Annual Review

Effective July 1, 2021, and every year thereafter, the Department of Children’s Services (per Public Chapter 163) shall require any person receiving Title IV-E Fostering Connections, Title IV-E, or State-Funded Adoption Assistance, from DCS, on behalf of an adopted child to provide the Department with medical/mental health documentation verifying the child has attended an appointment within the last year or educational documentation verifying the child is enrolled in school full-time.

This new law now requires you to submit one of the following to the Department:

• (1) verification from a medical provider confirming the provider has seen your child within the past year;
• (2) verification from a mental health provider confirming the provider has seen your child within the past year; or
• (3) verification of full-time, in-person school attendance.

Effective July 1, 2022, the Department of Children’s Services has contracted with Harmony to complete this work.

Initial notification request letters will be mailed to adoptive families requesting documentation to support the Annual Review Process. The initial request will include the following:

• Notification and request letter
• Frequently Asked Questions document
• CS-4220, Verification of Medical/Mental Health Provider Visit for Adoption Assistance
• CS-0809, Verification of Full-Time School Attendance
• Adoptive Family Contact Information sheet

Verification must be submitted to the Department using acceptable Departmental forms provided by DCS.

The only acceptable form of verification for home-schooled children is medical/mental health documentation.

Failure to submit the required medical or educational information may precipitate a home visit by DCS to ascertain the well-being of the adopted child or termination of the Adoption Assistance Agreement pursuant to state statutes, program policies, and federal laws governing the Adoption Assistance program.

The preferred method for submitting the documentation is via email to EI-DCS.Adoption-GuardianshipSupport@tn.gov. However, documentation can also be submitted via fax to 865-982-5950 or mailed to the address below:

Department of Children’s Services
Attn: Subsidy Support
118 Mabry Hood Road, Suite 400
Knoxville, TN 37922

For more information, please contact Miranda Mitchell, Post-Adopt Annual Review Program Manager, at miranda@harmonyfamilycenter.org.