Inclusion / Exclusion Policy

General Terms of Inclusion
The entity

• provides a health or human service for residents of Ventura County.
• is licensed or certified, when applicable.
• has a consistently available contact person, location, and telephone number. Access through an answering machine is acceptable.

Entities Eligible for Inclusion
The following entities are eligible for inclusion provided they meet all three general terms above:

• California’s municipal and state agencies and commissions, as well as selected federal agencies, which provide services to the general public or small businesses.
• Elected representatives (federal, state, local).
• Chambers of Commerce.
• Health and human service programs offered by state, county or local governments which have offices in or serve the residents of Ventura County.
• Non-profit organizations that provide, coordinate and advocate for health and human services.
• Non-profit organizations that provide community service opportunities.
• Private non-profit organizations considered charitable and/or educational.
• Specialized information sources that maintain current and accurate information about agencies such as nursing homes, residential care homes, subsidized housing locations, licensed and registered child care providers, physicians, dentists, and lawyers. 2-1-1 Ventura County will not duplicate the maintenance of this information.
• Churches, social clubs, service organizations, and civic groups that offer a service to the community at large.
• Organizations that are not eligible for 501(c)3 status, but meet all state licensing requirements, including (but not limited to) hospitals, health clinics, home health care agencies, chemical dependency treatment programs, community counseling agencies and individual mental health professionals who offer a sliding fee scale or reduced fee.
• Educational organizations within Ventura County including (but not limited to) early education providers, elementary schools, junior high schools, public high schools, school districts and boards of education, and private schools that serve children or youth with disabilities, special needs, or behavioral/emotional disorders.
• National organizations and out-of-state entities that offer essential services whose services are more accessible to residents than the equivalent services offered within Ventura County.
• Professional Associations (especially those is the social services field: Counseling/Psychiatry, Medical, Dental, Legal).
• For-profit agencies that accept MediCal or provide low-cost or free services to the community.
• For-profit agencies that satisfy court diversion requirements.

Organizations or Services Included at the Discretion of the Database Manager
The following entities are eligible for inclusion at the discretion of the database manager provided they meet the general terms of inclusion above:

• For-profit organizations or individual proprietors providing services not adequately available from the non-profit sector or offering free services or services with a sliding fee scale. Examples include (but are not limited to) board and care facilities, sober houses, and companies that modify vehicles for people with disabilities.
• Community and self-help support groups that are free or charge a low fee to cover refreshments, for example.
• Certain national organizations that provide services that are not adequately available through Ventura County organizations; for example, the National Runaway Hotline and the National Organization for Rare Disorders.

Organizations or Services Excluded from the Database
This policy does not prohibit the inclusion of any program that targets services based on age, gender, health, disability or other characteristic designed to meet special needs of targeted populations. However, the program must be open to all people in those targeted populations.

• Services which are available only to members of a certain group or affiliation. For example, counseling available to a church’s parishioners only.
• Any organization which promotes or delivers illegal services.
• Commercial business establishments not described above.
• Organizations that provide free or low-cost services when their primary purpose is to market the organization’s main business.
• Agencies that misrepresent themselves, fail to respond to updating contacts, have written documented complaints, deny service based on prejudice or discrimination, fail to be properly registered as a non-profit or for-profit business in their state of legal record.

Guidelines for Review and/or Appeals
Where special circumstances exist which are not effectively covered by the preceding guidelines, or where there is disagreement about inclusion or exclusion, the agency or organization in question may submit a Request for Review/Appeal for inclusion.

Disclaimer
Eligibility for inclusion does not guarantee inclusion. 2-1-1 Ventura County has the right to prioritize and limit entry. 2-1-1 Ventura County reserves the right to edit information to meet format, guideline and space requirements.

Although this policy indicates what agencies and services are eligible for inclusion in the database, 2-1-1 Ventura County reserves the right to prioritize and limit entry. Inclusion does not imply endorsement and omission does not indicate disapproval.

Information provided by organizations and individual service providers and included in the 2-1-1 Ventura County database will be made available to the general public in various formats, including telephone information and referral, an online searchable database of services and printed materials.