Frequently Asked Questions
Case Management
Q: There are more required fields in CWS-CARES than CWS/CMS. Is the county expected to fill in the new fields required when working on a converted case?
A: There are instances where a field is newly considered mandatory in CWS-CARES which was not required or entered in CWS/CMS. If a user opens a converted record for editing, they will be prompted to provide values for any unpopulated mandatory field before their changes can be saved.
Q: Will e-signatures be allowed on adoption forms?
A: E-signatures will be allowed on specific adoption forms, not necessarily all forms. The list of E-signable Adoption Forms below contains a current and verified list of Adoption forms where E-signature is allowed:
- PPADOP
- AD0856
- AD0513
- AD0580
- AD0090
- AD0551A
- AD0067
- AD0067A
- AD0907
- AD0907A
- AD0558
- AD0230
- AD0824
- AD0200
- AD0225
- AD4320
- JV0477
- JV0475
Q: How are the Regional Office Staff, Social and Mental Health Services (SAMMS), Duty Emergency Response Supervising Children’s Social Worker (ER SCSW), and Assigned Emergency Response Children’s Social Worker (ER CSW) notified of a new Immediate Response (IR) Referral? Who sends the alerts, are they automated?
A: If someone gets assigned to a unit of work as a primary or secondary, they will then get notifications pertaining to that assignment. Supervisors also get an email once the screening has been submitted for approval. Any other noticing will have to be handled per county business processes as determined by each county whether that is by assignments within CWS-CARES or an external county business process.
Q: Is there an error code or reminder when trying to enter placement rates for a Tribally Approved Home if the required background checks have not been done to be eligible for foster funding?
A: If those background checks have not been cleared, they won't be in the system as a Tribally Approved Home. They might be an emergency placement, and the Case Management Worker must document the minimum clearances for an emergency placement.
Q: Are adoption cases included in the cases that are removed from Production Simulation?
A: The only cases being removed from Production Simulation are cases falling under Sealed and Sensitive.
Q: Will CWS-CARES include Medi-Cal eligibility information?
A: Yes. A health insurance section is part of the Person Profile for the focus child. Users can document the type of insurance — Medi-Cal, Medicaid, Mental Health, Health Insurance Coverage, Prescription Drug Coverage, or no coverage — along with details such as provider name, policy holder name, policy number, and date of issuance.
Q: May we please get an update on the requirement that the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS) must be completed before Case Plan Service Objectives can be entered?
A: The intention is for case plans to be completed in alignment with the Child and Family Team, with the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS) serving as the community metric assessment. The outcome of the CANS score and the identified areas requiring the most focus become the drivers for the case plan. Although we understand there are times when the shell of a case plan, or the beginning of a case plan, needs to be developed before the CANS is completed, there are circumstances where this occurs. As a result, the Project is working on other options and workarounds. This is a very important issue, and the teams are actively working on a solution.
Q: Has there been any change to the requirements for completing Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) Assessments prior to the completion of a case plan? The timing of these assessments are a concern and potential barrier for jurisdiction, disposition, and voluntary Family Maintenance.
A: The Project is aware of this county concern and is currently working on a solution to allow case plans to be completed before a Child and Adolescent Strengths (CANS) assessment is completed.
Q: Is there a data validation process for CARES-Live Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS)?
A: Converted CARES-Live data will be available for validation in Production Simulation environment after Phase 2 begins in July 2026.
Q: If there is not one statewide behavioral health system, what will P-CIS connect to?
A: Currently, California does not have a statewide behavioral health system. In partnership with Opeeka, the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) is implementing the Person-Centered Intelligence Solution (P-CIS) into CWS-CARES as an interface. Once users log in to the CWS-CARES single sign on, they will have access to P-CIS. The CWS-CARES will send the required data to generate the CANS Assessment to the P-CIS system. The assessment itself is generated, completed, and approved in P-CIS.