SR 97-25 Dated 10/97

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

This SR implements a policy change relative to the way the Department pays for employment-related child care services. Previous policy allowed parents using non-contract providers to choose between a Parent Payment Method (under which reimbursement was paid directly to the child care assistance casehead) and a Provider Payment Method (under which reimbursement payments were paid directly to providers enrolled with the Department to receive payments). Effective with October 6, 1997 dates of service, all child care assistance applicants and recipients who use non-contract child care providers are restricted to the Provider Payment Method.

BACKGROUND

Prior to October 1993, the Department paid for child care services for clients for necessary employment-related activities only either as direct payment to contract centers or as reimbursement to parents. In October, 1993, the Department adopted rules and released policy to permit payment to be made directly to enrolled non-contract providers on behalf of parents, at the parents’ option.

Current Policy

Under current policy, payment for child care services is made in one of three ways. If a contract child care center provides services, payment is made directly to that center. If child care is provided by a non-contract provider, at the option of the parent, payment may be made directly to the provider, or may be directed to the parent, who is then responsible for reimbursing the provider.

POLICY

900 TABLE OF CONTENTS - TANF

901.01 Filing An Application - TANF

911 REDETERMINATION - TANF

929 PROVIDER QUALIFICATIONS - TANF

943 PAYMENT FOR NONCONTRACT PROVIDER SERVICES - TANF

943.03 Nonpayment Of Providers By Parents Receiving Reimbursement- TANF (Deleted)

Effective October 6, 1997, the Parent Payment Method is eliminated as an option for child care reimbursement for child care assistance provided on or after the effective date of this SR. All payments for non-contract child care assistance for dates of service on or after that date will be made to enrolled child care providers only.

FORMS REVISIONS

Revisions to several child care assistance forms and their instructions have been made to reflect new policy:

Form 249, Helpful Hints for Child Care Assistance, an informational pamphlet offering information on the child care assistance billing process, has been revised to eliminate references to the Parent Payment Method.

Form 250, Child Care Payment Request Invoice, has been modified to remove the check boxes offering the option of Parent Payment or Provider Payment methods and to relocate the area in which the provider enters name and address to the top left of the Form. In addition, new boxes have been added in which the provider is required to enter a:

 Provider Key Name, comprising the first 5 letters of the facility name or provider’s last name; and

 Provider Service Code of 31 or 32 to indicate whether the provider is state licensed or license-exempt, respectively.

The front of the Form has been reformatted to accommodate the above changes. The instructions on the back of the Form have been revised accordingly.

Form 250F, Child Care Provider Information Sheet, has been updated to include references to the New Hampshire Employment Program (NHEP) as well as District Offices. In addition, the sample Payment Request Invoice included with the Form now uses the revised Form 250 released by this SR. This Form is sent by BDM to newly enrolled providers; it is not distributed to District Offices or NHEP team sites.

Form 253, Child Care Provider Verification Form, has been revised to remove information related to the Parent Payment Method, including removing the option for the parent to sign a statement permitting release of payment information to the provider named on the Form. This statement is now mandatory. Lines to record the provider’s signature and Federal Identification Number or Social Security Number have also been added to the form.

Forms 251, Provider Enrollment and Registration Form, AW-9, Alternate W9 Form-CIS, and AW-9L, Request for W-9 Information, and related instructions have also been revised and released by SR 97-36 with an effective date of 10/1/97.

IMPLEMENTATION

All child care payments for dates of service on or after Monday, October 6, 1997, must be sent to enrolled providers only. Any requests for Parent Payment for dates of service on or after the effective date of this SR will be returned to the casehead by BDM.

Per current policy, all child care providers requesting payment must be enrolled and registered with the Department. Continue to use current procedures and forms for enrollment and registration, with the exception (see below) that Form 251, after completion by the provider, is returned directly to BDM rather than to the District Office or NHEP team site as was previously done.

