The Evaluation Requirement: FFPSA

What is the evaluation requirement of the Family First Act?

The research and evaluation provisions of the Family First Act require that states rigorously evaluate and support implementation of prevention programs through data-driven continuous quality improvement efforts.

This means that for each promising, supported, or well-supported prevention program for which states are seeking federal reimbursement, the Family First Act requires states to outline (1) how they will implement the programs with fidelity using a continuous quality improvement (CQI) framework, and (2) how they will evaluate each program using a well-designed and rigorous process.

You can learn about the evaluation requirement here.

Can the evaluation requirement be waived for Healthy Families America?

The evaluation requirement may be waived for well-supported interventions with documentation that the program has compelling evidence. While Family First does not define requirements for well-designed and rigorous evaluation strategies, states should consider the study quality standards established by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse to ensure that their evaluation activities will contribute to the evidence base

There is a “pre-print” in the prevention plan, Attachment II: Request for Waiver of Evaluation Requirement, that can be filled out for a well-support practice.

Colorado

The Colorado Title IV-E Prevention Plan also offers some insight as to how the Family First rigorous evaluation requirement for HFA can be waived, in favor of a CQI process:

Healthy Families America (HFA): HFA is a practice that has been implemented in one rural county in Colorado since 2016 and served approximately 76 families in CY 2018. A second Colorado county is in the beginning stages of implementing HFA with the goal of serving approximately 40 families. Given the small size of the population served, it is not practical to generate actionable and timely information through a rigorous evaluation such as a quasi-experimental design or randomized controlled trial for HFA. However, the accreditation process offers a foundation for CQI. Thus, Colorado is requesting a waiver of the rigorous evaluation process. HFA has an accreditation process through which site visitors assess adherence to the model. Colorado proposes a CQI process that is focused explicitly on the recommendations by the accreditation team and uses performance management data to track outcomes the intervention is intended to drive. For the county currently implementing HFA, the accreditation site visit took place in October 2019, and the county received the team’s report in January 2020. The CQI process will include quarterly learning calls to: (1) review, strategize, and support progress toward addressing recommendations made by the site team and challenges identified by the sites, and (2) review child safety performance management data that are routinely collected and opportunities to build capacity for routinely collecting and using child and adult well-being data.