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Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to the CMIPS II Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. We will periodically update these pages as project activities progress. Select a topic below to go to the FAQs on that subject.

County Welfare Director's Packet - Implementation Overview

In late May of 2008 a CMIPS II Implementation Overview Director’s Packet was mailed to each California County Welfare Director. The packet conveyed funding methodologies and allocations for county activities associated with CMIPS II implementation, and included limited information on county activities in system design, implementation and rollout, as well as roles and responsibilities. Additional information will be provided to counties as activities increase, but we know our county partners need to plan ahead. Therefore we are attempting to answer some preliminary questions here as they come up.

Questions have been categorized into four areas, but please look at them all, as there is some crossover in the groupings. If you have additional questions please email us.

For a printer friendly version of all FAQ sub-topics and Q&A's, please click here.

» Allocation and Funding

1. Q: The May 23, 2008, CMIPS II Director’s Packet included budget allocation amounts to my County for specific CMIPS II implementations activities. What is the County share of these costs?

A – The County share of the CMIPS II Design, Development and implementation (DD&I) activity funding allocations, described in the May 2008 CMIPS II Director’s Packet, is zero. This is a one time allocation to counties to assist with specific activity costs related to the implementation of CMIPS II. Counties may incur additional expenses during implementation, in excess of their allocation. For example, counties may be responsible for costs incurred for staff who participate in the CMIPS II Joint Application Requirements and Design sessions (JARs and JADs).

2. Q: At one of the CWDA meetings “enhanced funding” from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) was mentioned by CMIPS II Project staff. What is enhanced funding in this context, and how does if affect counties?

A – On March 28, 2008, CMS approved the funding identified in the CMIPS II Implementation Advanced Planning Document (IAPD). The CMIPS II Project has received “enhanced” federal financial participation (FFP) for activities directly related to CMIPS II design and development. Specifically, the CMS has agreed to pay 70% of the cost of the contract to develop and design CMIPS II. CMS will also pay 70% for system engineering staff that are part of the CMIPS II Project Office. For all other supporting staff and activities identified in the CMIPS II IAPD, CMS will pay the normal FFP rate of 50%. This does not directly affect the counties’ allocations, activities or processes.

3. Q: In determining county groupings for the County allocation, which “caseloads” are used?

A – Recipient caseload numbers and Provider numbers from March 2008 were used when considering the Project Management and Data Conversion county allocation groupings. IT, Training and Help Desk allocations were determined by the number of CMIPS county users in the County.

4. Q: Can funding be shifted between the identified CMIPS II stages (phases) or categories (functional areas) as the County needs or requires?

A – Yes, counties may use their allocated funding in a way that best allows them to accomplish the necessary activities required for transition to CMIPS II. As long as the funds are used for any of the described implementation activities, the limitations are a county’s total allocation within designated fiscal years.

5. Q: Does the State only control the allocation (total costs claim) or do you also control the number of FTEs and the service months.

A – The Office of Systems Integration (OSI), with advice and assistance from the California Welfare Directors Association, developed the method described in the CMIPS II Implementation Overview to estimate the resources each county will need to successfully implement the CMIPS II application. We expect that each county’s actual effort and activities will be different from the estimation model, and that those activities will vary from county to county; however, we believe the total funding is appropriate for the required work effort. You may use your allocation in whatever way works best for your county to accomplish the required activities.

6. The May 23, 2008, cover letter mentioned OSI will send out county budget allocations by fiscal year, based on your county's roll-out schedule. What is the roll-out schedule referred to here? Is this based on the State's plan or a county's submitted plan?

A – The State, with input and advice from all involved project stakeholders, must make two important decisions before each county's implementation schedule can be completed:

    • What counties will participate in the CMIPS II pilot, and
    • In which of the six rollout waves will each county implement CMIPS II

The "county rollout schedule" refers to each county's assignment, by the State, to either the pilot phase or one of the six rollout waves. We tend to use “county rollout schedule” and “county implementation schedule” interchangeably.

7. Q: Can counties use CMIPS II implementation allocations to purchase new hardware?

A – No, this does not fit into any of the four categories. The IT and Network Support implementation allocation is to accomplish activities specifically described in the Implementation Overview Director’s Packet. (See sections 5.3, 5.3.4, 5.4.3, and 5.4.3.1). These activities are related to project organization, planning, and staffing workgroups. After hardware specification requirements are released, counties will want to compare that with their current equipment. If new hardware is needed, counties will use their standard process for procurement. CMIPS II implementation activity funds should not be diverted to this use.

» Roles and Responsibilities

1. Q: When do I need to select a project manager?

A – Timing of the selection of a county’s project manager will depend on your place in the rollout schedule – to be determined. Initial project activities that will begin in July and August of 2008 may be accomplished by a CMIPS II Single Point of Contact (SPOC), in conjunction with your Adult Services management. Initial project management activities involve acquiring county contacts and program information and appropriate distribution of CMIPS II Project information coming into your county. (See the Director’s Packet overview document for descriptions of SPOCs.) As county activities increase during the pre-implementation phase you will be well served to assign project management activities as needed, including a designated CMIPS II Implementation Project Manager. It is possible that these and other county assignments will be delegated to different staff during the life of the implementation phases.

2. Q: What’s the difference between a “SPOC” and a “Project Manager”?

A – The CMIPS II Single Point of Contact (SPOC) is the person designated to receive and disseminate communications regarding CMIPS II to the appropriate parties within the County. The SPOC will coordinate or communicate needed responses to the State, or refer Project staff to the correct person for specific information. The CMIPS II Project Manager coordinates all activities and ensures all agency responsibilities are planned and executed for a timely implementation. The Project Manager will facilitate implementation activities within the County, including information briefings, workgroup participants and meetings, and county readiness activities, and has the authority to represent county decisions to the State.

