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CDC Billing FAQs 

CDC Billing FAQs 

CDC Billing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Updated 10/26/2026

 

  • I have a school or preschool-age child enrolled in my care who attends when school or preschool is not in session (e.g., holidays, breaks, professional development days, or weather-related closures). May I bill for a full day when this happens?

    Yes. Providers may bill for the hours the child is in care on days when school or preschool is closed, provided the parent selects “Yes” on the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Services Agreement

     

  • Licensed Providers: I use electronic attendance records and do not require parents to check their children in and out or sign the attendance record daily. Instead, I have parents sign at the end of the week. Is this acceptable?

    This is not acceptable.  Parents are required to check their children in and out and sign or initial the attendance record each day.

     

  • Parents share custody of a child on an alternating-week schedule, and the child is enrolled with the same provider during both parents’ custody weeks. How should I bill?

    If parents share custody of a child, the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Services Agreement must clearly document the custody arrangement and explain how the schedule affects the child’s need for care. For example, if each parent has the child every other week and uses a different child care provider during their custody week, the agreement must document the arrangement and list both providers.

    Providers should bill only for the days and hours included in the child’s enrolled schedule for the weeks the child is in their care. If a parent needs care during a week that is not included in the provider’s scheduled custody time, the parent is responsible for paying the provider directly for that week. Providers should explain this arrangement to parents during enrollment, so expectations are clear.

    If the child attends the same provider during both parents’ custody weeks, the provider should bill each week using the case number associated with the parent responsible for that week. The case number can be found on form MDHHS-198.

  • Licensed Providers: Are we required to bill for absence hours when a child is absent during their enrolled schedule, or can we leave that day blank?

    Providers are required to bill for absence hours when a child is absent during their enrolled schedule.

     

  • Licensed Providers:  A child’s CDC Scholarship Enrollment Services Agreement indicates that the child is scheduled to attend Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The child is picked up at 2 p.m. on Wednesday. How should I bill for the remaining three hours?

    Providers may bill for a full day of care when a child is picked up early. Absence hours begin on the first day the child is not in care during a time they are normally scheduled to attend, as documented in the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Services Agreement. If the child is absent for a full day, providers must use absence hours.

     

  • How does a provider know if a parent has already used their absent hours with a previous provider when enrolling in their program? 

    The provider can call CDC 866-990-3227 during hours of 8:30am-12pm and 1pm - 4:30pm Monday – Friday excluding state holidays and the Technician will be able to share the balance with the provider.

     

  • In the event of split custody, is there a possibility that both parents could be approved for CDC scholarship? 

    Yes, both parents could be approved for the CDC Scholarship. CDC Scholarship is approved based on income and need reasons and if both parents are eligible, they will each have their own case number for billing purposes. See FAQ for how to bill when parents have split custody or refer to the  CDC Handbook main page.

     

  • When a parent is approved for CDC scholarship, are there restrictions on how they use those hours?  Example, if a parent works 3rd shift, can they use childcare to sleep a few hours?  If the parent has the day off, would they still send their child to care to avoid the provider billing absent hours?

    There are no restrictions on how they use the hours authorized for CDC. It is the responsibility of the parent to communicate their schedule to the provider to ensure care hours are billed appropriately.

     

  • Licensed Providers: It is common for someone other than the parent to pick up or drop off the children in our program. Who is eligible to sign/initial a child in/out? Should we print out the attendance sheets from our childcare management system and have the parent initial or sign off when this occurs? 

    The parents or authorized individual must sign or initial daily to show they agree with the information on the time and attendance records. Keeping in mind that a child shall only be released to individuals authorized by the child’s parent or guardian.

     

  • I have a family who is experiencing transportation difficulties and their child won’t be in attendance until this is resolved. Would this be an allowable extended absence?  

    This is not an allowable extension reason.  If the change is expected to last more than two weeks the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Service Agreement should be updated to align with the anticipated schedule change. 

     

  • Licensed Providers: I am creating a process for my families to read and sign regarding the new absence hour billing process and I wanted to be sure that I am seeing this correctly, on days that a child care center is closed (staff training, bad weather, holidays, etc.) children should be billed as absent. Is this correct? 

    Yes, this is correct. Absences may occur when the child care provider is open for business, as well as when the facility is temporarily closed (example: closure due to bad weather, staff training, or a holiday break) Providers should inform families that they will be billing absent hours when the program is closed. This allows families with multiple providers to plan for any potential out-of-pocket expenses if the time exceeds their authorized hours. This information, and more can be found in the Scholarship Handbook for Licensed Providers.

