Service Log Help | Group Service Logs | Export Log Data | Minutes Report | Service Log FAQ
Jump to the Medi-Cal billing FAQ or open Medi-Cal Billing with SIRAS Service Logs for the SIRAS/MBT connection, enrollment, and billing-related information.
Questions in this FAQ
- How can I create a custom service-minutes report from service data?
- How does Medi-Cal billing work with SIRAS Service Logs?
- Why don't any logs appear when I search for a student?
- Why do I see “No records found” or “No applicable service data for specified period”?
- Why aren't absences appearing in my Minutes Report?
- Why is a student missing from the Minutes Report even though the student is in my Found Set?
- Why does the Minutes Report say more or fewer minutes were expected than I anticipated?
- If I run a report for an earlier period, does SIRAS use the services that were in effect at that time?
- Why are Expected Minutes an estimate?
- What if I don't want SIRAS to calculate the minutes?
How can I create a custom service-minutes report from service data?
If you need a custom report built from exported service information rather than the standard Service Minutes Report, see How can I create custom service minutes reports from exported service data?.
If you want SIRAS to calculate delivered-versus-expected Service Log minutes, use the Minutes Report instead.
How does Medi-Cal billing work with SIRAS Service Logs?
Districts using Medical Billing Technologies (MBT) can use SIRAS Service Logs as part of their Medi-Cal billing workflow.
Providers document services in SIRAS. When the district's SIRAS/MBT connection is enabled, applicable Service Log information can be provided directly to MBT through the backend connection. No Service Log export is required by the provider for the SIRAS/MBT connection.
For Service Logs used for Medi-Cal billing, start and end times are required.
For information about getting started, MBT enrollment, the SIRAS/MBT connection, and billing-related questions, see Medi-Cal Billing with SIRAS Service Logs.
For instructions on entering the Service Log itself, see Service Log Help.
Why don't any logs appear when I search for a student?
Check the Specific Log Dates criterion in the Service Log search.
If the search is set to show logs on or after a particular date, Service Logs dated before that date will not appear. Change the date to an earlier date and search again.
Check the Specific Log Dates criterion when older Service Logs are missing from the search results.
Why do I see “No records found” or “No applicable service data for specified period”?
Check the reporting period, selected service filters, and the student's service information.
The Minutes Report uses current services and archived student history to identify services applicable during the reporting period. A current service that begins after the report End Date does not, by itself, rule out historical services for that period.
- Verify the report Start and End dates.
- Check the selected service category, service codes, and provider filters.
- Review the current service dates on the MIS Summary and the available archived student history.
- Check for missing history or services with a frequency that is excluded from expected-minute calculations, such as Yearly.
For monthly and full-date-range reports, expand Expected minutes timeline to see the service expectations and source records used. Missing or inaccurate service information can affect the result.
Why aren't absences appearing in my Minutes Report?
Check whether Include Absent Logs is selected in the Minutes Report options.
Select Include Absent Logs when absent Service Log entries should be included in the report.
For ordinary local reporting, use this option according to the purpose of your report.
CDE-specific reporting requirements can differ from ordinary local reporting. Follow the current guidance in IEP Implementation Resources for SIRAS Districts.
Why is a student missing from the Minutes Report even though the student is in my Found Set?
The Found Set identifies students for the report. The selected reporting period and service filters determine which applicable service information is included.
Check the report dates and filters, then review the student's current services and archived history. The report can use historical services even when current services do not overlap the reporting period.
If no applicable service information is available, the export may show “No applicable service data for specified period.” See the checks above.
Why does the Minutes Report say more or fewer minutes were expected than I anticipated?
The report uses current services and archived student history to best reconstruct the expected minutes per school day historically. When a service changes during the reporting period, each daily amount is applied to the school days in its applicable period.
Differences may reflect:
- changes in service duration or frequency during the reporting period;
- the number of school days and configured holidays;
- conversion of weekly and monthly frequencies to daily amounts;
- the 22-school-day cap for each monthly reporting period;
- selected report filters and options, including School Event deductions when enabled; or
- missing or inaccurate current or historical service information.
Review the date ranges and frequencies in the Service column and expand Expected minutes timeline to check the historical expectations used.
If I run a report for an earlier period, does SIRAS use the services that were in effect at that time?
Yes. The Minutes Report uses the current student record and archived student history to best reconstruct expected minutes per school day throughout the reporting period.
You do not need to select an archived student record. When service expectations change, the report calculates each portion of the reporting period separately and combines the results. The historical calculation also applies to Minutes Report exports.
For monthly and full-date-range reports, expand Expected minutes timeline to review the effective dates, source records, and daily expectations. Results depend on the completeness and accuracy of the available service history.
Why are Expected Minutes an estimate?
The Minutes Report converts service duration and frequency into an expected daily amount, using current services and archived history for the selected reporting period.
- Daily: the service duration.
- Weekly: the service duration divided by 5.
- Monthly: the service duration divided by 22.
- Yearly: excluded from expected-minute calculations.
The daily amount is multiplied by the applicable school days, excluding weekends and configured holidays. Monthly reporting periods are capped at 22 school days; the full-date-range report does not use that cap.
This conversion estimates service delivery over time rather than identifying the exact dates on which weekly or monthly services should occur. Missing history, inaccurate service dates, and calendar information can also affect the estimate.
Expected Minutes should be treated as an estimate for monitoring purposes. The daily report shows provided minutes only and does not calculate expected-minute totals.
For report instructions and calculation options, see Minutes Report.
What if I don't want SIRAS to calculate the minutes?
Use Export Log Data when you want the underlying individual Service Log entries without the Minutes Report calculations.
This is useful when you need to inspect individual records or perform your own analysis outside the SIRAS Minutes Report.
