These rules guide lead agencies and providers as they determine a person’s staffing level for community residential services provided in a licensed corporate foster care setting or community residential setting (CRS). Use these rules as annual renewals and service changes occur. Do not apply these rules retroactively.

1. Primary contact

Each lead agency’s Disability Waiver Rate System (DWRS) rates mentor is the primary contact for residential staffing discussions. The rates mentor works with providers and rates mentors from other lead agencies to ensure appropriate staffing ratios are in place.

2. Service planning discussion

The provider determines the level of staffing it provides. The lead agency chooses to authorize or not to authorize the level of service for each person.

3. Licensed capacity

Shared staffing is based on licensed capacity.

Exception

If the provider and lead agency agree a temporary reduction from the licensed capacity is necessary to benefit the person/people living in a home, then licensed capacity may be based on the number of residents for an agreed-upon amount of time.

This exception:

· Is not intended to address vacancy

· Must be planned.

In this arrangement:

· The lead agency and provider must agree on an appropriate duration of this exception

· The rates mentor from the affected lead agency determines the need and duration of the temporary reduction of licensed capacity.

4. Service changes

All necessary Rate Management System (RMS) and service authorization staffing changes will begin the later of the following dates:

· The date of the change in the person’s staffing support

· The date of the notification of change with complete information to the lead agency.

Providers must report increases and decreases in staffing support to the lead agency within 30 days of the change.

Examples of changes include:

· Employment changes

· Individual injury or illness

· School changes.

5. Daytime staffing hours

During weekday working hours, shared staffing is divided by the number of people who use the staff support.

Use Residential Daytime Staffing Hours Worksheets (.XLS) to calculate this information. These worksheets allow you to include both planned and unplanned staffing hours in a person’s RMS staffing calculation. There are two worksheets:

· Use the “weekday daytime hours for individuals regularly home during the day” worksheet in situations where multiple people, but not all, are regularly home during the weekday

· Only use the “daytime hours for individuals not regularly home during the day” worksheet when additional staff is called in to care for the person in the event that the person is unexpectedly home on a weekday; do not use this worksheet when direct care or administrative staff is already present and no additional staff is brought in.

6. Individual staffing hours

When authorizing individual staffing to meet a person’s needs or to provide individual staffing for community inclusion, do not reduce shared staffing hours.