable efforts have been made and documented to obtain parental consent and the parent(s) has failed to respond, a reevaluation may be conducted without parental consent.

When data collection is needed outside of the initial evaluation or reevaluation processes, parent consent is not needed.  

If teams need to collect information to inform program planning (Example: A team may wish to conduct a Functional Behavior Assessment to inform an effective Behavior Intervention Plan) consent is not needed, but teams should notify parents of these efforts. This communication could be via phone, email or other written notification (e.g., the Collection of Additional Information by Area Education Agency Staff communication tool).  

Collection of additional information would become a reevaluation (and require consent or reevaluation notification to parents) if the question of learner eligibility for special education comes into question. 

An agency may seek written parental consent to release and/or exchange information with outside agencies to gather additional information as part of the evaluation and to foster collaboration with outside providers with knowledge of the student. 

Parent consent is documented with a signature on the Authorization for Exchange of Information form or Authorization for the Release of Health and/or Educational Information form.

NOTE: Health providers must follow the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and may require the use of their own consent process and documentation. The University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics require their release from to be used to release/exchange information. To access a copy of the University of Iowa Consent to Release form, click here, and also see their Medical Records Information Page.

A public agency may seek written parental consent to claim reimbursement from a public or private insurance source for services delivered to meet the needs of an eligible individual.

Parents must be notified as part of the consent request that their refusal to allow access to their public benefits or other insurance does not relieve an AEA or LEA of responsibility to ensure that all required services are provided at no cost to the parents.

Public Benefits/Insurance (Medicaid)

Federal regulations require a one-time written consent from the parent(s) in order for an AEA and LEAs to claim Medicaid reimbursement. 

Important components of the consent include:

• Consent for the AEA or LEA to share data with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and to bill for these services.
• Notice that if a learner has private insurance in addition to Medicaid, federal laws require Iowa Medicaid to bill private health insurance coverage after Iowa Medicaid pays the provider. 
• Notice that regardless of the payment source, parents will not be expected to pay for services. 
• Notice that any authorization given may be revoked by parents at any time.

Parental consent is documented on the Parent Consent/Refusal/Withdrawal for the Area Education Agency (or Local Education Agency) to Share Data and Seek Payment for Individual Educational Program (IEP) Health Related Services form using the state IEP system.

The consent is one time while continuously enrolled in the same district or AEA.  If the learner changes districts or AEAs, a new consent form is needed for that new district or AEA.

There are separate forms for each public agency, the LEAs and AEAs. A copy of the signed form should be kept on file by the public agency seeking reimbursement.  Electronically or physically signed consents must be maintained in the state IEP data system.

Annual, written notification explaining the protections available to parents related to public agency access to their or their child’s public benefits or insurance to pay for services under the IDEA is required and is incorporated into the Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents.

Additional information and resources on Medicaid are available in Resources.

Private Insurance

An AEA or LEA may ask parents of children with disabilities to use private insurance proceeds to pay for services, as long as the parents will not incur a financial cost. Each time the public agency proposes to access the parents’ private insurance proceeds, the agency must obtain parental consent.

NOTE: A public agency must document parent consent and reimburse parents for out-of-pocket expenses even if the parents offer to use their private insurance without being asked.  Teams may use the Model Letter for Accessing Private Insurance.

If a parent of a child who is receiving competent private instruction or placed in a private school by the parents at their own expense does not provide consent for the initial evaluation or the parent fails to respond to a request to provide consent: the public agency may not use the consent override provisions of the due process procedures and is not required to consider the child as eligible for services.

If the parent consents and then revokes consent once the initial evaluation has begun:

• The revocation is not retroactive.
• The parent shall be provided prior written notice documenting the team’s decision to honor the parent request to end the evaluation.
• The evaluation team shall complete and submit the eligibility determination worksheet.
• Any data gathered prior to the point of consent revocation may be summarized and placed in the child’s educational record.

For initial evaluations only, if the child is a ward of the State and is not residing with his/her parent, the public agency is not required to obtain informed consent from the biological parent if:

• Despite reasonable efforts to do so, the public agency cannot discover the whereabouts of the parent of the child,
• The rights of the parents have been terminated in accordance with State law, or
• The rights of the parent to make educational decisions have been limited or eliminated by a court and the individual appointed by the court to represent the child has given consent for the initial evaluation.

In situations described in the first or second bullets, the AEA must appoint a surrogate parent, who will decide whether or not to give consent for the evaluation. Once an evaluation is completed and eligibility is determined, only a person meeting the definition of a parent may consent to begin special education and related services.

If a child who has reached the age of majority requests an evaluation (initial or reevaluation), the public agency must consider this request the same as a parent request.