Applicants On or After October 6, 1997

 Provide Forms 251, Provider Enrollment and Registration Form, and AW-9, Alternate Form W9-CIS, to new applicants for child care assistance at the initial interview.

 Both forms must be completed by the provider and returned to Bureau of Data Management (BDM) for enrollment of the provider. Previously, these forms were returned to the District Office.

 Provide each new applicant, and each recipient upon request, a supply of revised Forms 250, Child Care Payment Request Invoice.

Note: BDM will continue to accept Forms 250 dated 1/94 (SR 94-2) until January 5, 1998. Effective January 5, 1998, payment requests using this version of Form 250 that are received at BDM on or after that date will be returned to the provider as unacceptable. Providers must resubmit these payment requests using the version of Form 250 released by this SR.

Recipients

Individuals open for and receiving child care assistance prior to October 6, 1997, were notified of the change in payment policy through a series of mailings (see Client Notification section of this SR). Provide copies of Forms 250, 251 and AW-9 to recipients upon request.

Mass Change for Open Social Service Cases with Parent Payment Codes in Field I38

Effective October 6, 1997, existing EMS Social Service Status Codes J, K, L, M, N, O,and P, indicating Parent Payment, will be removed as valid, acceptable entries in field I38. On October 4, 1997, EMS will execute a data change, after the dailies have been run, to all currently open Social Service cases with at least one member whose I38 field contains one of the above codes. The data change will replace the existing Parent Payment code with its corresponding Provider Payment code: R, U, V, W, X, Y, or Z respectively.

The following codes remain valid and are not affected by this change: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, and Q.

Forms 249, 250, and 253 and Related Instructions

District Offices and NHEP teams may continue to use current versions of these Forms until the revised versions return from printing. At that time, an initial supply will be sent to District Offices and NHEP teams.

 Although BDM will continue to accept Forms 250, release dated 1/94, until January 5, 1998, applicants and recipients should begin using the revised version as soon as possible.

 Effective with receipt of revised Forms 249 and 253, discontinue usage of previous versions of these Forms.

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

All individuals open for and receiving child care assistance prior to October 6, 1997, were notified of the upcoming change in payment policy through a series of mailings on July 1, August 1, and September 1, 1997. In addition, currently enrolled providers and all state licensed child care providers were notified in separate mailings on September 1, 1997, as were members of the statewide Child Care Resource and Referral network and the statewide Child Care Advisory Council. Copies of these mailings are attached.

A message announcing both the change in payment options and the January cutoff for use of older Forms 250 will appear on all Child Care payment warrants sent to providers and recipients during the months of October, November, and December 1997. A copy is attached.

TRAINING

No training is planned due to the procedural nature of this SR. Questions may be directed to Pam Durkee, Child Development Bureau, at 271-4242.

MANUAL PAGE CHANGES

The following revisions to FAM Chapter 900, Child Care Services, have been made to eliminate Parent Payment policy:

 Parts 901, 911, and 929 have been revised to remove references to parent reimbursement for noncontract child care services and to add text indicating that all providers must be both enrolled and registered to receive payment.

 Part 943, Payment for Noncontract Provider Services, has been revised to eliminate Parent Payment policy and procedures. Section 943.03, Nonpayment of Providers by Individuals Receiving Reimbursement, has been deleted.

 The Table of Contents to Chapter 900 has been revised to remove the entry for Section 943.03.

POSTING INSTRUCTIONS

DISPOSITION

This SR may be destroyed when its contents have been noted and its posting instructions carried out.

DISTRIBUTION

This SR only will be distributed according to the narrative distribution list for the FAM. The SR and pages will be distributed to all holders of the Family Assistance and Forms Manuals.

OES/RQY:s

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION

I hereby certify that all copies of Forms 249, SR 96-32/August 1996; 250, SR 94-2/January 1994; and 253, SR 94-2/January 1994 have been destroyed.

Office Manager:    District Office/NHEP Site     

NOTE: Return this certificate to Stock Control at DHHS State Office, 6 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301 after the instructions in the SR have been carried out.