Multi-System Youth Custody Relinquishment Prevention Program

Children and youth must either be at risk for custody relinquishment or have been recently relinquished for a short period of time (e.g., 30 days) solely to get care. Funding will only be authorized for care provided on or after the date of application and for dates of service after custody return.  

Children and youth must have multi-system needs and be using creative multisystem supports. All applicants must have a local/regional team working to coordinate and follow their care. The team must be actively working to use creative solutions to serve the unique needs of the child/youth and their caregivers. Information about the team and creative solutions must be in section 3 of the application.  

Care must be clinically appropriate and in the least restrictive setting possible to support the child’s or youth’s needs.
 

• Applicants seeking funding for out-of-home care must document recent use of intensive levels of community-based care. The availability of intensive community care varies greatly across the state. In many cases, even when specific evidence-based and evidence-informed practices are not available, a mix of other outpatient services and supports — including natural supports — should be exhausted before using out-of-home care.  
• All applications for out-of-home care require a recent (within 30 days) Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) assessment recommending out-of-home care or other clinical documentation indicating the need for out-of-home care. Applications for out-of-home substance use disorder care require a recent (within 30 days) American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) assessment recommending a residential level of care.   

Each child or youth must have one or more legal guardians who are willing to actively take part in the young person’s care planning and treatment. Guardians of children and youth who receive MSY Program funding for out-of-home care must be willing to have the young person return to the home as quickly as clinically appropriate. Legal guardians must affirm their commitments using the Requestor and Legal Guardian Attestation Form.  

The MSY Program is intended to address acute needs and prevent immediate custody relinquishment. The program is not intended to provide long-term funding to support long-term needs. Instead, it can help fill in gaps while longer-term funding and services are put into place by the child’s/youth’s care team.  

The MSY Program is intended to assist caregivers when they have exhausted local resources and other payment sources. The State MSY Program is the funder of last resort and can only be accessed when local funds, health insurance, post-adoption assistance funds and other sources of funding are used first. MSY Program funding cannot be used to supplant other funds.