Child Care Vouchers

Families will no longer swipe a card to record attendance. The new model will also include an excessive absence policy. Warning letters will be issued to families and providers at 10, 20, 30 and 40 days with voucher termination at 45 days.

This new policy will increase children’s time in care which can lead to improved learning outcomes. Providers are encouraged to use the warning letters to talk with families and stress the importance of regular attendance.

Providers will no longer have to maintain a POS device or have a landline phone system, but will still be required to track and maintain attendance records via internal business methods (e.g., within their child care management system, via paper records, etc.) This change is designed to make attendance reporting faster and easier, reduce errors and avoid missed information.  After submitting bi-weekly absences, a provider will be paid full-time until a child reaches their excessive absence limit of 45 days per enrollment year. If a child is no longer enrolled or enrolled but never attended the program, it will be the provider’s responsibility to report this to the eligibility office within five (5) business days to avoid overpayment and repayment of funds for an ineligible child.

This new model is designed to modernize families’ service experience, reduce hassles related to daily and missed swipes and facilitate expanded access and choice of care as more providers may participate in voucher programs.

Providers will no longer need to manage daily or missed swipes which will make reporting easier, streamline administrative tasks and allow them to focus more on the children they are supporting. The new system will also create greater financial stability for child care voucher payments, making it easier and more beneficial for providers to participate.

The change will take effect in summer 2024.

Providers will be responsible for tracking attendance internally and recording child absences in the provider portal or in a state preferred CCMS. Absences will be tracked against an excessive absence policy of 45 days across all providers where a child is enrolled. Warning letters will be issued to families and all providers where a child is enrolled at 10, 20, 30 and 40 days with voucher termination at 45 days. The provider will continue to be paid up to this point as long as the child is attending and enrolled in the program.

The number of paid closures (holidays, vacations, sick days, in-service days, inclement weather days) that a provider can claim is changing. A provider will now have 11 paid closure days per calendar year. This policy change will take effect upon the implementation of the enrollment-based voucher reimbursement model this summer.

OECOSL will be replacing Conduent as the current payment vendor and host of the provider portal, and will switch to a new provider portal and new payment vendor, Rapid Financial Solutions (RFS). Families and providers will be required to register with the new system to access their portal. Once the model is in place, providers will be responsible for tracking attendance internally and recording child absences in the provider portal.

OECOSL will notify families of the change beginning in June. Communications will encourage families to work with providers to address any missed swipes or late attendance before the system change. Providers will be equipped with communications templates to share and reinforce this messaging with families.

When the new system launches, families will receive a letter in the postal mail with instructions for how to register and activate their new portal account. Their portal view will contain read-only information to help them monitor absence counts and keep track of their reauthorization dates. It is not mandatory for families to register their account, however, and their account status will have no bearing on provider responsibilities or payments.

Auditors for the state will monitor attendance data submitted through the new provider portal. Providers who do not submit any absences for all children in care for three (3) consecutive months will automatically be subject to audit. Providers are still required to keep their back-up attendance method (e.g., CCMS, electronic tracking, paper attendance) for licensing and auditing purposes. Providers should expect to maintain these records for at least three (3) years.

For the best experience, providers will need an up-to-date computer with an internet connection and access to frequently used browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge or Safari to record absences. Alternatively, a mobile device can be used if it is up to date and using the default browser for that phone (e.g., Safari for an iPhone).