Subsidy rates define how much an agency pays for different types of care, while vouchers connect those rates to individual students. Together, they allow Playground to calculate expected subsidy payments and track what your program should receive for each service period.
Understanding Subsidy Rates and Vouchers
A rate represents the amount a subsidy agency pays for a specific type of care. Agencies typically set these rates based on factors like the child’s age, program level, or attendance schedule. Rates are configured for a specific service period, such as weekly, biweekly, or monthly, and can distinguish between full-time and part-time care.
A voucher is the agency’s authorization that a specific student qualifies for subsidy funding. When creating a voucher, you assign the student to one of the available subsidy rates. This tells Playground how much the agency is expected to pay for that student. Once a voucher is assigned, Playground uses the selected rate and the student’s schedule to calculate the expected subsidy amounts for each service period.
Create a Rate
From the Admin Dashboard, click the Billing tab and open the Subsidies tab.
Select the subsidy agency you want to create the rate for.
Open the Rates section and click Add Rate.
Select the Service Period for the rate. This determines how often the agency is billed (Weekly, Biweekly, or Monthly).
If using a weekly or biweekly rate, choose the day the week begins using the Week Starts On setting.
Choose the Pricing Structure:
Full-time/part-time
Full-time for care of 5 hours or more per day
Part-time for care of less than 5 hours per day
Flat rate
Flat rate for the service period.
Enter the rate amount.
Click Save to create the rate.
Manage Rates
Edit, Archive, or Delete a Rate
Go to Billing, then select Subsidies.
Click the subsidy agency the rate belongs to.
Select the Rates tab.
Find the rate you want to manage.
Click the three dots on the right side of the rate.
Choose one of the following options:
Edit to update the rate details
Archive to remove the rate from the active list while keeping it for historical records
Delete to permanently remove the rate
If you select Edit, the Edit rate window will open. Most rate details cannot be changed once the rate has been created. The only field that can be updated is the Accounting code.
If an accounting code is added or updated, it will apply only to future voucher assignments and will not affect existing debits created from that rate.
Click Save rate to apply the change.
Unarchive a Rate
Go to the Billing tab, then select Subsidies.
Click the subsidy agency the rate belongs to.
Select the Rates tab.
Change the Status filter from Active to Archived.
Find the rate you want to restore.
Click the three dots next to the rate.
Select Unarchive.
Create a Voucher
A voucher connects a student to a subsidy rate and records that the agency has approved funding for that child. Once a voucher is created, Playground uses the assigned rate and the student’s schedule to calculate the expected subsidy amounts for each service period.
From the Admin Dashboard, click the Billing tab and open the Subsidies tab.
Select the subsidy agency you want to work with.
Open the Vouchers tab.
Click Add in the top right corner and select Voucher.
If you need to create vouchers for multiple students, toggle Add more in the top right corner before continuing. When Add more is enabled, Playground will return you to the Add voucher screen after saving so you can create another voucher for the next student. The workflow will continue looping back to the beginning until this option is turned off.
Search for and select the student who has received subsidy approval.
Choose the Rate that applies to the student.
If the student already has billing items, click See existing billing items to review their current charges. This allows you to confirm whether any related billing items already exist for the student before creating the voucher.
Enter the Voucher Start Date and End Date.
Choose how co-payments should be handled for this voucher under Co-payment billing plan:
Don’t create a co-payment billing plan – Select this if the student does not have a required co-pay.
Charge co-payments in addition to the rate – Select this if the family is responsible for paying a co-pay on top of the subsidy amount paid by the agency.
Subtract co-payments from the rate – Select this if the co-pay is part of the total rate, meaning the family pays a portion and the agency pays the remaining amount.
If you choose Charge or Subtract, you will need to configure the copay billing item.
Enter the copay amount in the Price field.
Add an optional description or accounting code if your program uses accounting codes.
Choose how the copay should be billed under This charge should be.
Most programs will leave this set to Recurring with a start and end date
Select how often the copay occurs under This charge will occur (for example, weekly).
Enter the billing dates:
First invoice will post – when the first copay charge will appear
Day of week due – the day the charge is due
Last due date – when the recurring copay charges should stop
Review the preview section to confirm the billing schedule.
Click Add item to save the copay billing plan.
Click the Review the expected amounts button that will be created for the student.
Review the student’s schedule at the top of the page.
This schedule is used to calculate how much the agency is expected to pay for each service period.
If needed, you can:
Click the three dots next to the schedule to edit it and delete it.
Click Add recurring schedule to add another schedule
Review the Expected amounts table.
This table shows a preview of the subsidy amounts that will be generated for the student based on:
the assigned rate
the student’s schedule
any co-payment settings
Confirm the details shown in the Expected amounts table:
the period dates
the number of scheduled days
the co-payment amount (if applicable)
the expected amount from the subsidy agency
Click Create voucher to finish.
After the voucher is created, the expected subsidy deposits will appear in the Deposits tab for the selected agency.
To view the full billing plan created for the student, open the Debits tab.
Update a Voucher
If a student’s subsidy details change, you can update an existing voucher.
Go to Billing, then select Subsidies.
Click the subsidy agency the voucher belongs to.
Open the Vouchers tab.
Locate the voucher you want to update.
Click the three dots on the right side of the voucher.
Select Edit.
In the Update voucher window, review the voucher details.
If credits have already been recorded for the voucher, only the End date can be updated. If credits have already been recorded for the voucher, only the End date can be adjusted. The Student, Rate, and Start date fields can't bee changed.
Enter a new End date if the voucher needs to be extended or shortened. The new end date must be later than the current deposit period.
Click Update voucher.
The voucher setup screen will reopen for that student.
A message will appear indicating that the student already has a voucher assigned to that rate for the selected time period and that vouchers cannot overlap.
If you need to continue the subsidy for the student, create a new voucher by selecting a different rate or entering a new service period.
Click Next: Review expected amounts to continue through the voucher workflow.
Delete a Voucher
Go to Billing, then select Subsidies.
Click the subsidy agency the voucher belongs to.
Open the Vouchers tab.
Locate the voucher you want to remove.
Click the three dots on the right side of the voucher.
Select Delete.
In the confirmation window, review the warning message. Deleting a voucher will remove all associated subsidy debits, and this action cannot be undone.
Click Delete voucher to confirm.
Record a Subsidy Deposit
After creating vouchers, Playground automatically generates expected subsidy deposits for each service period. When a payment is received from the subsidy agency, you can record the amount received for the corresponding deposit.
Go to Billing, then select Subsidies.
Select the subsidy agency you want to work with.
Open the Deposits tab.
Locate the service period you want to record a payment for.
Click the three dots on the right side of the deposit. Select Edit.
On the Record deposit page, review the students and expected amounts listed in the Distribution section.
On the Record deposit page, review the students listed in the Distribution section. For each student, you can see:
the rate assigned through their voucher
the number of scheduled days during that service period
the number of days attended during that period
the expected amount based on the rate and scheduled attendance
Enter the received amount for each student based on the payment received from the subsidy agency.
If the received amount differs from the expected amount, choose how the difference should be handled.
You can waive the difference or charge the remaining amount to the family.
Click Next: Review difference. Enter Confirm in the Conformation window.
Click Edit deposit.