The Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Program guidelines outline in detail the background of MCH and the annual process for implementing MCH work. The following is a summary of key parts of the annual process. Consult the MCH Guidelines or your MCH Local Liaison for more detail or if you have questions.
Guidelines
Contract
The contracting process is fully detailed in the MCH Guidelines. MCH operates on a 5-year contract cycle. In general, contracts begin each year on October 1 and end the following year on September 30th. If funding is available, renewals are completed each year of the 5-year cycle. LPHAs submit budgets and action plans to their MCH Local Liaison each spring in preparation for the contract renewal the following October.
When the contracts are ready for signature in late summer, CDPHE contracts staff sends the document to LPHA signatory staff via Docusign. LPHAs then submit the signed contract to CDPHE through Docusign. CDPHE signs and sends the final executed contract back to the LPHA, again in Docusign. LPHAs must download and save that final version from Docusign for their files. Work cannot begin until the contract start date. A fall webinar is held each year in October to go over the requirements of the contract.
Invoicing
MCH Local Liaison provide customized invoice reimbursement forms to the LPHAs in late October of each year. LPHAs submit a signed monthly invoice to cdphe.psmchreports@state.co.us. These are due no later than 45 calendar days after the end of the billing period for which services were rendered.
MCH 4-Square Progress Reports
MCH Local Liaison provide customized MCH HCP 4-Square Progress Report templates to the LPHA by early December of each year. The templates are based on the priorities the LPHA has selected. These must be completed by LPHAs quarterly and are due by:
- January 15
- April 15
- July 15
- October 31
Progress check-ins
Progress check-ins are held by phone or in person three times a year to monitor the progress, successes and challenges with implementation of the action plans.
- MCH Local Liaison schedule the meetings with local and state staff.
- Local staff are included at the discretion of the LPHA program manager.
- MCH Local Liaison complete a report after the check in, which is found in the 4-Square Progress Report.
Action plan and budget development
Each year, state staff host a spring contracting and planning webinar. In April/May, action plans and budgets for the next fiscal year are developed in a collaborative effort between state and local staff. Action plans are based on the priorities that the agency selected and are created by LPHA staff with input from priority coordinators and MCH Local Liaison. The final, customized action plan template is provided to each LPHA in mid-summer and implementation of the plan begins in October as part of the new year's contract.
At the same time these action plans are being developed, a budget is also created to align with the action plan. Local staff are provided with a budget template in spring and LPHA staff develop the budget with assistance from the MCH Local Liaison and state fiscal staff. The budgets are due at the same time as the action plans, as described in the MCH Guidelines. The final approved budget becomes part of the contract that starts in October, which is the start of the next fiscal year.
Beginning in October, the action plan is in the implementation phase and the Progress Update section must be completed by LPHA staff as part of the quarterly reporting process. In alignment with the due dates of the MCH 4 Square Progress Reports, updates are due by:
- January 15
- April 15
- July 15
- October 31
Quarterly reporting
Quarterly reporting is a requirement of the MCH contract. There are two components of the quarterly report process:
- The priority tabs of the MCH 4 Square Progress Reports.
- The Progress Update section of the agency's action plan.
After LPHA staff completes the reports, the LPHA MCH Program Manager or designee will review the reports and then will email their MCH Local Liaison to let them know the report is complete. Per the contract, this email constitutes the submission of the reports.
Quarterly report due dates
- January 15
- Work completed October - December.
- April 15
- Work completed January - March.
- July 15
- Work completed April - June.
- October 31
- Work completed July - September.