     

  •  I have a child enrolled whose parent was injured and not working. The parent does not need care for the child until they return to work. Are we allowed to continue billing the CDC Scholarship for a child’s usual schedule while they are temporarily absent, or do we need to stop billing until they return?  

    No, billing must stop until the child returns to the program.  If the change is expected to last more than two weeks a new CDC Scholarship Enrollment Service Agreement is expected to be filled out.  In this case the schedule has zero care hours until the parent returns to work.  Billing according for enrollment indicates there are zero anticipated care hours therefore the provider should not bill again until the child returns.  Maximum days of absence would be 10 days or until the parent notifies the program the child will not be coming until further notice.

     

  • Licensed Providers: If a school age or preschool age child's scheduled/enrollment service agreement is for before and after school, and the child is absent for one of the sessions (either before or after school), does the absent session need to be billed for absent hours?

    No, bill regular care hours for the two sessions that the child is enrolled for as long as the child attends one of the sessions that day .  If the child is absent the entire day, missing both sessions, then absence hours should be used.

     

  • If a parent uses a LEP when their child is sick and cannot attend regular care, who bills?  Does the Licensed provider bill an absent day based on enrollment or does the LEP bill based on attendance? 

    The LEP who provided the care should bill regular care hours. The licensed provider would need to collect tuition from the parent/family as CDC can’t pay two providers for the same time period of care. 

     

  • How should the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Service Agreement, be completed for preschool or school age children that have before and after school care?

    The parent should enter the before school ‘Begin Time’ when the child is dropped off.  Then below it in ‘End Time’ row the parent should put the time that the child gets on the bus or is dropped off at school.   Then in the next column the ‘Begin Time’ is when the child arrives at the program after school and the ‘End Time’ below it would be the time the parent or authorized individual picks the child up.  This would be completed for a two-week period showing the child’s schedule each day. 

     

  • If a child leaves early for a therapy appointment, is this considered absence hours?

    No, children that leave early based on scheduled care time are billed for regular care hours.  However, if the child leaves ‘early’ for appointments regularly the CDC Scholarship Enrollment Services Agreement should be updated to reflect the child’s accurate enrollment schedule. 

    Example:

    Screenshot of a completed enrollment agreement

  • Can a parent or authorized person picking the child up electronically sign their children in and out each day using our electronic attendance system. Is this acceptable?

    Yes. If a program is utilizing an electronic attendance system, an electronic signature is acceptable.  The signature must identify the person dropping off or picking the child up.

     

  • We run a full-time program, but we have a family with special circumstances who would like to enroll part time. Is there a work around or exception that can be made so that we can bill missed days as absences?

    No.  Enrollment billing is based on the days and times when the parent requires care for their child and cannot be based on program requirements.  

     

    The billing rule is a provider cannot charge a CDC Scholarship parent more than what they charge private pay families. The parent is responsible to pay the provider the difference by subtracting the total amount paid by the CDC Scholarship from the center tuition cost charged to private pay families. In cases where a part-time enrollment for CDC Scholarship covers the full tuition rate charged by the provider the provider must not charge the parent any additional tuition.

  • If a child changes providers, do the CDC child care fees billed reset? Is billing tied to the family account?

    Child care fees are tied to the child/case, not the provider, and can only be paid out once per child, per fiscal year (10/1-9/30). If a child changes providers during the fiscal year, it does not reset the billable child care fees. If the fees were paid to the previous provider, the new provider will not be paid for any fees billed for the child for the current fiscal year. In this instance, any fees the provider/program charges would need to be paid by the family.

    In addition, child care fees cannot be back billed for a child that has left the program.

     

  • Is it required to write the billing confirmation number on the timesheet after submitting hours or is it enough to have the digital copies located in I-billing?

    The CDC Scholarship for Licensed Providers, Time and Attendance Records section identifies the requirements for attendance records.

     

    The time and attendance records must include the following items:

     • Child(ren)‛s full name

     • Day and date care was provided for the child(ren) or billed

    • Attendance records must show actual in and out times for each child

    • The parent must sign or initial daily to show they agree with the information on the time and attendance records

    • The provider must ensure their name is on the time and attendance records

     

    No. It's not required. The spot for the billing confirmation number on the Time & Attendance records form is there to assist with record keeping.