Child Care Subsidy Program Changes Department of Workforce Services Office of Child Care Child Care Provider Webinar February 12, 2015 2:00 p.m.

AGENDA 1. Provider Portal Demo 2. Provider Portal Questions 3. Elimination of Form 980-Simplified Process 4. Update on other changes Upfront Child Care Job Search Child Care Payment to Provider 5. Questions

Child Care Provider Portal jobs.utah.gov/childcare

Child Care Simplification As of April 1, providers will no longer complete a Form 980, Child Care Subsidy Worksheet. DWS will obtain required information through other sources.

New Process for Providers: Report your monthly rates to CAC by March 1, 2015. Continue to negotiate rates with customers based on hours in your care. This has not changed! Use the Child Care Provider Portal to look up case status information and communicate changes to DWS.

What if I have other rates than what I reported to CareAboutChildcare? It’s OK! Continue to set and negotiate prices as you always have! This should not affect your business practices.

New Process for Parents: Parents must report who their provider is during the child care application process. When a parent selects a provider, the parent will be asked: how many hours care is needed during work and/or training hours. The amount their provider is charging per child. If using myCase, they will see the rates reported to CareAboutChildcare (CAC) for each age group.

New Process for Parents (Con’t): The parent may report their negotiated rates at application, review, or when reporting a change but they are not required to do so. If a lower rate is not reported, we will use the monthly rates in CAC for the payment calculation comparison.

Reporting a change in providers: A parent may report a change in providers through myCase or by calling the Eligibility Service Center. Changes reported through other sources must be verified by the parent. Changes will be made effective the following month. Endangerment exception.

How will I know a parent has selected me as their provider? Provider Portal-jobs.utah.gov/childcare Go to the “Children In Care” Screen. Check for a “pending” or “open” case status. Provider changes reported through myCase will show up within 24 hours. Provider changes reported by phone or in writing may take additional processing time before they will appear in the portal. *A “pending” status is not a guarantee that the subsidy will be approved.

Payment Calculation A 3-way comparison is done when calculating a payment. 1. The provider charge through CAC or lower charge reported. 2. Maximum State rates set. 3. Participation rate based on how many hours care is needed for the household. DWS pays the lowest of the 3 amounts.

Participation hours Regardless of which provider charge we use in the comparison, the subsidy will always take into account the number of work/training hours that the parent has a need for child care. The parent is responsible to pay the difference between what we pay and what you charge.

What if I received a payment but I didn’t provide child care? Report this as quickly as possible. Select the “Child Has Never Been in Care” action in the DWS Child Care Provider Portal. If a payment was received, it will need to be returned to DWS.

Other Actions via the Provider Portal: Report when a child is no longer in care. Report a credit to be deducted from the next months’ payment amount. Email occ@utah.gov to report an ongoing price reduction for a specific family.

Changing Your Rates CareAboutChildcare.utah.gov Changes are made effective the following month.

Conversion Process The Form 980 is a required document and must be on file through March. A partial 980 (listing rates through March) may be accepted for Feb-March Reviews and Applications. Destroy any blank 980’s you have. We will not use them as of April 1.

Conversion Process (Con’t.) Rates reported on existing Form 980’s will act as the negotiated payment and be compared with the CAC provider charge through the last month recorded on each Form 980.

What are the other changes?

Upfront Child Care Child Care Application must be complete. Customer must appear eligible for child care. Issue 1st month of child care based on customer statement. Application date after 15th= 2 payments 30-day application process to verify for ongoing child care. Effective January 1, 2015

Job Search Child Care Must have been receiving Child Care assistance. Working at least 32 hours per week. Report job loss within 10 days. Receive up to 2 months of child care to job search. Receive help finding a job. Effective: February 1, 2015

DWS Internal Simplification We have made changes to simplify how workers process child care cases so that benefits can be issued faster and ensure accuracy. This may cause adjustments in some payments. Effective: April 1, 2015

Best Practices Customers meet with and select a provider before applying for child care assistance. Encourage customers to complete applications, reviews, and report changes online at jobs.utah.gov/myCase. Use the Provider Portal- jobs.utah.gov/childcare. Request permission for myCase 3rd party access.

What’s Next? Payment to Provider Federal Regulation Changes Family-friendly Continuity of care Continued enhancements to the Provider Portal Household co-payment

QUESTIONS?

Contact us: occ@utah.gov RESOURCES For parents: jobs.utah.gov/myCase For providers: jobs.utah.gov/childcare CareAboutChildcare.utah.gov Contact us: occ@utah.gov