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The Impact Of Garret F. A And Intelligent Young Man Who's Has Had Severed Spinal Column From A Motorcycle

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This case is about Garret F. a friendly, creative, and intelligent young man who’s has had a severed spinal column from a motorcycle accident since the age of 4. He is paralyzed from the neck down and does not have affected mental capacity. He is able to speak and control his own motorized wheelchair as well as a computer device. Garret attended community school district where he had regular classed in a typical setting he was successful academically but he is in need of a ventilator to sustain life. This means he needs a responsible party to attend to his physical needs while in school.
During Garret’s early years at school his family provided for his physical care during the school day. When he was in kindergarten, his 18-year-old …show more content…

After noting the core issue the ALJ, explained that federal law requires that children with a variety of health impairments be provided with “special education and related services” when their disabilities adversely affect their academic performance, and that such children should be educated to the maximum extent appropriate with children who are not disabled. In addition, the ALJ explained that applicable federal regulations distinguish between “school health services,” which are provided by a “qualified school nurse or other qualified person,” and “medical services,” which are provided by a licensed physician. See 34 CFR §§300.16(a), (b)(4), (b)(11) (1998). The District must provide the former, but need not provide the latter (except, of course, those “medical services” that are for diagnostic or evaluation purposes, §1401(a)(17)). According to the ALJ, the distinction in the regulations does not just depend on “the title of the person providing the service”; instead, the “medical services” exclusion is limited to services that are “in the special training, knowledge, and judgment of a physician to carry out.” App. to Pet. for Cert. 51a. The ALJ thus concluded that the IDEA required the District to bear financial responsibility for all of the services in dispute, including continuous nursing services. 5
The District challenged the ALJ’s decision in Federal District Court, but that Court approved the ALJ’s IDEA ruling and granted summary judgment against the

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