Excerpts from Title XXX, Section 409.1451: The Road-to- Independence Program (1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT. — (a) The Legislature recognizes that most children and young adults are resilient and, with
2. Subject to available funding, aftercare services as specified in subparagraph (b)8. are also available to a young adult
adequate support, can expect to be successful as independent adults. Not unlike many young adults, some young adults who have lived in foster care need additional support and resources for a period of time after reaching 18 years of age. (b) The Legislature finds that while it is important to provide young adults who have lived in foster care with education and independent living skills, there is also a need to focus more broadly on creating and preserving family relationships so that young adults have a permanent connection with at least one committed adult who provides a safe and stable parenting relationship. (c) It is the intent of the Legislature that young adults who choose to participate in the program receive the skills, education, and support necessary to become self-sufficient and leave foster care with a lifelong connection to a supportive adult through the Road-to- Independence Program, either through postsecondary education services and support, as provided in subsection (2), or aftercare services. (a) 1. Aftercare services are available to a young adult who has reached 18 years of age but is not yet 23 years of age and is: a. Not in foster care. b. Temporarily not receiving financial assistance under subsection (2) to pursue postsecondary education. The Tarasoff Case in California changed many laws across the country governing the disclosure of information by mental health practitioners. That case involved a university therapist, supervisor, law enforcement agency, and mental health facility that worked with a client deemed dangerous. The client ultimately left therapy, was released from a treatment facility, moved away, and later committed a murder (Gorshkalova & Munakomi, 2021). The case led to changes in legal language and the concept of responsibility for practitioners to warn individuals who may be harmed by present or former clients. The duty to warn, of course, requires the disclosure of information that normally would be considered confidential between provider and client. All 50 states have addressed the duty to warn, but some jurisdictions do not mandate the responsibility to warn or restrict the disclosure. Florida Statute 491.0147 indicates that confidential communication between the licensed or certified mental health worker and the patient or client must be waived in certain cases. The Florida Court of Appeal decision in the case of Green v. Ross (Court Listener, 1997) held that the permissive language of the statute at the time and the use of the word “may” did not create or confirm the duty to warn, and no cause of action could be taken for failure to warn in the case against a mental health worker (Tapp & Payne, 2011). That decision was based on a prior Florida appellate decision, Boynton v. Burglass in 1991, which dismissed a plaintiff’s complaint for failure to state a cause of action against a psychiatrist under an alleged duty to warn (Boynton v. Burglass, 1991). The court case cited above supported the view that the Florida statute was more permissive than some other states’ (3) AFTERCARE SERVICES. —
between the ages of 18 and 22, is receiving financial assistance under subsection (2), is experiencing an emergency situation, and whose resources are insufficient to meet the emergency situation. Such assistance shall be in addition to any amount specified in paragraph 2(b). (b) Aftercare services include, but are not limited to, the following: 1. Mentoring and tutoring. 2. Mental health services and substance abuse counseling. 3. Life skills classes, including credit management and preventive health activities. 4. Parenting classes. 5. Job and career skills training. 6. Counselor consultations. 7. Temporary financial assistance for necessities, including, but not limited to, education supplies, transportation expenses, security deposits for rent and utilities, furnishings, household goods, and other basic living expenses. 8. Temporary financial assistance to address emergency situations, including, but not limited to, automobile repairs or large medical expenses. 9. Financial literacy skills training under s. 39.6035(1) (c).
HIPAA AND THE DUTY TO WARN
because the disclosure of confidential information was permitted but not required. This language applied even in cases of potential harm and duty to warn a person who might be a target of attack by a client. Florida Statutes are not alone in governing confidentiality and privileged communication. The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) also governs the privacy and security of patient information that may be shared by social workers, including information from case management notes. This Act is an extensive and detailed piece of federal legislation that contains directives for the security of protected health information (PHI), including the electronic transmission of information. Because conflicts may arise between social workers’ duty to protect client confidentiality and the duty to warn against clients’ potential to harm themselves or others, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provides statements that apply to health care providers, including social workers (HHS, n.d.). The HIPAA Privacy Rule does not prevent the disclosure of necessary information about a patient to law enforcement, family members of the patient, or other persons, when the provider believes the patient presents a serious danger to themself or other people. HIPAA allows the provider, consistent with applicable law and standards of ethical conduct, to alert those persons who the provider believes are reasonably able to prevent or lessen the threat. The federal law 45 CFR Section 164.512(j) (Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute, n.d.) and Florida’s 491.0147 allow social workers, mental health counselors, and marriage and family therapists to disclose or share a
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