Child Care
Food Program Family Child Care Overview
Family Central, Inc.
1415 West Cypress Creek Rd # 103
Ft Lauderdale, Fl. 33309
Phone: 954-720-1000
Fax: 954-724-4067
INTRODUCTION
We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to the Family Central, Inc. (FCI) Family Child Care Food Program.
Incorporated in 1973, FCI has operated a family child care program since 1980. FCI is a sponsor of the Child Care Food Program in southeast Florida. Training and technical assistance are available to providers as well.
The United States Department of Agriculture provides funding to help children in child care centers and family child care homes receive nutritious meals and snacks. In Florida, the Food Program is administered by the Department of Health. In Southeast Florida, these benefits are made available through FCI, a sponsoring agency.
Feel free to contact the following persons with any questions, comments or concerns:
Ø Darlene Herrera, Counselor for Family Child Care Homes, 954-724-3969
Ø Sheron Givings, Quality Assurance Coordinator, 954-724-3962
Ø Michelle Rosegreen, Chief Program Officer - Broward, 954-724-4060
SUMMARY OF THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
1. Providers participating in the Child Care Food Program (CCFP) must offer meals to all children enrolled in their family child care homes at no cost to the parent. This includes infants.
2. Providers must offer to supply infants one milk based and one soy based formula from the Approved Formula List. (Licensing exception for Palm Beach providers). Providers are also obligated to supply cereal and baby food unless the parent would prefer to supply their own formula or cereal or baby food. Parents of infants are required to complete an Infant Feeding Form when the child is enrolled. A copy of this form must be kept on file at the provider’s home and a copy must be submitted to Family Central.
3. Providers may claim up to two (2) meals and one (1) snack or two (2) snacks and one (1) meal per child each day. All meals and snacks claimed for reimbursement must be pre-approved by Family Central, Inc. (FCI). Donated foods are not reimbursable.
4. Menus must be prepared at least four (4) weeks in advance and posted where parents can see.
5. The number of children served at any one meal or snack may not exceed current licensing capacity and ratios. A child is considered to be school age if he/she is at least 5 years old by September 1st and enrolled in kindergarten. School children cannot be reimbursed for lunches on school days unless a note documenting the reason for feeding that child lunch is submitted to Family Central. School children also cannot be reimbursed for lunch on early release days.
6. Menu requirements must be met for every meal and snack served. Every component must be served within the scheduled meal time in order to be reimbursed for that meal. All children, except infants, must be fed at the scheduled meal or snack time.
7. Attendance at one (1) Food and Nutrition workshop each year is required.
8. Family child care homes will receive at least three (3) on-site reviews each contract year for compliance with Food Program guidelines. Providers must allow Family Central Nutritional Services Monitors access to their homes for announced and unannounced visits and follow-up visits. The USDA, DOH and other entities, as noted in the Sponsor-Provider Agreement, may also conduct unannounced reviews.
9. Menus and meal counts must be recorded by 11:59 pm each day in which they were served. Meals not recorded by that time are subject to meal disallowances or additional corrective action. Claims must be submitted online via the web on the first of each month. If, due to technical computer issues, providers are unable to record or submit a claim, the Family Central hotline must be called immediately to report the problem.
10. Providers will be issued a "1099" form for tax purposes every year.
11. All enrolled children, through the age of twelve (12), automatically qualify for reimbursement. Your own children may qualify for this program if your home qualifies for Tier I reimbursement rates and your family meets certain income guidelines as documented on a Provider Income Statement. Reimbursement for your own children must be pre-approved by Family Central and renewed annually. You may also be reimbursed for certain special needs children up to the age of eighteen (18) and children of migrant workers up to the age of 15 with prior approval from Family Central.
12. Enrollment forms for newly enrolled children, Infant Feeding Forms for newly enrolled infants and new child care licenses must be faxed to Family Central within 3 days and the original submitted by the end of the enrollment month. Enrollment forms must be completed with birth dates, provider numbers, first day child is in care, special information, days normally in care, hours normally in care, meals normally received in care, and must contain provider and parent signatures and signature dates. If a child is not listed on the Claim Information Form, a new enrollment form must be submitted for that child upon his/her return to the program. All documents, including enrollment forms and Infant Feeding Forms must be signed by the provider and/or parent before returning them to Family Central.
