Slide 1

DCDEE/NC FAST Updates

With the implementation of NC FAST, lots of changes are taking place.

This is an overview of the changes that have taken place and the changes that are still pending.

Slide 2

Admin Letter #08-15

The following letters have been issued and are in effect as of January 04, 2015:

• Homelessness• Tracking of Federal Land Trust Residents• Assets Declaration• DCDEE Forms – Application of Child Care Services (DCDEE-0456• Utilization pf New Category Codes• Certification Period End Dates• Redetermination• Return of Vouchers• Expired Vouchers

Slide 3

HomelessnessPolicies:• Families who reside in temporary living arrangements will be asked the type of temporary

living arrangement and if this living arrangement is due to economic hardship.

Procedures:• The child care worker will ask the parent or responsible adult if their current address is a

temporary living arrangement. When the answer is “yes”, several options will be available from which to select. Additionally, economic hardship will be identified. Please note that families may be identified as homeless only if the living arrangement is temporary.

• Changes were made to the DCDEE-0456, Application for Child Care Services as it relates to homelessness.

• NC FAST has many more options for type of living arrangement. SCCRS has a subset.

• Homeless is used ONLY when families respond “Yes” to Temporary Living Arrangement

Slide 4

Q4. Do you have an internet enabled device other than a

smart phone?

Tracking of Federal Land Trust ResidentsPolicies: • Families may now be referred by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians for subsidized child

care assistance to support Child Protective Services (CPS), Child Welfare Services (CWS) and Foster Care. When the LPA identifies families who meet requirements for coding as Federal Land Trust Residents, new category codes must be used.

 Procedures: • The application will be made in the family’s county of residence with the appropriate referral.• Care to support the needs of foster parents will remain coded to Category Code Foster Care -

020.• Care to support CPS and CWS for Federal Land Trust Residents will be coded as Tribal 040

and Non-tribal 041.

Slide 5

Assets Declaration

Policies:

• Families declaring assets in excess of $1,000,000 are ineligible for Subsidized Child Care Assistance.

Procedures:

• At the time of application and redetermination, families will be asked to declare if they have assets in excess of $1,000,000.

Slide 6

Q4. If you answered No to question 1 and do not use an electronic system currently, would you be interested in a system that would allow you to automate attendance for 100% of your

children regardless of payment source?

DCDEE- 0456 Form – Subsidized Child Care Assistance Application

This form has been revised to address temporary living arrangements to identify homeless families and a question has been added related to the declaration of assets.

Living arrangements are a subset list from NC FAST.

Slide 7

Utilization of New Category Codes in the Subsidized Child Care Reimbursement System (SCCRS)

Homeless:

• When the LPA identifies a family as homeless, new Category Code 060 must be entered

in SCCRS.

• When entering a ? in the Category Code field, new code 060 will be available for

selection.

• When 060 Homeless is selected, the Family Information section of the Child Demographic

Detail screen will display the new field “Living Arrangement”.

• At this point enter ? to bring up the menu for various types of temporary living

arrangements.

Slide 8

Tribal Families

The law about Tribal Social Services – cite Session Law 2014 -100

Only for families referred by tribal DSS for CWS or CPS servicesFamily makes application in county of residence.

Allowable Fund Source(s) 15, 25, 55.Category codes 040 and 041 can only be used with the following need codes:• NEEDCD1 = 8, 4• NEEDCD2 = 1, 2, C, 5, D, A • NEEDCD3 = 1,2,3

Parent Fees are not allowed for the new category codes – 040 and 041.

Slide 9

Certification End DatePolicies: • New policy requires the certification period to end on the last day of the last month of the certification period.

(i.e. June 27, 2015 – June 30, 2016).

Procedures:• When new recipients are determined eligible, the certification period end date will be the last day of the last

month of eligibility regardless of weekends and holidays. This is also true at redetermination.

• When Child Care Action notices are issued, the start date will not change, you will extend the ending date to the last day of the of the last month of eligibility. For example, a voucher that was issued on December 17, 2016 – December 16, 2017, the CCAN will be December 17, 2016 – December 31, 2017.

