Section 4435.1.

(a) Effective July 1, 2011, the department shall establish a program for at-risk babies. For purposes of this section, "at-risk baby" means a child under 36 months of age who is otherwise not eligible for the California Early Intervention Program pursuant to Title 14 (commencing with Section 95000) of the Government Code or services provided under the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act (Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 4500)) and whose genetic, medical, developmental, or environmental history is predictive of a substantially greater risk for developmental disability than that for the general population, the presence of which is diagnosed by qualified clinicians.

(b) Effective July 1, 2011, when a regional center intake and assessment determination is that a baby is an at-risk baby as defined in subdivision (a), the regional center shall, with parental consent, refer the baby and family to the family resource center set forth in subdivision (c) for outreach, information, and referral services.

(c) Effective July 1, 2011, the department shall contract with an organization representing one or more family resource centers which receive federal funds from Subchapter III of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1431, et seq.) to provide outreach, information, and referral services to generic agencies for children under 36 months of age who are otherwise not eligible for the California Early Intervention Program pursuant to Title 14 (commencing with Section 95000) of the Government Code or services provided under the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act (Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 4500)). The organization with which the department contracts shall be an organization that supports families of young children with intellectual or developmental disabilities, and those at risk of intellectual or developmental disabilities by ensuring the continuance, expansion, promotion, and quality of local family support services, including coordination, outreach, and referral. Any contracts entered into pursuant to this section shall be exempt from state contracting and procurement requirements set forth in the Government and Public Contract Codes and shall take effect immediately to protect the health and safety of the children receiving the services.

(d) The contract described in subdivision (c) shall do both of the following:

(1) Ensure the expeditious delivery of outreach, information, and referral services to at-risk babies.

(2) Require the organization to establish a process with the applicable regional center or centers for referral of the at-risk baby to the regional center when the family resource center suspects that the child may be eligible for services pursuant to the California Early Intervention Program or the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act.

(Added by Stats. 2011, Ch. 37, Sec. 6. Effective June 30, 2011.)