Early intervention: Implications of Public Law 99-457 for professional child psychology.

We review components of Public Law (PL) 99-457 and discuss several concerns related to the practice of psychology and early intervention. PL 99-457 establishes a new national blueprint for expanding the opportunities and benefits of early intervention and preschool services to children and families. We examined implications of the new law in terms of the following broad categories: assessment and diagnosis, intervention, planning and case management, program evaluation, and interagency collaboration. On the basis of practice needs in these areas, we propose several areas of needed training for child practitioners. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)