Flex Funds

Flex Funds are intended to supplement informal/volunteer resources and to improve the family and community’s ability to meet the service needs of children/young adults up to age 21. Wraparound resources should be identified and utilized to build upon family strengths and address needs. Child/young adult up to age 21 MUST be enrolled in a mental health, developmental disability and/or substance use (MH/DD/SU) treatment service managed by Alliance.

Child Flex Funds may be requested by the Child and Family Team, Community Inclusion Planning (CIP) Team, and Care Coordination when appropriate;

• All other sources of available revenues (i.e. Medicaid, Emergency Assistance, community partners) must be ruled out, and documented as ruled out, before Flex Funds may be accessed.
• All scholarships and/or sliding fees should be pursued prior to applying for Flex Funds, and the CFT should make every attempt to access no-cost, informal community supports.
• The use of Flex Funds should be cost-effective.
• Flex Funds may be requested once per fiscal year per child/young adult up to age 21 and shall not exceed $250.00.
• The need for Flex Funds must be specifically aligned to the goals of the child/young adult’s Person Centered Plan (PCP), Individual Support Plan (ISP) or CIP Action Plan. Documentation on the Flex Fund Request Form must indicate how the use of Flex Funds will help meet the service needs of the child/young adult. The PCP, ISP and/or CIP, must be made available for review by the System of Care Coordinator prior to approval/denial of Flex Funds if requested.
• Only requests showing therapeutic benefit for the child/young adult shall be approved. Flex Funds might be requested for the following*:
  • Services/goods for the child/young adult and/or family
  • Services/goods to help strengthen the natural system of care or support for a child/young adult and their family
  • Family support and sustenance which would enable the guardian/family to participate in treatment or improve the support for the child/young adult
  • Educational and vocational services not otherwise available or provided by the local school system
  • Medical services not otherwise covered (i.e. eating disorder evaluation, independent living services/supports)
  • Interpersonal and recreational skill development
  • Additional positive reinforcers as determined by the CFT.

*This is not a complete list, nor does inclusion on this list guarantee approval of a request.  Please note that Flex Funds cannot be used to purchase gift cards or gas cards.

Flex Funds are intended to supplement informal/volunteer resources and to improve a person’s quality of life and inclusion in the community. These funds should be requested to assist with an individual’s social drivers of health as it relates to engagement and self-management. Individual MUST be enrolled in a Mental Health, Developmental Disability, and/or Substance Use (MH/DD/SU) treatment service managed by Alliance. 

Adult Flex Funds may be requested by Community Inclusion Planning (CIP) Teams, Providers, and Care Coordination when appropriate;

• All other sources of available revenues (i.e., Medicaid, Emergency Assistance, community partners, etc.) must be ruled out, and documented as ruled out, before Flex Funds may be accessed and every attempt should be made to access no-cost, informal community supports first.
• All scholarships and/or sliding fees should be pursued prior to applying for Flex Funds.
• The use of Flex Funds should be cost-effective.
• Flex Funds may be requested once per fiscal year per member and shall not exceed $250.00.
• The information provided on the Flex Funds Request Form should align with a goal or intervention on the Person Centered Plan (PCP), Individual Support Plan (ISP) or CIP Action Plan. These plans must be available for review by the System of Care Coordinator if requested prior to approval/denial of Flex Funds
• Only requests showing therapeutic benefit for the member shall be approved. Flex Funds might be requested for the following*:
  • services/goods for individual
  • services/goods to help strengthen the natural system of care for individual
  • educational and vocational services not otherwise available or provided to individual
  • medical services not otherwise covered (i.e. eating disorder evaluation, independent living services/supports)
  • interpersonal and recreational skill development
  • additional positive reinforcers

*This is not a complete list, nor does inclusion on this list guarantee approval of a request.  Please note that Flex Funds cannot be used to purchase gift cards or gas cards.

• Requestor completes appropriate Flex FundRequest Form (Child Form) (Adult Form) should be typed and signed/dated by the individual (adult request), parent/legal guardian (child or adult request) and requestor (child and adult requests).
• Requestor talks with the vendor to make sure vendor is agreeable to receiving a check from Alliance, to obtain an accurate mailing address for vendor and name of the addressee, and to obtain a valid W-9 and Vendor Profile Form from the vendor.
• Provider submits completed Flex Funds Request Form, vendor’s W-9 and Vendor Profile Form to the appropriate System of Care Coordinator via email. (All Flex Funds requests sent via email MUST be encrypted to ensure protection of personal health information. Click here for information on how to send an encrypted email to Alliance staff.)
• f the Flex Funds request is incomplete (ie, missing W-9, missing parent/legal guardian’s signature), the System of Care Coordinator will contact the Requestor to request the missing information or items. The System of Care Coordinator will not be able to review the request until all required information and items are available.
• Once the Flex Funds request includes all required elements, the System of Care Coordinator will review the request within 3 business days.
• The System of Care Coordinator sends email notification of payment decision to Requestor and forwards approved Flex Funds request to Alliance’s Finance Department for payment.