• At redetermination, the new eligibility dates will be January 01, 2017 – December 31, 2018

• In SCCRS, ending certification dates will be programmatically updated to the last day of the last month of the certification period for all cases active in the system on December 31, 2015.

Slide 10

RedeterminationPolicies: • New policy requires child care workers to send a letter as a reminder of redetermination. This will

be the first and only notice sent for redetermination.

Procedure:

• If redetermination occurs prior to 45 days of ending date, the child care worker will change certification period to match date of application through end of the month

• There will be no CCAN issued to provide a 10 day notice prior to the end of the certification period.

Slide 11

Return of Vouchers

Policies:

• Counties and LPAs no longer have local options regarding return of vouchers. Vouchers must be returned within 30 calendar days of issuance.

Procedures:

• The parent/responsible adult and provider must sign the voucher within 30 calendar days. If the voucher is not signed by both the parent/responsible adult and the provider by the 30th calendar day, the voucher is cancelled. The provider must enroll within 30 calendar days or the voucher will be cancelled.

• After the voucher is cancelled, the parent/responsible adult may request a new voucher. If the voucher is reissued within 60 calendar days of the initial voucher issuance date, the new voucher will have the same start date as the initial voucher, unless the child(ren) started care at a later date.

• The voucher period includes the initial issuance of the voucher and the reissuance of the voucher and is limited to 60 calendar days. If the provider enrolls after 60 calendar days, the voucher start date will be the date that the parent requests the new voucher.

Slide 12

Expired Vouchers

Policies:

• Current policy in chapter 9, D 1 and 2 states that if the voucher is returned to the LPA ten (10) working days or less beyond the expiration date, the LPA may process the voucher; or if the voucher is returned more than ten (10) working days beyond the voucher’s expiration date, it must be voided and a new voucher must be issued before payment can be authorized. The new voucher indicates the same certification period as the original, but has a new issuance date.

• If the provider is enrolled and the voucher (DCD-0446) is returned within the allowable time period and is complete and accurate, the child care worker can approve placement of the child in that arrangement.

• If the Child Care Voucher (DCD-0446) is returned and it is determined that the provider is not enrolled, the provider enrollment forms must be completed before the provider can be approved to participate in the Subsidized Child Care Assistance Program.

Procedures:

• Provider has 30 calendar days to return vouchers in order to be paid for services. There is no grace period for the return of vouchers.

Slide 13

Upcoming Letters

Drafts for the following letters have been sent to the Policy Governance Board and the Policy Review Sub Committee

• Suspension of Child Care Services• Changing Providers• Discounts, Scholarships and Sliding Fees• Self-Employment/Gainful Employment• Provider Closings• Foster Care• Post-Secondary Education

Slide 14

Suspension of Child Care Services

• This is new policy

• Payments will be suspended for up to 90 days when parent/responsible adult is absent from work or school with arrangements to continue the same employment or educational status

• Suspensions will be entered in the SCCR System under “Status 5”, which is “Enrollment Without Pay”

• Explanation for suspension will be documented in recipient’s file

Slide 15

Changing Providers

There is no longer a limit on the number of times a parent or responsible adult can change providers

Slide 16

Discounts, Scholarships and Sliding Fees

• Discounts, scholarships and sliding fees are no longer calculated in subsidized child care payments/rates

• Payments to providers will be based on current market rates

Slide 17

Self-Employment/Gainful Employment

• Gives newly self-employed individuals 12 months to establish gainful employment

• Gainful employment is defined as making at least minimum wage

• If in business for less than 12 months at the time of eligibility, gainful employment will be evaluated at redetermination

• If at redetermination, gainful employment has not been established, the need for care and the level of care will be re-evaluated

Slide 18

Provider Closings

• With the implementation of NC FAST, providers will be allowed to choose 15 days a calendar year for automatic approval

• This limit does not include closings for inclement weather and emergencies, which will be 5 days per month, but may coincide with local school closings

• Emergency closings will have to be approved by the child care worker

Slide 19

Foster Care

• Children in foster care will be case head in their own case• DSS or designated staff will sign the voucher• With sibling group, the youngest child will be the case head,

but if separated each child will be their own case head

• When entering children in NC FAST it is important to remember to always enter the youngest child first because the system will make the first child that is entered the case head

Slide 20

Post-Secondary Education

Session Law 2011-145 allows for 20 months of subsidized child care to be given.