13. Thermometers are required to be maintained in the refrigerator and freezer. The refrigerator must be 41 degrees, and the freezer must be 0 or below.
14. Food must be stored at least 6 inches off the floor and cleaning supplies must be stored separately from food.
15. The Florida Department of Health Providers requires sponsors to terminate providers who do not submit claims for three (3) consecutive months. Providers may be reinstated with approval from FCI and may require additional training.
16. All documents including infant feeding forms and enrollment forms must be signed by the provider and/or the parent as applicable before returning to Family Central
17. Providers failing a five day test may receive additional on-site reviews and are subject to household contacts.
18. FCI will not reimburse providers for the following holidays:
New Year’s Day Labor Day Memorial Day
Thanksgiving Day Independence Day Christmas Day
19. Providers must call the Family Central food program hotline at least one hour before the scheduled meal time if they will not be at home or have no eligible children present during the scheduled meal time. If the provider is not home or no children are present during a scheduled meal time and Family Central has not been notified, a corrective action plan will be written and reimbursement for the meal will be disallowed.
20. When a school age child attends a year round or private school, you must provide FCI with their school calendar in order to be reimbursed properly.
Creditable and Non-Creditable Foods
Below is a partial list of common foods that are creditable towards the listed component and those foods that are not creditable towards the listed component on the Child Care Food Program. A more comprehensive list is included in the book "A Guide to Crediting Foods."
CREDITABLE FOODS NON-CREDITABLE FOODS
MEATS
Cheese Powdered Cheese
Eggs Bacon
Fish Cream Cheese
Fish Sticks (with CN Label) Canned Beef Stew
Poultry Frozen Pot Pies
Beef Canned Ravioli
Chicken Nuggets (with CN label) Canned Spaghetti
Yogurt (Less than 23 grams of sugar per 6 oz) . Hot Dogs
MILK
Children one year old: Ice Cream
Unflavored whole milk Almond Milk
Cream Cheese
Children 2 through 5 years old: Pudding
Unflavored low-fat (1 percent) Yogurt
Unflavored fat-free (skim)
Children 6 years and older:
Unflavored low-fat (1 percent)
Unflavored fat-free (skim)
Flavored fat-free (skim) milk
Flavored soy milk (specific brands) (with a parent or Doctor’s note)
For all children:
Unflavored soy milk (specific brands) (with a parent or Doctor’s note)
Lactose free milk (any brand)
FRUITS
100% Fruit Juice Kool-Aid
Canned Fruit Cranberry Juice
Fresh Fruit Fruit Punch
Dried Fruit Tang
Juicy Juice Lemonade
Frozen Fruit Fruit Roll-Ups
Gatorade
Please note that juice may not be served more than once per day.
Juice may not be served when milk is the only other component.
CREDITABLE FOODS NON-CREDITABLE FOODS
VEGETABLES
Fresh Vegetables Canned Soup
Canned Vegetables Tomato Sauces
Frozen Vegetables Rice
Beans
Potatoes
BREAD
Fresh Bread Popcorn
Rolls Potato Chips
Bread Sticks Potatoes
Bagels Pudding
Pasta Cake
Crackers (Savory, plain, cheese, peanut butter) Stovetop Stuffing
Homemade Stuffing Breading
Rice Cookies (all kinds)
Muffins Granola Bars
Cereal (Less than 6 grams of sugar) Other Sweet Crackers
Animal Crackers
Graham Crackers
MENU PLANNING
Providers may choose one of the following two (2) options when planning their menus:
Option 1: Choose to use the complete meals provided by Family Central (Master Menus). You must use these as written. There are no substitutions allowed if you are using a Master Menu number.
Option 2: The second option allows you to plan your own menus. Be sure to include all required food components for each meal/snack.
