§ 300.34 Related services.

Plain English summary

This section defines 'related services' as transportation and supportive services required to help a child with a disability benefit from special education, including a broad list of specific service types such as speech-language pathology, physical therapy, counseling, and school health services. It explicitly excludes surgically implanted medical devices and their maintenance from the definition of related services, while preserving the IEP Team's authority to determine what related services a child needs for FAPE. Each individual service term within the definition is further defined in detail.

Key requirements

• Related services means transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education.
• Related services also include school health services and school nurse services, social work services in schools, and parent counseling and training.
• Related services do not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, the optimization of that device's functioning (e.g., mapping), maintenance of that device, or the replacement of that device.
• Nothing in paragraph (b)(1) of this section limits the right of a child with a surgically implanted device (e.g., cochlear implant) to receive related services that are determined by the IEP Team to be necessary for the child to receive FAPE.
• Nothing in paragraph (b)(1) of this section limits the responsibility of a public agency to appropriately monitor and maintain medical devices that are needed to maintain the health and safety of the child, including breathing, nutrition, or operation of other bodily functions, while the child is transported to and from school or is at school.
• Nothing in paragraph (b)(1) of this section prevents the routine checking of an external component of a surgically implanted device to make sure it is functioning properly, as required in § 300.113(b).
• School health services and school nurse services means health services that are designed to enable a child with a disability to receive FAPE as described in the child's IEP.
• Parent counseling and training means assisting parents in understanding the special needs of their child; providing parents with information about child development; and helping parents to acquire the necessary skills that will allow them to support the implementation of their child's IEP or IFSP.
• Medical services means services provided by a licensed physician to determine a child's medically related disability that results in the child's need for special education and related services.
• Rehabilitation counseling services means services provided by qualified personnel in individual or group sessions that focus specifically on career development, employment preparation, achieving independence, and integration in the workplace and community of a student with a disability.
• Transportation includes travel to and from school and between schools; travel in and around school buildings; and specialized equipment (such as special or adapted buses, lifts, and ramps), if required to provide special transportation for a child with a disability.

Affected parties

• children with disabilities
• parents of children with disabilities
• local educational agencies (LEAs)
• public agencies
• IEP Teams
• special education service providers
• school nurses and health service providers
• speech-language pathologists
• occupational therapists
• physical therapists
• psychologists
• social workers
• orientation and mobility specialists
• rehabilitation counselors
• audiologists
• interpreters

Official source

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/part-300/section-300.34