• New policy removes the local option for extensions.

• No extensions will be given

• **Extensions may be paid with Smart Start funds for Smart Start eligible children with an MOU in place

• Time does not start over if recipient moves from one county to another or if another child is added years later

• Child care worker will have to contact previous county to verify if any, and how much time has been used.

Slide 21

Provider Agreement• Currently being revised to be more of an Annual Contract than an Annual

Agreement, to hold providers more accountable/responsible.

• Expected to be ready when NC FAST pilots in May, 2016

• The Provider Agreement DCDEE-0452 will include voucher procedures in Section V.

• The changes to Return of Vouchers and Expired Vouchers do not affect the Provider Agreement.

Slide 22

Provider Agreement… (continued)

The new provider contract will provide:

DHHS/LPA Responsibilities that include:            Recoupment of payments            Reimbursement for Services            Notifications-Child Care Action Notices            Corrections of any under payments

Slide 23

Provider Agreement… (continued)

Provider Responsibilities that include:            Definitions            Payments            Voucher Procedures            Reporting and Attendance            Fraudulent Misrepresentation and Appeals

Slide 24

Provider Agreement… (continued)

DefinitionsThere will be a section dedicated to defining terms that will include:

• NC FAST terms: reservations, provider portal

• Types of Care:                         Full Time/ Three-Fourths/ Halftime Care

• Parental Fees, monthly rates, and daily rates

Slide 25

Provider Agreement… (continued)

Payment Policies

There will be a section dedicated to payment policies.

It will display policies on: Automatic Draft enrollment in the provider portal Collection of Parental Fees Monthly rates

Slide 26

Provider Agreement… (continued)

Fraudulent Misrepresentation and Appeals

There will be a section dedicated to Fraud and Appeals to display:

• fraudulent misrepresentation policies.

• process and consequences of first and second incidents of fraud.

• policies on reporting any under and over payments.

• steps and procedure of the Appeals process.

Slide 27

Provider Agreement… (continued)

Assistance ProgramsIt is a CCDF requirement that information about the Child and Adult Care Food Program is available to providers.

The CACFP is a federally funded program which is administered and funded by the USDA.

In North Carolina, the CACFP is administered by the Special Nutrition Programs Unit in the Division of Public Health in the Department of Health and Human Services.

Slide 28

Options for the Parent/Responsible AdultIn NC FAST, parents/responsible adults will: • Have the ability to apply for SCCA via ePASS.

• Be able to add their child(ren) to the Waiting List via ePASS, when applicable.

• Have the ability to respond to certain notices via ePASS (i.e. Waiting List Survey).

• Continue to be able to apply at the LPA.

• Continue to sign the voucher. However, they may be able to sign it via ePASS, to prevent additional visits to the LPA.

Slide 29

Parent/RA may use ePASS to apply for Subsidized Child Care Assistance online.

• Must have an NCID to apply (need email address).• Parent/Response Adult identifies county of residence.• County on Waiting List? RA answers screening questions to establish

Waiting List eligibility, may add child(ren) to Waiting List if criteria are met.• If county is not on Waiting List, RA may complete an application to apply for

SCCA (integrated with FNS/Traditional MA, if they choose). NC FAST will create a stand-alone application/Integrated Case for SCCA.

• Application will be received via a work queue to be processed in NC FAST by the child care worker.

• DSS (CPS/CWS/WF etc.) referrals and Emergency applications will NOT be handled via ePASS.

