Participant Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Visit our Who to Dial page to see a list of common questions and find who to contact for answers. 

A request must be submitted to your Lead Agency Representative through phone or email. Your Lead Agency Representative will provide you the information you need to make the changes. Once changes have been approved, your Lead Agency Representative will send approval to PICS to revise your budget plan with the requested changes.

Workers can begin working once PICS Human Resources has received all the completed required paperwork and issued a date of hire.

Pay rates vary by program. Contact your Service Coordinator for more information.

Hours vary depending on your approved budget plan. Please contact your Service Coordinator.

Timecards are due bi-weekly. They are due by noon on Monday (if submitted by fax, walk-in, email or mail) or by noon on Wednesday (if submitted through the online portal). Timecards are paid out the following Wednesday. See our payroll calendar.

Workers do not have access to the portal at this time. Portal timecards are entered by the Representative and must be approved by the Worker. Please see our portal training video.

Please contact us and we will be able to give you the information.

If you have questions about your spending summary, contact us. We'll look at your spending summary together and make sure everything is understood.

You must log in to the portal. If you don’t have access to the portal, please contact us and we’ll help you set it up. Once in the portal, you will need to click “Reports.” Then select the line and Service Agreement which you will like to view. Your Lead Agency Representative and Support Planner are also able to view your spending summary.

Contact us and we will work with you to find the problem.

Mileage is not taxable.

Overtime must receive prior approval from your Representative, PICS and, in some cases, the Lead Agency. Non-exempt workers are paid overtime at a rate of pay of 1.5 times their regular rate for any hours worked beyond 40 hours in a work week. Overtime is based on actual hours worked, which means PTO, sick time or any other type of leave is not considered hours worked for the purpose of calculating overtime. Based on program rules, paid parents of minors and paid spouses are not eligible for overtime.

If your Worker supports multiple participants, any hours worked more than 40 hours in a work week will be paid from the Participant's budget at the time the overtime is reached. If a Worker provides services to more than one Participant employer or in multiple programs, hours worked totaling more than 40 hours per work week may or may not result in overtimes pay. If you or your workers have questions about overtime, please contact PICS for assistance.

The Family Deductible is a cost-sharing program the Minnesota State Legislature passed into law at the end of 2011. As noted in the Minnesota Statute 256B.0631, MA enrollees over the age of 21 began cost-sharing with providers by paying a monthly family deductible or co-payment for each period of eligibility, effective January 1, 2012.

The deductible is an out-of-pocket cost you are responsible to pay each month, in order to keep your services open and active. You cannot use waiver or budget dollars to cover the cost. Whichever of your service providers bills DHS first for services in any given month will be assessed the fee and they in turn will pass the bill onto you.

Example: PICS bills $100 for an April service. We are the first provider to bill in April, so the state will pay $100 - $2.75 = $97.25. It is PICS’ responsibility to collect the additional amount owed from you directly. You can learn more by viewing the Family Deductible – FAQ or contact us directly.

A spenddown is like an insurance deductible. If your income is more than the allowed income limit, you may still qualify for medical assistance by meeting a spenddown. A spenddown is the amount you must pay towards medical bills before the state will start to pay.

You can learn more by viewing the Spenddown – FAQ or contact us directly.