Frequently Asked Questions
Stakeholder Briefing
Q: Will the CWS-CARES project provide guidance on which permissions users will need for Production Simulation?
A: Guidance will be provided as to what various CWS-CARES users will need for permissions in Production Simulation.
Q: How many users per county/organization will be able to use the Production Simulation environment?
A: Active CWS/CMS users (approx. 25,000) will be able to access CWS-CARES Production Simulation. Additionally, it will incorporate their role-based access controls (RBAC) to ensure their permissions accurately mirror the live production environment.
Q: Will data entry into the CWS-CARES Production Simulation map over to CWS/CMS, or will dual entry be needed?
A: Data entered into the Production Simulation will not transfer to CWS/CMS. Since the simulation is strictly a practice environment, CWS/CMS remains the sole statewide system of record. Consequently, any data required for official records will still require entry into CWS/CMS.
Q: How many licenses to the Production Simulation environment will counties get?
A: All users of CWS/CMS will be able to access the Production Simulation environment.
Q: When will CARES 100 be available for county developers?
A: County forms authors are being onboarded to the CARES 100 environment.
Q: Is there a group at the State level providing feedback on the health section of CWS-CARES?
A: The Case Management team worked with case management constituent counties to gather input on pain points for documenting health and education information in CWS/CMS, and also received documentation from prior public health workgroups. The team is reviewing End User Scenario Testing (EUST) 3 feedback related to the Health and Education Passport (HEP), and all feedback provided during Production Simulation will also be reviewed for inclusion in development.
Q: When will the training environment be released?
A: The training environment will be accessible as part of the Instructor-Led training.
Q: Will there be a "train-the-trainer" approach to get county trainers ready before Go-Live?
A: Yes. Train-the-Trainer (TTT) runs June 15 – August 14, 2026 and prepares county trainers and Super Users to lead training within their own organizations ahead of Go-Live. Each trainer completes foundational, self-paced Salesforce Enablement training beforehand, then attends TTT sessions (estimated up to two weeks, adjusted for prior experience with CWS/CMS and CWS-CARES). Ongoing office hours and a support channel continue through October to keep trainers supported. For questions, contact OTSICWDSTraining@otsi.ca.gov.
Q: Will there be a system where the most updated training materials are available for users?
A: Training materials will be accessible to all Production Simulation users. We're currently finalizing the approach to ensure everyone has the most up-to-date resources, and additional details will be shared as soon as they're ready.
Q: What are the revised training approaches under consideration for CWS-CARES Version 1 (CARES V1)? Will there still be any Instructor-led training offered?
A: CARES V1 uses a blended, role-based training approach that combines self-paced and live learning, so staff are trained on the functions and workflows specific to their role. Each staff member begins with foundational self-paced online (Salesforce Enablement) training, with the time required varying by role. Instructor-led training remains a core part of this approach and is still offered, through both in-person and virtual sessions tailored for county, state, and specialized program staff. Most staff will need one to three days of instructor-led training depending on their role. Training rolls out in two phases: Train-the-Trainer, beginning June 15, 2026, followed by End-User Training, beginning August 3, 2026. For more information, contact OTSICWDSTraining@otsi.ca.gov.