Complete the application process by reviewing with parent/caretakers their rights and responsibilities. These rights and responsibilities reflect DSS' belief that parent/caretakers should be well informed about the child care decisions they make. Therefore, ensure that parent/caretakers receive the following information as part of the application process.

A. Parent/caretakers have the right to choose the type of provider and the type of care for their children (see Section 11004.4 for discussion of certificates and parental choice).

B. Parent/caretakers have the right to have unlimited access to their children and the child care provider during normal working hours and whenever the children are in the provider's care.

1. Licensed providers must allow parental access as part of their licensing standards. Complaints against licensed providers who fail to provide parental access should be addressed to the Office of Child Care Licensing, Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families.

2. Exempt providers must agree to allow parental access as part of the certificate process. Those providers who do not certify to allow access can be denied authorization to provide service.

C. Parent/caretakers have the right to request a list of substantiated parental complaints on any licensed or license-exempt provider. Maintain a record of complaints, particularly substantiated complaints, and provide this information to parent/caretakers upon request. The DSS Contracts Administrator's Office is the central repository for complaints about providers.

D. Parent/caretakers have the right to appeal any denial and/or termination of child care services.

A. Parents/caretakers have the responsibility to give accurate information to Case Managers concerning their financial status and their need for service. Failure to provide requested and accurate information could lead to a denial and/or termination of service.

B. Parents/caretakers have the responsibility to report changes in their financial status and need for service as these changes occur. Failure to do so could lead to termination of service.

C. Parents/caretakers have the responsibility to pay their assessed child care fee. Parents/caretakers pay the fee directly to the provider at a schedule determined by the provider. Providers have the right to deny service to parents/caretakers who fail to pay their fees.

D. Parents/caretakers have the responsibility to abide by the provider's rules and procedures regarding the operation of their child care facility. Failure to do so could lead to termination from the provider's program. (Such a termination will not cause termination from DSS' subsidized child care services, but can make it difficult for DSS to locate another placement.)

E. Parents/caretakers have the responsibility to reimburse DSS for any payments made on their behalf for which they were not eligible. DSS has the right to recoup such overpayments. In cases where fraud is suspected, recovery must be attempted.

9 DE Reg. 572 (10/01/05)

Child care case records are maintained in accordance with DSSM policies as noted in Section 1000 under the heading Administration. However, ensure that child care case records contain, at a minimum, the following information:

A. a copy of the Application for Child Care Assistance;

B. verification of child care need, such as pay stubs and/or employer letter, school or training registration, special needs form;

C. verification of income, such as pay stubs or employer letter;

D. a copy of the Child Care Payment Agreement (Form 601b); and

E. any information pertinent to the child care case, such as protective referral, etc.

Authorizations, client notices, and other pertinent case information is contained in the DCIS II Child Care Sub system. The DCIS II Child Care Sub system is considered an electronic case file and, therefore, equally or more valuable as the manual record. Maintain both the manual file as well as the electronic file in an up-to-date manner.

9 DE Reg. 572 (10/01/05)

A child care overpayment occurs when DSS pays providers for more child care service than parents/caretakers are eligible to receive. The overpayment may result because of agency or parent/caretaker error.

EXAMPLE 1: A Case Manager incorrectly enters parent income information resulting in a lower parent fee. After several months, the Case Manager realizes the mistake. Because DSS has already made payment to the provider, the Case Manager must process this change as an overpayment.

EXAMPLE 2: A parent reports income of $500.00 for a family size of three. However, after several months, the Case Manager discovers income actually was $750.00. The lower income resulted in the parent paying a smaller fee than the parent should have paid. Because DSS has already made payment to the provider, the Case Manager must process this change as an overpayment.

The CCMIS will not process changes to an authorization for a prior period of time through the Correct Transactions function when the result is negative. A negative change means parents/caretakers receive less service because of a change in circumstances; for example, the change results in the parent paying a higher fee. In these situations, process an overpayment, using the child care overpayment notice and complete a Change Authorization to correct the error for future authorizations.

DSS is to attempt recovery in all cases of suspected fraud, in all cases involving current recipients, and in all cases where the overpayment amount would equal or exceed the costs of recovery.

Determine the amount of the overpayment by:

A. subtracting the difference between what DSS paid the provider versus what DSS should have paid, or

B. subtracting the difference between the fee the parent paid and the fee the parent should have paid.

EXAMPLE: A child over age two in a center is paid $13.00/day or $299.00 ($13.00 x 23 days) for a full month of child care. The parent paid no fee; DSS paid the full fee. However, the parent should have paid a fee amounting to $1.00/day. DSS should have paid $12.00/day if the parent paid $1.00/day fee, or $276.00 monthly.

$299.00 DSS paid

- 276.00 DSS should have paid

23.00 Overpayment

If this overpayment continued for six months, the total overpayment is $138.00. The Case Manager must complete an overpayment notice, noting the amount of the overpayment and the child care category under which the child received service.

DCIS provides case managers with access to the Claims Management function of the CCMIS to assist in determining the overpayment amount. Access is limited to child transactions and is inquiry only. The Claims Management function provides access to the actual provider payment.

Once the overpayment amount is determined, complete the overpayment notice (Form 631) in detail. Submit the notice to the supervisor who will check it for accuracy.

Send the original notice to the parent/caretaker and, after waiting 10 days, send a copy to the Audit and Recovery Unit. Audit and Recovery are responsible for establishing repayment agreements with parents/caretakers and for collecting and tracking payments on overpayment debts.

To provide parent/caretakers who disagree with the overpayment amount the opportunity to request a fair hearing, wait 10 days before sending the copy of the overpayment notice to Audit and Recovery. This allows parents/caretakers with an opportunity to contact case managers to possibly resolve the matter before intervention by Audit and Recovery.

Collection of the overpayment by Audit and Recovery follows current policy as noted in DSSM 7000. Note that DSS can only recoup child care payments from child care benefits. Any attempt to recover child care overpayments from TANF benefits can only occur if there is a voluntary request from the recipient family. The recipient family can only make such a voluntary request if the child care they were receiving was Food Stamp Employment & Training -TANF Child Care, At-Risk, or Transitional Child Care.

In addition to establishing repayment agreements and overseeing the collection of overpayments, Audit and Recovery also investigate overpayments for suspicion of fraud. Case managers will not make fraud determinations, but in cases where they suspect fraud, they should notify Audit and Recovery of their suspicions.

The Provider Administrator, along with Child Care Monitors, will continue to assume responsibility for situations involving provider overpayments.