The Foreign Service Journal, September 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2016 53 States. The goal is to replicate, as closely as possible for those posted overseas, the support that would be available to parents of children in a U.S. public school district using the best Washington, D.C., metropolitan school districts (e.g., Arlington, Falls Church, Fairfax and Montgomery counties) for guidance. Under the DSSR, a child receiving SNEAmust have written evidence that they meet the definition of a child with a disability under the Individuals with Disability Education Improvement Act, and there must be a formal Individualized Education Program (an “IEP”) or its equivalent, prepared by a professional medical or educational expert, that delineates which educational services are required to provide for the child’s special needs. All documenta- tion should be provided to MED by the employee and is reviewed by CFP. Finally, appreciating how the MED clearance process inter- faces with SNEA is crucial to understanding the benefits and limi- tations of this educational allowance. The MED clearance process is the first step toward meeting a child’s needs overseas. A child is medically cleared for a post if the required services are available at that post, and the SNEAmay then be used to offset extra costs for the required services which are not provided free by the school or covered by the employee’s medical insurance. If, on medical clearance review, an employee or spouse has needs which cannot be met at certain overseas posts, MED will informHR/CDA that the relevant clearance status is “post not approved.” Likewise, if a child’s medical, psychiatric or educa- tional needs cannot be met at certain posts under consideration, the child will not be medically cleared for the post. Collaboration All CFP processes work best when there is a true partnership between parents, Foreign Service medical officers overseas and the various administrative components in the department posi- tioned domestically and abroad. Employees from the Office of Allowances, the Office of Over- seas Schools and the Family Liaison Office work closely with MHS leadership and CFP personnel to assist families in understanding how educational opportunities, educational allowances (includ- ing SNEA) and local resources enable children with special needs to be posted successfully overseas. Given the individualized requirements of IEPs and the IDIEA, CFP strongly encourages parents to contact its staff members and discuss germane elements of the processes for their child. I encourage readers to visit http://med.m.state.sbu/mhs/cfp or www.state.gov/m/med/family/index.htm, where you will find a set of frequently asked questions with CFP’s responses. n