Schools, Child Care Centers, Medicaid Providers, and Others Can Now Request Child Maltreatment Checks Online

Schools, Child Care Centers, Medicaid AProviders, and Others Can Now Request Child Maltreatment Checks Online

(LITTLE ROCK, Ark.) — Individuals who need to request a child maltreatment registry check to get a job, volunteer, or be a foster parent can now request checks online, a move that the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) says will eventually reduce the amount of time it takes for people to get results.

“DHS has been working to make critical processes more efficient,” said DHS Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Director Mischa Martin. “We get over 10,000 child maltreatment requests each month, so we knew we could make a huge impact by improving this process.”

Arkansas law requires teachers, child care workers, certain volunteers, foster parents, many direct care workers, residential facility workers, and others to have a child maltreatment registry check performed before they can work, volunteer, or foster. In addition, some businesses and health care providers require these checks before people can be hired. The registry includes information on individuals who have a true finding of child abuse, neglect, or maltreatment in Arkansas. The information can only be released to entities listed on the request.

Though people still may request a maltreatment registry check by paper through the mail, Martin said the electronic request will produce faster results – using paper people may wait as long as two weeks or more for results while electronic results could come back within a few days. In addition, the online process also:

Reduces the likelihood that forms will be returned for lack of needed information.

Produces more accurate results because the information on the forms is legible. It also means email addresses are legible, allowing for results to be emailed timely and securely.

Allows for online payment.

Tracks the form from submission to completion, ensuring that no more forms get lost in the mail or during processing.

DCFS and the DHS Office of Information Technology worked for several months and in consultation with other DHS divisions to create the online process as part of broader effort to better serve clients and providers.

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