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Last Updated: 10/31/2007
1. When should we expect to see CCM charges hit our budget statement?
2. Are you still sending hard copies of the monthly bills via inter-office mail?
3. Can you send the bills to the PI's and the business or lab manager?
7. From where are your per diem rates derived?
8. Why is there a charge for "separation" on my bill?
11. What do the items in my bills mean?
12. How are the "number of care days" that appears on my bill calculated?
13. How do I change the CUFS account# to use for my animal charges?
14. Who do I contact with questions on my bill?
1. When should we expect to see CCM charges hit our budget statement?
Your animal charges should hit your budget statements within 5-7 working days after you receive the electronic copy of your monthly bill. For example, the September 2007 bills were sent via email to the PI's on Fri., October 19. All the charges should hit "valid" CUFS accounts on Fri., October 26, and will therefore appear on the October 2007 budget statements.
2. Are you still sending hard copies of the monthly bills via inter-office mail?
No, we are not. Since the implementation of our new system, we have been sending the monthly bills directly to the PI's in .pdf format via email only.
3. Can you send the bills to the PI's and the business or lab manager?
In our legacy system, we were able to print hard copies and send bills via inter-office mail to multiple people. However, our current system only generates one invoice per protocol and addressed to the PI only. We are sending the bills via email so that the PI's can forward to whoever needs to receive them. We've received multiple requests for this but unfortunately, we are limited in this capacity at the moment. We hope to add this feature on the next system version/update although at this moment, we do not have a time frame for the next version/update release.
4. Is there a tally sheet available where charges for all the protocol bills belonging to one PI are added up and shows the grand total charged for the month?
Since bills are now generated individually by protocol, there is no Grand Total for all bills combined as there was in the previous system. Each protocol bill has a grand total for all the charges on that protocol only.
5. Why do my animal orders show a "Surcharge", a "Delivery" charge and sometimes "Other Vendor Charges"?
We only charge a one-time $20 fee on all new animal orders. This is called "Surcharge" or "Procurement Fee" on the protocol bill. For "standing" animal orders, this $20 fee is added to the first order only. The "delivery" charge is what the vendor charges for shipping & handling. "Other vendor charges" include other surcharges such as surcharge for weekend breeding and time pregnant mice, or special packing supplies such as special padding, special delivery boxing, etc. If you'd like to see details of a specific animal order, please contact the CCM Business Office.
6. The different "cost centers" or housing types on my bills are confusing. What is the difference between microisolator housing, SPF vent rack, etc.?
We have recently streamlined our housing types (reflected as "cost center" on your monthly bills) to reduce confusion and help answer some of your questions related to housing. We have consolidated some types and eliminated others; consequently, you will no longer see some terms like microisolator, SPF vent rack, etc. The list of old vs. new cost centers is now available on the main page of the CCM web site.
7. From where are your per diem rates derived?
Per diem is based on the cost of maintaining a standard cage for the species. The number of rodents allowed per standard cage is based on weight as follows:
Mice:
5/cage if < 25 g
4/cage if > 25 g
Rats:
5/cage if < 200 g
4/cage if < 300 g
3/cage if < 400 g
2/cage if < 500 g
1/cage if > 500 g
For a listing of per diem rates, please refer to the "FY08 Rates" table on the main page of the CCM web site.
8. Why is there a charge for "separation" on my bill?
As mentioned in #7 above, there is a maximum of 5 adult mice per cage. If your cage contains more than 5 adult mice, you will receive a notice from the CCM Census office that you need to separate the mice. The notice will also indicate that if you do not separate the mice within the allotted time, CCM will separate the animals in different cages to avoid overcrowding and ensure regulatory compliance, and will charge you for doing so. At the same time, per diem charges will begin accruing for the new cage(s) created as a result.
9. Why do I get billed for "holding protocol charges" and why can't I use my grant funds to pay for those charges?
When you receive a bill for holding protocol charges, it means you had animals in an expired protocol with no de novo protocol or other current protocol to which they could have been transferred. As the animals await transfer to a valid protocol, they are kept in the CCM "Holding Protocol". During this period, no research can be performed on the animals; only standard care can be administered. Using grant funds to pay for these charges would be a violation of regulatory funding requirements; therefore it is your departmental account that is billed for holding protocol charges.
10. Why is there more than one person named under "Staff Account" on my bill? Shouldn't this just be the PI's name?
Yes, the account name should only reflect the PI's name. However, when some animal orders were placed, the name of the lab/staff member placing the order was entered in the system under "Staff"; consequently, per diem charges associated with the cages generated from those animal orders continued to show up under that person's name instead of the PI's. All new animal orders are now entered in the system with only the PI's name and therefore this will not be an issue on any new animal purchases.
11. What do the items in my bills mean?
For a definition of each item on your bill, please refer to the Protocol Bill Reference List also available on the main page of the CCM web site.
12. How are the "number of care days" that appears on my bill calculated?
The number of care days on your bill is calculated by taking the number of animal cages you had on each/any protocol during the billing month and multiplying it by the number of days in the month that the cage was in our care. For example, if you were charged 30 care days in September, it could mean one of the following:
a) You had 1 cage during the entire 30 days in September; or
b) You had 30 cages for only 1 day in September; or
c) You had different numbers of cages at various times during September that totaled 30 care days; e.g., 5 cages for 3 days each, plus 1 cage for 5 days, plus another 1 cage for 10 days.
13. How do I change the CUFS account# to use for my animal charges?
Please send an email to Lot Bercasio (l-bercasio@northwestern.edu) and Russ Greene (r-greene4@northwestern.edu) with the protocol number and correct CUFS# to use. The CUFS# you provide will be cross-checked in CUFS & InfoEd to ensure accuracy before it is accepted and entered in CCM's animal tracking system. Please make sure that the object codes 3450 & 5310 for animal purchase & care are open for all new CUFS #'s.
14. Who do I contact with questions on my bill?
For billing questions and discrepancies, please contact Lot S. Bercasio, CCM Business Administrator, by phone at 847-467-0762 or via email at l-bercasio@northwestern.edu.
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