Description of the Moderate Service Level

The Moderate Service Level consists of a structured supportive setting, preferably in a family, in which most activities are designed to improve the child’s functioning including:

  1. More than routine guidance and supervision to ensure the child’s safety and sense of security;
  2. Affection, reassurance, and involvement in structured activities appropriate to the child’s age and development to promote the child’s well-being;
  3. Contact, in a manner that is deemed in the best interest of the child, with family members and other persons significant to the child to maintain a sense of identity and culture; and
  4. Access to therapeutic, habilitative, and medical intervention and guidance from professionals or paraprofessionals to help the child attain or maintain functioning appropriate to the child’s age and development.
  1. In addition to the description in subsection (a) of this section, a child with primary medical or habilitative needs may require intermittent interventions from a skilled caregiver who has demonstrated competence.

Characteristics of a child who needs Moderate Services

A child needing moderate services has problems in one or more areas of functioning. The youth needing moderate services may include:

  1. A child whose characteristics include one or more of the following:
    1. Frequent non-violent, anti-social acts;
    2. Occasional physical aggression;
    3. Minor self-injurious actions; and
    4. Difficulties that present a moderate risk of harm to self or others.
  2. A child who abuses alcohol, drugs, or other conscious-altering substances whose characteristics include one or more of the following:
    1. Substance abuse to the extent or frequency that the child is at-risk of substantial problems; and
    2. A historical diagnosis of substance abuse or dependency with a need for regular community support through groups or similar interventions.
  3. A child with developmental delays or mental retardation whose characteristics include:
    1. Moderate to substantial difficulties with conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills to include daily living and self-care; and
    2. Moderate impairment in communication, cognition, or expressions of affect.
  4. A child with primary medical or habilitative needs, whose characteristics include one or more of the following:
    1. Occasional exacerbations or intermittent interventions in relation to the diagnosed medical condition;
    2. Limited daily living and self-care skills;
    3. Ambulatory with assistance; and
    4. Daily access to on-call, skilled caregivers with demonstrated competence.