CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A local mother who fought the state for critical care for her adopted son is celebrating a major victory.
A 9 Investigation earlier this month explained a lawsuit Katherine Noto filed. She claimed the state denied her a stipend for her son with special needs based on a technicality.
9 investigates: Local mom adopts foster kids, battles state for care
The judge notified all parties Monday that she is calling for a reversal of the county and state's decisions.
She shares her emotional journey and how the judge’s decision could help other families, next at 5:14 p.m. on Channel 9.
"I'm still just overjoyed that I will be able to help my son," Noto said.
Noto has been fighting Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services and the state's Department of Health and Human Services for more help for her adopted son, who is still traumatized from years of abuse he experienced before he landed in her home. Noto receives adoption assistance which comes with Medicaid but she does not receive a stipend from the special incentive fund designed for families adopting children with extreme medical needs. Noto says the therapies her son needs are not covered.
"My son is hurting," Noto said.
Noto became a therapeutic foster mother so she could adopt him but after she signed the adoption papers, the state said she didn't qualify for the Special Children Adoption Incentive Fund, roughly $1,200 she'd been counting on.
The agencies argued her son only had the therapeutic designation for four months and to qualify, he needed it for six months.
"They dropped the ball in so many ways," Noto said.
A Channel 9 crew was in court on April 30 when Noto told the judge she would have waited two more months to make sure she had that benefit but social workers didn't tell her to do that.
Now, the judge is siding with Noto. She shared some of what the judge wrote in the email.
"She called them out saying that they did wrong. They did wrong by my family, they did wrong by this child," Noto said.
Noto's attorney Tiffany Bolling said the judge emailed all parties, calling for a reversal of the state's decision and for Noto to receive the payments retroactively, going back to April 2015.
The email came hours after Noto sold her kitchen table, trying to raise the money for expensive therapy.
Now, she's scheduling the out-of-state treatment her son needs and that she will now be able to afford.
"He hugged me. He said, ‘You never gave up. You fought every single day.’ I said, ‘I never gave up baby,’" Noto said.
Noto's attorney said it could take a week to work out all of the details of the order so the judge can sign off on it. They're hoping that the outcome of this case will help other families who've been denied funding or who are having communication problems impacting their adoption process.
Cox Media Group