Menus must be planned at least four (4) weeks in advance. Menus may be repeated every four (4) weeks and can be scheduled up to one year in advance. Menus must be posted where parents can see.
All meals and snacks must contain the proper components, per the meal pattern, and be served within the scheduled meal time in order for you to be reimbursed for that meal.
Food should be presented in an attractive manner, and children should be encouraged, but not forced, to try new things. Food should never be used as a reward or a punishment.
Meal times:
At least one hour must elapse between the end of one meal (breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, supper) and the beginning of the next meal
Providers may choose up to two hours for each meal service. Meals and snacks are only reimbursable if served within the meal times listed on the Provider Data Sheet.
The supper meal must begin after 5:00 p.m. and end by 7:00 p.m.
FEEDING INFANTS
Infants require extra special attention at all times. Listed below are a few of the precautions that should be taken when feeding infants:
1. Infants who are too young to sit up by themselves must be held when they are being fed. Bottles should not be propped as the baby might choke on the formula when left alone.
2. Bottles of milk or juice cannot be given to babies at nap time, as the liquid tends to stay in their mouth while they sleep. This could lead to tooth and gum disease and ear infections.
3. Bottles cannot be heated in the microwave as this can create hot spots and scald the baby.
4. Feed babies off of a plate rather than out of a jar as the food could get contaminated from the baby's saliva when returned to the refrigerator.
5. Premixed meats and vegetables are not creditable on the Food Program as there is no way of determining the amount of meat or vegetable the infant is actually receiving.
6. Only formulas which contain 1 mg of iron per 100 calories of reconstituted formula may be claimed for reimbursement unless a medical statement is forwarded to FCI.
MEAL SERVICE
Providers may claim up to two (2) meals and one (1) snack or two (2) snacks and one (1) meal per child each day. All meals claimed for reimbursement must be pre-approved by FCI. All enrolled children through the age of twelve (12) automatically qualify for reimbursement. Family Central cannot reimburse "drop-ins" for meals. Your own children may qualify for this program if your home qualifies for Tier I Reimbursement Rates and your family meets certain income guidelines. Reimbursement for your own children must be pre-approved by Family Central. You may also be reimbursed for special needs children up to the age of eighteen (18) with prior approval from Family Central. The number of children served at any one (1) meal or snack may not exceed your licensed capacity. Copies of enrollment information must be submitted to our office as new children enter your program. Reimbursement will not be made if an original enrollment form has not been submitted.
Family child care homes will be monitored at least three (3) times each year for food service. Menus and meal counts must be maintained daily and recorded each day by 11:59 pm.. Providers will receive their reimbursement checks the following month. Providers will also be issued a "1099" form for tax purposes every year.
Child-sized tables and chairs are ideal for preschool children. Make sure there is room for everyone to sit at the table at the same time. Preschool children should be encouraged to feed themselves. Children over the age of eighteen (18) months should be sitting at a table rather than in a high chair.
Please sign all documents before returning them to Family Central’s office. This includes enrollment forms and Infant Feeding Forms. The sponsor's name is Family Central, Inc. and the agreement number is D701.
Attendance is required at one (1) food and nutrition workshop each year. The Food Program year runs from October 1st to September 30th.
HEALTH AND SANITATION
When washing dishes by hand, the dishes need to be sanitized after rinsing. Use an approved sanitizing agent, such as chlorine bleach, and leave dishes to air dry. All dry goods, such as flour and sugar, must be sealed in tightly closed containers. All cleaners, chemicals, etc. must be stored out of children's reach. Children and adults need to wash their hands before handling food. Paper towels should be used to dry hands.
Thermometers are required to be kept in the refrigerator and freezer. The refrigerator must be 41 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and the freezer must be 0 degrees or below. Please check the temperatures on a regular basis.
DOCUMENTS
In order to be reimbursed properly, the following documents must be returned to Family Central as indicated below:
1. Enrollment forms for newly enrolled children must be faxed within three days with the original submitted by the end of the enrollment month. A child will remain in ‘pending’ status and will not be reimbursed if an original enrollment form is not received on time.