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Child Care Assistance Program Policy Manual Issued 08/2021 Authorizing child care 9.1 number of authorized hours” below for information about communicating authorized hours when there are shared custody schedules. Two-parent families In a two-parent family where both parents are in an authorized activity and are able to care for the child, care can only be authorized during time periods when both parents are participating in authorized activities, including travel time and breaks/meals. During times when only one parent is participating in authorized activities, care is not needed because the other parent is available to care for the child. Determine the number of hours to cover the schedule of care Care must be authorized in full hour increments. If the amount of care needed is in increments of less than a full hour, round up to the full hour to obtain a daily total of hours to be authorized. • Example: if care is needed for 5.5 hours per day, 5 days per week, the number of hours authorized per day should be rounded up to 6 hours. - 6 hours per day times 5 days per week is 30 hours of care per week. 60 hours of care biweekly should be authorized. Sessions of child care When authorizing care for school age children or preschool children who attend preschool or Head Start programs in addition to child care, if the amount of care needed is in increments of less than a full hour, round up the amount of care to the full hour for each separate session and add together to obtain a daily total of hours to be authorized. • Example: Child needs the following care five days per week. AM PM Care Authorized 1.5 hours=2 hours 1.5 hours=2 hours 4 hours=40 hours biweekly rather than 30 hours biweekly 15 minutes=1 hour 1.5 hours=2 hours 3 hours=30 hours biweekly rather than 20 hours biweekly Authorizing retroactive care Care may be authorized and paid retroactively. Retroactive authorization at application If a provider provided care for a time period without receiving a Service Authorization and a billing form, care for the initial authorization at or after application can be authorized retroactively to the latest of: • The date care started • The family’s eligibility begin date. See Chapter 4.18 (Date of Eligibility). • The date the family meets authorization requirements Retroactive authorization and payment cannot go back further than six months prior to the date Service Authorizations and billing forms are issued.