Section 32. Contractors
Effective August 31, 2021
(a) A court or its court program may contract with a person, firm, corporation, association, or governmental entity, including another court or court program, to provide one or more services for the court program except eligibility determination and case termination. A contractor must possess and demonstrate the capability to provide contractual services for the program in a manner that meets all the requirements contained in IC 12-23-14, these rules, and all other applicable laws, rules and regulations that apply to the services the contractor provides.
(b) If a program contracts for one or more services, neither the contractor nor any person performing services under the contract may:
(1) be an employee of the program; and
(2) receive compensation from the program for services other than the contracted services.
(c) If a contractor contracts to provide a program with client assessments or case management services, each individual providing these services to clients under contract must obtain and maintain a CSAMS credential in accordance with Section 30(b).
(d) This subsection applies to a contract-based program that is operated by an addictions treatment services provider. The program must have written policies and procedures that, at a minimum, meet the following requirements:
(1) A judge ordering a defendant to participate in the program shall inform the defendant of each of the following:
(A) The court program is operated by an addictions treatment services provider who provides the court program services and provides treatment at an additional cost.
(B) If treatment is recommended, the defendant will be provided with a list of acceptable treatment providers and the defendant has a right to select any provider on that list without coercion or fear of retaliation.
(C) The defendant has the right to a reasonable period of at least 72 hours to gather information about the various treatment providers on the list before deciding which provider to select.
(D) The defendant has a right and is encouraged to report to the court or to the Indiana Office of Court Services any pressure to select the contract program’s agency as the defendant’s treatment provider.
(E) Any treatment options that may be available for free or at a reduced cost for indigents or any funding options that may be available to pay for or offset the cost of treatment for indigents.
(2) The program director of a contract-based court alcohol and drug program that provides treatment to any of its court-ordered clients shall do the following:
(A) Provide each court-ordered client who is referred to treatment a list of acceptable treatment providers located within the county and surrounding counties.
(B) Give the client a reasonable period of at least 72 hours to consider which treatment provider to select before requiring the client to report the client’s choice back to the program.*
(C) Assure the client in writing that in monitoring the client’s compliance, the client will gain no favor by selecting the agency with the court contract and the client will not lose favor by selecting another agency.
(D) Permit a court ordered client to propose a treatment provider not represented on the list provided the client proposed provider meets the minimum standards required by the Indiana Office of Court Services and the Division of Mental Health and Addiction and is able to provide the required treatment.
(E) Report every six months to the supervising judge how many clients were referred to the program, and of those referred to the program how many were referred to treatment, and how many were ultimately referred to each of the treatment providers on the list, including how many resulted in self referrals for the program and how much revenue was generated by those self-referrals.*
(F) File a disclosure in compliance with IC 35-44-1-3(d).
Commentary on Section 32(d).
Under this subsection the client has a right to at least 72 hours to gather information and decide as to what treatment provider to use. If the client indicates that the client is ready to make a decision in less than 72 hours, the program may record and act on that decision at an earlier time, provided the program obtains the client’s signature indicating that the client was offered up 72 hours to decide.
Commentary on Section 32(d)(2)(e).
Upon request the Indiana Office of Court Services will provide technical assistance to a contract-based program that must report the information required under subsection (d)(2)(e) as needed to create the capacity to track the information required.