Week+6+Judicial+Review

=__FINAL Legal Summary:__=

Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.

526 U.S. 66, 119 S.Ct. 992, 143 l.Ed. 2d. 154 (132 Educ. L. Rep. 40).

1999

Garret F. was a student who was seriously injured as a result of a motorcycle accident; as a result, he was on a ventilator and required the care of a nurse. The school district refused to provide the nurse on the grounds that it was a medical service; his parents argued that the need qualified as a "related service" that was required for his inclusion in the public schools.

How are "medical services" defined, and in cases where a student requires some type of health service support, what are the provisions under IDEA?

The services of a nurse are considered related or support services. On March 3, 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court heard the case of Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F., _ __U.S.__ _ (1999). The Supreme Court determined that the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) required the district to provide Garrett with nursing services required during the school day. The Supreme Court rejected the school district’s stance that nursing services only need be provided based on a "cost-based multi-factor" test.

The Court considered the findings of //Irving Independent School District v. Tatro,// in which "medical services" were defined as the services of a physician. Since Garret's services had previously been performed by a "nurse or qualified layperson", the services were not considered to be medical services, but related services. In order to assure Garret's access to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in his least restrictive environemnt (LRE), the school system would have to provide the nursing services required by him as a result of his primary disability.

N.B.. The 1997 Amendments to IDEA were //not// considered as part of these findings because the amendments had not yet been enacted when Garret F. was in school. Further research would be appropriate in making determinations at the school and system level related to funding for health services for our students.

=__FINAL Team Questions/Comments:__= = =
 * We were surprised at how recent this court case was. It seems strange that the family would have needed to fight in 1993 to receive such a necessary service for a child with a disability.
 * Given the 1997 Amendments to IDEA, we would caution readers about using only this case study to make decisions about funding for such services. The 1997 Amendments to IDEA clarify that local school districts are the last resort for funding whenever another public agency has a funding responsibility to a child with disabilities. Such an instance would include Medicaid. To avoid having a child's needs deprived when agencies cannot come to an agreement about funding responsibilities, Congress has required that each state create an inter- agency coordination system.

=~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ = This is just our team work...No need to read further, unless you are curious!

=__Team Brainstorming__:=

Per the thread in the ELC, I am working on completion of the team synthesis between 10 and noon and have locked the document for further contributions.

Use the chart below to contribute key points, and add questions or additional comments as needed:
Is the school district required to fund a nurse needed to monitor a student's ventilator? ||< Nursing care in this case is a related service... Yes, the school district is required to fund this service. ||< //Irving Independent School District v. Tatro// resulted in a 2 step test: 1) are the requested services included within the phrase "Supportive services"? 2) are the services excluded as "medical services? //Tatro// defined "medical services" as the services of a physician (Russo, 2009, p. 1117). Since Garret's services have previously been performed by a "nurse or qualified layperson", these services are not considered to be medical services. Therefore, the school board is responsible fro providing the service. ||
 * ===Team Member=== ||< ===**Facts of the Case**=== ||< ===**Issue(s) at Hand**=== ||< ===**Holding**=== ||< ===Rationale=== ||
 * Ellen ||< Garret F. was paralyzed from the neck down in a motorcycle accident. He is ventilator dependent. Garret's family used provided for his care during the school day using settlement and insurance proceeds. She then asked the school district to fund the nurse. The school district did not believe they were responsible for the service and refused. ||< Is a nurse needed to monitor a ventilator considered a related service or a medical service? OR
 * Tara ||< Garret F. was a student in need of a ventilator during all hours, including school hours, as a result of a motorcycle accident. His parents had provided nursing care for him but then requested that the school system provide health care services for him during the school day. The District denied the request because they did not believe that they were legally obligated to provide 1:1 nursing services. ||< Are 1:1 nursing services a related service consistent with IDEA? ||< Yes, a student in need of nursing services during the school day is entitled to such services to ensure a FAPE. ||< It was undisputed that Garret required the health services at issue in order to participate in school. The District must provide such "related services" in order to help guarantee student integration into the public schools. ||
 * Autumn ||<  ||<   ||<   ||<   ||
 * Stacy ||< Garret F. was a student who was seriously injured as a result of a motorcycle accident; as a result, he was on a ventilator and required the care of a nurse. The school district refused to provide the nurse on the grounds that it was a medical service; his parents argued that the need qualified as a "related service" that was required for his inclusion in the public schools. The two parties were not able to come to agreement about who was responsible for paying for the child's required health services. ||< How are "medical services" defined, and in cases where a student requires some type of health service support, what are the provisions under IDEA? ||< On March 3, 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court heard the case of Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garrett F., _ __U.S.__ _ (1999). The Supreme Court determined that the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires districts to provide children with nursing services required by the child during the school day. These services are considered "related services", not "medical services". The Supreme Court rejected the school district’s stance that nursing services only need be provided based on a "cost-based multi-factor" test." ||< I'm going to look for further support cases in the name of not repeating the great work Ellen and Tara did. Thanks,ladies!

N.B.. The 1997 Amendments to IDEA were not considered as part of these findings because the amendments had not yet been enacted when Garrett F. was in school. The 1997 Amendments to IDEA clarify that local school districts are the last resort for funding whenever another public agency has a funding responsibility to a child with disabilities. Such an instance would include Medicaid. To avoid having a child's needs deprived when agencies cannot come to an agreement about funding responsibilities, Congress has required that each state create an inter- agency coordination system. ||

I was surprised at how recent this court case was. It seems strange to me that the family would have needed to fight in 1993 to receive such a needed service. (TW) Agreed! (SB)

Questions:
When reading cases, how can one be sure that the most recent findings are being consulted?? In this case, the 1997 Amendments further clarify, and that information is as critical to school leadership as the findings of this case. I guess that is where effective School Counsel comes in! (SB)

=__Draft Legal Summary:__=

Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.

526 U.S. 66, 119 S.Ct. 992, 143 l.Ed. 2d. 154 (132 Educ. L. Rep. 40).

1999

Garret F. was a student who was seriously injured as a result of a motorcycle accident; as a result, he was on a ventilator and required the care of a nurse. The school district refused to provide the nurse on the grounds that it was a medical service; his parents argued that the need qualified as a "related service" that was required for his inclusion in the public schools.

How are "medical services" defined, and in cases where a student requires some type of health service support, what are the provisions under IDEA?

The services of a nurse are considered related or support services. On March 3, 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court heard the case of Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F., _ __U.S.__ _ (1999). The Supreme Court determined that the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) required the district to provide Garrett with nursing services required during the school day. The Supreme Court rejected the school district’s stance that nursing services only need be provided based on a "cost-based multi-factor" test.

The Court considered the findings of //Irving Independent School District v. Tatro,// in which "medical services" were defined as the services of a physician. Since Garret's services had previously been performed by a "nurse or qualified layperson", the services were not considered to be medical services, but related services. In order to assure Garret's access to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in his least restrictive environemnt (LRE), the school system would have to provide the nursing services required by him as a result of his primary disability.

N.B.. The 1997 Amendments to IDEA were //not// considered as part of these findings because the amendments had not yet been enacted when Garret F. was in school. Further research would be appropriate in making determinations at the school and system level related to funding for health services for our students.