3. Q: What areas of activities will the Project Manager oversee for CMIPS II?

A – In a nutshell, there are five areas of CMIPS II activities or county functional workgroup areas that are defined to help the counties prepare for CMIPS II implementation (these are defined on Page 9 of 14 in the Director’s Packet). They are as follows:

    a) Project Management, Communications and Public Outreach
    b) Data Readiness and Conversion
    c) IT Support Process/Technical/Network
    d) Business Process Change Management
    e) Staff Training

» Implementation and Rollout

1. Q: When will the statewide rollout schedule for CMIPS II be released?

A – It is anticipated that the approved schedule will be ready for release by the fall of 2008, after it is reviewed by the counties and approved by CDSS. The first draft is being presented to various CWDA committees beginning in June, 2008. After taking initial input and pilot counties into consideration, later drafts will be presented to counties shortly thereafter.

2. Q: What input will counties have regarding the rollout schedule?

A – The Project Office is preparing a rollout schedule for the non-pilot counties that will assign each county to one of six rollout waves. This initial rollout schedule will be modified further as the pilot counties are selected and will be released to the counties in the weeks following Pilot County selection. After the rollout schedule draft is released to counties, they will be able to advise the Project of any concerns regarding their placement on the schedule. The schedule will be finalized following consideration of county input.

3. Q: How will pilot counties be chosen for CMIPS II?

A – Counties within 75-mile proximity to the Project headquarters (Sacramento) were asked by the Project Office to express interest and receive approval from their Director to be a pilot county. From the volunteer list, the State will select two or three counties, based on criteria that will give us some variety in program administration. For example, it would be good to include a county with contract mode.

4. Q: When selecting pilot counties, why consider only those within 75 miles?

A – The closeness of the counties to Project headquarters will enable us to provide additional on-site support from State and Vendor staff during the important pilot stage activities. However, if necessary for an effective project pilot phase, the State may seek the inclusion of some counties beyond the edges of the 75 mile target limit.

5. Q: When will pilot counties be chosen?

A – Pilot counties will be selected by the fall of 2008, in keeping with the overall project timeline of pilot county rollout in January 2010.

6. Q: Can counties share or group their resources with other counties to accomplish CMIPS II activities?

A – Depending on the activity or resource, there will be many ways that counties can maximize and share their resources to accomplish such things as staff training, implementation guides, communications and public outreach to consumers, lessons learned and best practices, etc.

7. Q: What is the project timeline?

A – Briefly, the project timeline will identify the flow of the project activities from beginning to end. From project initiation in July 2008, it will be approximately 18 months to pilot county implementation and another 18 months from pilot implementation to full statewide implementation in all counties. More information is in the Director’s Packet, and as the project progresses counties and CWDA will be kept informed.

8. Q: When will counties receive additional information and details regarding the various stages/activities defined in the Director’s packet and the associated roles and responsibilities?

A – Some implementation activities, such as those described in Section 3 of the Director's Packet - Initiation Stage, will be the same for all counties and will begin immediately following EDS' start on July 1, 2008. During the initiation stage county activities for the other phases will be further defined.

Following the release of the Rollout Schedule, counties will be able to identify when activities for each phase will begin as follows:

    • Engagement and Implementation activities will commence seven months before each county's "Go Live" date on the Rollout Schedule.
    • Pre-Engagement Stage activities will begin 13 months prior to the start of Engagement and Implementation activities.
    • Post Implementation Stage activities will begin immediately following "Go Live" and will continue for three months.

As the project proceeds, additional county-specific information will be provided. Counties will be provided many opportunities to ask questions, get clarification, and participate in the planning of these activities. Communication between the counties and the Implementation Team is critical to the success of CMIPS II, and the Implementation Team will work closely with counties throughout the project.

9. Is the timeline decided by counties or the State? What if our progress falls behind the planned rollout schedule timeline?

A – The draft rollout schedule is being developed by the State and will be reviewed and discussed with the counties before it is finalized. County activities during some of the phases are flexible, but the timing of tasks during the engagement and implementation stage is critical due to other project dependencies.

We’re confident that the CMIPS II implementation model will support timely completion of county implementation tasks provided that both the State and County properly resource the effort and carefully monitor the work plan. The State will make every effort to complete each wave on time because a schedule delay in any of the six waves will create "downstream" delays in the subsequent rollout group(s).

» Design

1. Q: Will counties be able to participate in the design of CMIPS II?

A – Design and testing for CMIPS II will be addressed in the upcoming Joint Application Requirements and Design sessions (JARs and JADs) that counties will be invited to in the coming months, as early as summer, 2008.

2. Q: Will the State look at current county systems for design ideas and compatibility issues?

A – The State is interested in knowing about any automated tools currently being used in counties. If we understand what these tools do, and how to access the data, we can better prepare for transition and data migration. Please bring these to our attention during the JARs and JADs, or when responding to CMIPS II surveys.

There may be considerable variation in function and complexity of some of the tools used in counties. If your process needs special attention, please communicate your concern to CDSS. On a case by case basis the State and the County will settle on the best course of action.

3. Q: Can counties opt out of any portion of the CMIPS II solution, for example centralized timesheets?

A – No, counties cannot opt out of any part of CMIPS II. However, counties will have many opportunities to provide advice on how CMIPS II will be implemented within their county. The core design, mandated requirements, and function of CMIPS II are state obligations and thus a statewide solution will be designed. Centralized timesheets are part of the required solution, but counties will assist the State and Vendor with how best to implement this solution within their program.