Child care providers are fed up with late payments and the broken child care IT system, so we came together to do something about it!

Deloitte is the company that was hired to implement the new system and were dragging their feet until their contract expires to avoid putting in resources to fix the system. Meanwhile, child care providers, working parents, and kids were suffering.

On Thursday, February 27, child care providers and kids descended on Deloitte in Chicago to call on the company to fix the broken Child Care Management System that processes parents’ CCAP eligibility and providers’ certificates.

Our voices were heard!

From ABC Channel 7, CBS Channel 2, to Chicago Tonight, and even the Chicago Tribune, we let the public know what was going on and shared our stories about the hardship providers are facing. The pressure we created on Deloitte and the State has resulted in a commitment to quickly fix this system and get providers the money they are owed.

Then on Tuesday, March 4, we held a telephone town hall meeting with representatives from the State of Illinois about the payment crisis and what the State is doing to fix the problem.

Here’s a summary of what was discussed:

Representatives from the State apologized for the many problems with the new Child Care Management System that have held up the processing of certificates, provider payments, and case approvals and redeterminations for parents. The State reported that many problems with the system were corrected and that the system was working properly as of March 1, 2014. The focus now is for DHS and CCR&Rs to process the back log of eligibility paperwork. 

In order to quickly address the backlog problem, the State is streamlining a few processes that will move paperwork through the system more quickly.

At the time of our telephone town hall meeting on March 4, the State reported that almost all February payment errors had been fixed and over 70,000 payments had been processed in the new Child Care Management System. 

The State has also set up a list of contacts that providers can call for help and updates:

• Go to the DHS website to see updates postings on the progress of the new system
• Call 217-524-9041 to get recorded updates on the system
• Call the Payment Inquiry Hotline at 800-804-3833 to check the status of payments
• Call the Hardship Hotline at 877-581-3691. The Hardship Hotline was set up for providers who have not received payments since Jan. 1, 2014. The State will look into individual cases and track them going forward. 

You can also download all applications and any other forms here. 

Many providers are continuing to have problems with the State’s IVR phone system not recognizing providers’ Social Security numbers. If this applies to you, please contact your CCR&R. 

All issues are not completely resolved yet, and we have heard from many of you who continue to experience hardship and frustration with the Child Care Management System. We will continue to keep pressure on the State and contractors like Deloitte who are responsible for the new Child Care Management System until all providers’ problems are resolved.

You can reach our union’s Member Resource Center at 866-933-SEIU (7348) if you have additional questions.