18 Miss. Code. R. 6-1-E-V
The following process will be used to determine initial eligibility:
In order to meet this initial determination timeline, the COR Worker will have five (5) days to send the Eligibility Unit a copy of the court order that includes "reasonable efforts" language; child's birth certificate (or application); child's Social Security card (or application), proof of income; and resources. The Eligibility Unit then will have five (5) days from receipt of required documents are received to approve a placement for a child as their work load permits.
If documentation is missing, the Eligibility Unit will notify the Worker via the Eligibility tab/screen in MACWIS. The Worker will have 5 days to return the needed documents. This documentation notification will be sent to the Worker and the Area Social Work Supervisor (ASWS) by e-mail.
The Eligibility Unit will determine eligibility for Title IV-E, CWS and Medicaid.
The Worker will enter custody and placement information in MACWIS within three days of the date of custody. When Title IV-E eligibility information and documentation are received, it should be entered into MACWIS by the COR Worker on the appropriate eligibility screens. The eligibility process should be completed in MACWIS within 10 days from the date of custody.
All court orders, verification of birth, Social Security card, verification of income and resources must be maintained in the case file. MACWIS will determine the child's eligibility for Title IV-E, CWS, and Medicaid based on the information entered by the Worker.
In the event of the placement change, the COR Worker will have five (5) days from the date of the change to enter a placement change. The Eligibility Unit will have five (5) days to approve the placement change.
Re-determinations on children in custody are completed annually and notices of these redeterminations are generated by MACWIS as follows:
* First notice will be sent to the COR Worker as a tickler sixty (60) days prior to the anniversary month of the effective date of the previous eligibility determination.
* Following the Permanency Hearing, the COR Worker must verify that the court order contains the appropriate language.
* This must be documented in MACWIS by selecting "Court" then click the "Legal History" icon.
* Go to "Detail" Tab and click "add new button".
* Enter the new information, making sure to check the "yes" button for the "reasonable efforts" made to finalize a permanent plan question on "Edit Permanency Hearing Record".
* Thirty (30) days from the generation of the first tickler, the COR Worker will receive an alert and the ASWS will receive a tickler.
* Forty-four (44) days from the generation of the first tickler, the ASWS will receive an alert and the Regional Director (RD) will receive a tickler.
Prior to time for re-determination, the Worker will receive a tickler as a reminder to review the child's case and complete the redetermination process.
The re-determination process for obtaining Permanency Orders and Medicaid continue. However, as of April 1, 2010, it is no longer necessary to re-determine IV-E eligibility based on income, resources, or deprivation.
In the event of a change in custody and/or placement, the COR Worker will have five (5) days to enter the information in MACWIS. The Eligibility Worker will have 5 days to approve placement changes.
The COR Worker shall enter changes as soon as they occur. MACWIS will automatically assess the changes and adjust the eligibility status and make the appropriate board or stop IV-E payments. (i.e. when a child reaches eighteen (18) years old.)
It is imperative for the COR Worker to enter the custody removal and placement change dates as soon as they occur to avoid over and under payments to the resource placements.
The Eligibility Unit, as well as other units, will identify over- and under-payments by viewing the board payment register screen in MACWIS.
If the Resource Parent receives an overpayment, the Resource Parent will send the overpayment to Budgets & Accounting at the State Office.
To reduce erroneous over/under board payments, a daily confirmation tickler process was added to MACWIS for the purpose of notifying the FPS worker that a placement board payment for a child must be confirmed (the process will escalate the tickler up to the ASWS on the 1 st day of the month and to the RD on the 4 th day of the month if the tickler is not worked). These placement board payments must be confirmed by the 7 th of each month or the prior business day if the 7 th occurs on the weekend or a holiday.
All recipients of the Adoption Subsidy payments or Foster Care Board payments will receive the payments via the Mississippi Debit MasterCard.
In order to issue a debit card, the payee must have an e-payment account established through the Master Client Tracking System (MCTS). The MCTS will not accept payees who do not have a validated Social Security Number and date of birth. MACWIS will interface with the Social Security Administration for the purpose of validating the Social Security Number of all payees. If the Social Security Number is not validated by Social Security Administration, a tickler will be generated to the Worker currently assigned to the case.
Adoption subsidy and foster care board payments are controlled by the data entered into MACWIS. It is the responsibility of the Worker to ensure that the correct data is gathered and input into the MACWIS in a timely manner.
After the eligibility has been established and payment authorized, the process is as follows:
* It is the responsibility of the Worker to complete the eligibility process within the timelines set forth in policy. The Resource Parents must be advised of the procedures for payment and method of payment delivery.
* Payments will be issued on the fifteenth (15 th) of the following month.
18 Miss. Code. R. 6-1-E-V