CCAP will only allow child care assistance for care authorized in the child’s home if the child’s parent has an authorized activity outside of the home (or in a two-parent household, one parent has been determined unable to care) and if one or more of the following circumstances are met:

· The parent’s authorized activity is during times when out of-home care is not available or when out-of-home care would result in disruption of the child’s nighttime sleep schedule. If child care is needed during any period when out-of-home care is not available, in-home care can be approved for the entire time care is needed

OR

· The family lives in an area where out-of-home care is not available

OR

· A child has a verified illness or disability that would place the child or other children in an out-of-home provider or center at risk or create a hardship for the child and the family to take the child out of the home to a child care home or center.

In-home child care requests

When requesting in-home child care, the parent must complete the Parent Request for In-Home Child Care (DHS-6475) (PDF) and submit the form with the appropriate documentation to their worker.

Out-of-home care not available

If the request is based on out-of-home care not being available:

· The parent must contact Child Care Aware to obtain either a listing of licensed programs in their area or a written statement if there are no licensed programs available to meet the family’s needs.

· The parent must contact all providers on the listing (if applicable) and document the reason(s) why those programs do not work for them.

· The parent must provide a reason(s) why care cannot be provided in the legal nonlicensed (LNL) provider’s home and why care must be provided in the child’s home.

Child illness or disability

If the request is based on the child’s illness or disability:

· A statement from a doctor or qualified professional must be submitted, verifying and describing the child’s condition and identifying that care needs to be provided in the child’s home.

· The parent may also submit an explanation about why in-home care is requested (although not required). This explanation may describe how the child is at-risk to self or others or how the illness or disability creates hardship for the family and/or child.

In-home child care approvals

The CCAP agency submits completed requests, including all required documentation, to DHS for consideration. The county/tribe will receive a letter indicating whether the request was approved or denied. Only cases approved by DHS for in-home care can be authorized. When in-home care is approved, care can be authorized for in-home child care for all children in the child care assistance household as requested by the parent.

In-home care can be authorized retroactive to the effective date of approval on the official letter from DHS, contingent on the parent(s) being in an authorized activity and the provider being approved as a CCAP provider. The in-home care approval end date will coincide with the family’s redetermination due date. For approved cases, follow the MEC2 User Guide instructions for entering the information on the “Child’s Provider” window.

When the in-home care approval ends at the family’s redetermination, if in-home care is still needed the parent must complete a new in-home care request and submit new documentation. The service authorization will end at redetermination until the request is reapproved by DHS or the family chooses an out of home provider. See Chapter 10.6.3 (Redetermination processing standards).

See Chapter 9.6 (Payment to Families) for further information on when a provider cares for children in the children’s own home.

Employing in-home child care providers

To ensure that all persons employed as in-home child care providers receive the wages they are legally entitled to, the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division has information for parents or guardians receiving assistance under the Child Care Assistance Program, Foster Care Assistance, Child Welfare, or any other state funded program alerting them to their legal obligations to pay minimum wage and overtime to such care providers. Fact Sheets on minimum wage and overtime provisions of the FLSA are available from the United States Department of Labor. Provide these guides to all people who employ in-home providers.

Legal authority

Minnesota Statutes 119B.011, Subd. 19
Minnesota Statutes 119B.09, Subd. 5, 10 and 13
Minnesota Statutes 119B.125
Minnesota Rules 3400.0035, Subp. 7-9