MAPCY Due Dates and Effective Dates
As a result of feedback from agencies and the SSIS Help Desk, DHS is implementing a new way
of calculating MAPCY due dates and effective dates. Please review this policy clarification,
which outlines the changes that will become effective with the release of SSIS 16.2. For
questions regarding MAPCY policy, please contact Jody McElroy, agency policy specialist at
DHS Child Safety and Permanency Division, at: jody.mcelroy@state.mn.us
MAPCY due dates
MAPCY assessments are due in a pattern:
• The initial MAPCY assessment is due within 30 days of a child’s out-of-home
placement
• The second MAPCY (a reassessment) is due six months later
• The third and all subsequent MAPCY reassessments are due annually thereafter.
Due dates for MAPCY assessments are currently based on:
• The placement date for the initial MAPCY, or
• The approval date of the previous MAPCY for reassessments.
For example, an initial MAPCY is approved on June 23. The next reassessment has a due date
exactly six months later, on December 23.
Because most MAPCY due dates are not on the first day of the month, the current due date
calculations have caused confusion as to when the next MAPCY assessment’s effective date
should be – the same as the due date, the beginning of the previous month, the beginning of the
subsequent month, or the beginning of the month after approval?
Changes coming with SSIS 16.2
Effective with the SSIS 16.2 release, SSIS will calculate due dates for MAPCY assessments
differently. While due dates for the initial MAPCY will continue to be based on the placement
date, the due date for the next MAPCY reassessment will be calculated based on the effective
date of the previous MAPCY. Additionally, instead of being exact lengths of time, due dates for
all reassessments will be set to the beginning of a month. If the due date already lands on the first
of a month, it will not be changed. Otherwise, it will be the first of the following month.
For example, Samantha was placed on January 20. The initial MAPCY has an effective date of
January 20, the first date of her placement. Because this is not on the first of a month, the next
MAPCY reassessment due date will be extended slightly beyond six months later, for a due date
of August 1.
DHS recommends that each agency monitor and ensure that due dates are met prospectively
rather than trying to play catch-up afterwards. This involves establishing a process and assigning
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responsibility to track when MAPCY assessments are due, using the “Assessments Due –
MAPCY or DOC”, which is located in Tools > General Reports > Placement.
MAPCY effective dates
For initial MAPCYs, best practice would be to set the effective date to the beginning of the
placement or, for Extended Foster Care–Supervised Independent Living (EFC-SIL), to the
beginning of the EFC-SIL. SSIS may change the effective date to the approval date under some
circumstances. Examples of this are:
•
•
Susie is placed with the Smiths on April 10. Set the effective date for the initial MAPCY
to April 10.
Katie, now 18, is preparing to leave her foster home for schooling, and the agency agrees
she is ready for EFC-SIL. Her EFC-SIL will begin on August 25 when she moves to the
school dorm. Set the effective date for the initial MAPCY to August 25.
For foster care reassessments, the effective date should be set to the due date, unless
circumstances have changed so that an earlier effective date is appropriate. For example, Susie’s
reassessment is due on November 1 (slightly more than six month beyond April 10, so her
MAPCY reassessment's effective date would be set to November 1. If Susie ended up needing a
reassessment just five weeks into placement due to her needs being much greater than previously
understood and her foster parents being engaged in very intensive parenting, the MAPCY
reassessment could be sent for approval on May 17 with an effective date of June 1.
For other MAPCY purposes, the effective date should be set to the beginning of the month after
the MAPCY is sent for approval. For example, legacy foster child Joey has been living with
Aunt Sarah, to whom the court will likely transfer custody in the coming months. Done for the
purpose of establishing the initial permanency benefit, the MAPCY is sent for approval on
December 13 with an effective date of January 1.
MAPCY reductions
When a MAPCY reassessment indicates that a lower level is appropriate, best practice is for the
MAPCY to be done timely and make the lower payments timely. When the MAPCY
reassessment is done late, best practice is not to bill foster parent(s) for overpayments made
because the agency was late with a reassessment, unless the foster parent(s) was responsible for
the late assessment.
Service arrangements and vouchers
When creating service arrangements for family foster care, best practice is to set the "End Date"
to the day before the next MAPCY is due. Send out vouchers to foster parents if that is part of
your payment process. For example, the MAPCY is due on June 1, so set the "End Date" to May
31. If sending out vouchers to foster parents, only vouchers through May will be created.
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