Slide 30

Role of Child Care Workers & SupervisorsStart:• Keying all applications, changes, and recertifications in NC FAST.• Using NC FAST to manage the Waiting List.• Reacting to tasks in NC FAST.• Managing their workload in NC FAST.• Using NC FAST for certain Subsidized Child Care Assistance (SCCA) reports.Stop:• Using SCCRS and other case processing systems (i.e. One Case)• Issuing payments to providers.• Managing a Waiting List outside of NC FAST (i.e. in Excel).Continue:• Following all SCCA policies.• Setting the Waiting List priority.

Slide 31

Waiting List Priority

Waiting Lists will be maintained by NC FAST

Counties will prioritize their own Waiting List based on various criteria:• Age• Special Needs• Care to support Work First employment• Foster children in DSS custody• Teen parents who need care to remain in high school• Care to support full time employment • Care to support protective services, etc.,

Slide 32

County Action Required with ePASS

• Counties will need to respond to applications submitted via ePASS.

• Child Care workers will need to be assigned to the SCCA ePASS application work queue in order to process applications submitted via ePASS.

• ePASS applications for SCCA will be sent to a different queue than those for FNS and Medicaid.

Slide 33

Voucher Creation

In NC FAST, vouchers will be created based on the information entered on the SCCA application. This information is stored as Evidence on the SCCA Integrated Case.

• Vouchers will be generated upon activation of the Product Delivery Case (PDC).

• Voucher information will be determined by Plan of Care evidence. This evidence will contain details related to the need for care, care schedule, provider selection, and service start/end dates.

• Each child on the case will have his or her own unique Plan of Care evidence and voucher.

• Payments will be made by the State and released by NC FAST via direct deposit.

Slide 34

Managing Vouchers

• Workers will have the ability to search for vouchers in NC FAST using multiple criteria including: Provider name, voucher status, case reference number, and participant (child).

• Vouchers will be located on the SCCA Product Delivery Case (PDC) on the Financials tab, within the Vouchers folder.

• When Parents/Responsible Adults provide a wet signature, Child Care workers will need to indicate receipt in NC FAST by manually updating the voucher status to “Pending Provider Signature.”

• All vouchers with status of Pending Parent Signature, Pending-Cancellation Parent Signature, Pending Provider Signature, Pending-Cancellation Provider Signature, Pending-Cancellation Provider Enrollment, and On-Hold are shown under the Voucher list page for a provider in the Provider Portal. The same information along with the remaining statuses are displayed for Child Care workers at each Product Delivery Case.

Slide 35

Fund Management

• NC FAST will become the system used to manage all of the funding sources.

• Funds are defined for each county annually based on fiscal year.

• County receives an allocation for Smart Start and an allocation for non-Smart Start funds.

• Counties create and manage county funds separately in NC FAST from the above-allocated funds.

• There will be two new roles introduced for individuals who will manage funds.

• NC FAST will introduce new terminology related to fund management.

Slide 36

Role of the Provider

To continue participation with SCCA Program, providers will be required to utilize the Provider Portal. The Provider Portal will house the following functions:

• Enrolling in SCCA

• Accepting or rejecting children into their care

• Updating rates for services

• Renewing the Annual Contract (currently known as the Provider Agreement)

• Recording attendance and submitting the roster

Slide 37

NC FAST Updates

• Planned to pilot in July, 2016• Pilot counties include:

o Buncombeo Durhamo Leeo Orange

• Stand-up calls are being scheduled

• County staff have received the Change Discussion Guide Part 1

• NC FAST tab is on the DCDEE website under the section for Providers and County Staff

Slide 38

NC FAST Updates… (continued)

When NC FAST is selected from menu on the DCDEE home page, there will be options for the provider

The site will contain a Provider Bulletin section

Slide 39

CCDF Plan and Proposed Requirements

In order to meet the new CCDF requirements, the following polices are pending.

• 12-Month Eligibility o Once determined eligible, families must have a continuous 12–month eligibility period. (i.e.

January 03,2016 – January 02, 2017) This policy is already in effect• Graduated Phase Out

o DCDEE plans to implement a phase out period of 90 days at redetermination if the family’s income is between the State eligibility limits and the 85% SMI.

