In New Jersey, a child is considered eligible for early intervention services if he or she is under the age of three and has at least a thirty-three percent* delay in one and/or a twenty-five percent* delay in two or more of the developmental areas listed below.
- Physical, including gross motor, fine motor, and sensory (vision and hearing)
- Cognitive
- Communication
- Social or emotional
- Adaptive
When using clinical opinion, parent report and standardized assessment or criterion-referenced measures to determine eligibility, a developmental delay is defined as a delay of 33% in one and/or 25% in two or more development areas. Percentages are calculated on the basis of corrected age for infants born before 38 weeks gestation and applying until 24 months of age. Corrected age is based on 40 weeks term. For infants born at or after 38 weeks gestation there shall be no correction in age.
n addition, a diagnosis of certain physical and mental conditions that have a high probability of resulting in developmental delay may be used to determine eligibility. This high-risk category includes children who have identified conditions but who may not be exhibiting delays in development at the time of diagnosis.
The categories of physical and mental conditions include:
- Chromosomal abnormalities
- Genetic or congenital disorders
- Severe sensory impairments, including vision and hearing
- Inborn errors of metabolism
- Disorders reflecting disturbance of the development of the nervous system
- Congenital infections
- Disorders secondary to exposure to toxic substances, including fetal alcohol syndrome
- Severe attachment disorders
The diagnoses listed below are considered presumptive for eligibility in New Jersey. However, a physician or psychologist must make the diagnosis and proof of diagnosis must be on file with the child/family’s service coordinator.
PRESUMPTIVE DIAGNOSES
- Down syndrome
- Fetal Alcohol syndrome
- Hearing Impairment
- Vision Impairment
- Autism/PDD
- Spina Bifida
- Cerebral Palsy
- Trisomy 13, 18, etc.
- Fragil X
- Hydorcephalus
To determine eligibility based on any other diagnosis requires a signed statement or report by a physician or psychologist, as appropriate, indicating the diagnosis has a high probability of resulting in developmental delay.
However, diagnosis alone must not drive the Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP). Once a child is determined eligible for services based on a diagnosis, a multidisciplinary evaluation/assessment must be conducted to determine the specific early intervention needs of the child and family. For example, a child eligible by diagnosis but not experiencing any developmental delay would not be expected to need weekly early intervention services.
New Jersey chooses not to include children, from birth through age two, who are at risk of substantial developmental delays if early intervention services are not provided.