• Redeterminationso Currently redetermination can be done by phone with a follow-up signature on the paper

application that will be mailed to the family. Parents may also complete an application and mail it to the Local Purchasing Agency.

o The date of the application will be the date of the phone interviewo Current policy says that this for hardship only. We will be changing this ASAP.

Slide 40

• CCDF Requirements… (continued)

• 90-Day Job Searcho Job search after job losso Transition between educational programs including vocational training,

etc…o Job search after education

• Homelesso In order to expand accessibility and continuity of care for vulnerable

populations, which is a CCDF requirement, DCDEE will provide services and track families that are homeless.

o Policies have been created to align with McKinney-Vento Act for homeless populations.

Slide 41

CCFD Plan for 2016-2018

• Public comments have been addressed

• CCDF plan pre-print can be found on the Office of Child Care website:

• www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/occ in search box, type in ccdf reauthorization

New Plan• With department for review

Slide 42

CCDF Social Services Commission Timeline

June 10, 2015 Introduced rules topics to SCCDec. 9, 2015 SCC voted to publish textFeb. 8, 2016 Rules will be filedMarch 9, 2016 Public Hearing to be held (Commission will schedule date)March 16, 2016 End of Comment periodApril 12, 2016 SCC adopts rules by teleconference (before the 20th)May 19, 2016 RCC approves rulesJune 1, 2016 Rules becomes effective

Slide 43

Rules being Reviewed:

• Foster Parent• Graduated Phase-Out• 90 Day Job Search• Homeless• Redeterminations

Slide 44

Periodic Reviews

• Social Services Commission link is published on our website under “What’s New”

o Rules Review – Periodic

• The new law requires all state agencies and commissions to review all of their existing rules at least once every 10 years.

• Social Services Commission has completed a preliminary review of the existing Subsidized Child Care Rules

Slide 45

Periodic Reviews… (continued)

Services Commission Periodic Review Timeline:Dec. 9, 2015 SSC reviews and approves final determination reportJan. 15, 2016, Submit final report to RRCFeb. 18, 2016 RCC reviews final report and submits it to the APO (Joint Legislative Administrative Procedure Oversight Committee)April 20, 2016 APO has 60 days to reviewMay/June RCC sets the date for the rules to be readopted

Slide 46

Integrated Eligibility Manual

Work has begun on section 6000 (Fraud and Incorrect Benefits), and 7000 (Hearings and Appeals)

Work has been done on:• Section 2000 - Eligibility Requirements• Section 2100 – Application Process• Section 2200 – Eligibility Determination• Section 2300 – Certification Period• Section 2400 – Responding to Changes• Section 2500 – Redetermination• Section 2600 - Terminations

Slide 47

Integrated Eligibility Manual… continued

Currently working on:Section 6000 – FraudSection 7000 – Appeals and Fair Hearings

Section 17000 will cover all sections of the Subsidized Child Care Manual that are not part of eligibility.

Slide 48

Fraud and Sanction Reporting

Formalizing the reporting of fraud and sanctions to include:• When a fraud investigation has begun• When investigation is complete• Closure of the case

Reviewing the Rules and Policies to include clear understanding and expectations of sanctions for fraud and misrepresentation

To view the website: dcdee.subsidy.fraud@dhhs.nc.gov Sent by Zix mail

Slide 49

Child Support Cooperation Study

Senate Bill 114• Was sent to DSS for final review and submission.

• Bill was approved 

Slide 50

Expenditures, Allocations and Reversions

• The November expenditure report was sent to counties and is posted on the website.

• Work is being done on the December report.

• The counties have been surveyed for who might be able to revert funds and which counties may need additional funds.

•  Reallocations are done ($2,648,042.00).

• Reversions are done ($2,823,104.00)

Slide 51

Conference: Hot Topics in Child Care Subsidy, CCDF Reauthorization, and NC Fast

• 88 Counties were represented

• 120 participants including DCDEE Staff, NC FAST presenters and staff and OST Team

• Thanks to everyone that participated.

Slide 52

Contact Information:

If you have any questions, please contact Kim Miller at: kim.miller@dhhs.nc.gov