This month's release includes SSN Updates, new referral functionality, and more.
Release Schedule:
- All Training Sites: Monday, July 29, 2024
- All Production Sites: Monday, August 12, 2024
Highlights of this month’s updates:
-
Bed/Unit Availability can be specified down to the time
- New Cross Agency Referral Functionality
Notes:
The updates described in this article will be deployed in the early morning hours on scheduled release days. During release, the Clarity Human Services application may experience performance delays. We recommend clearing your cache at the initial login if experiencing difficulty.
The Data Analysis update will follow the same feature release schedule dates. There may be a slight delay when accessing Looker after the release as the system updates are being applied. Data Analysis release notes will arrive in a separate communication.
Updated: Invalid Social Security Number (SSN) Warning
When a user enters an SSN for a client, the system will check to see if the SSN is valid as based on Social Security Administration guidelines. An SSN is considered invalid if any of the following are true:
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The last four digits of the SSN are ‘0000’
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The first three digits are ‘000’, ‘666’, or start with '9'
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The middle digits (i.e., digits 4 and 5; the second grouping of digits) are ‘00’
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The digits are repetitive, like 000-00-0000, 111-11-1111, 333-33-3333, etc.
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The digits are sequential, like 123-45-6789 or 987-65-4321.
If the SSN is invalid, the system displays the following pop-up: “‘The SSN entered does not conform to Social Security Administration guidelines. Click ‘Cancel’ to change the SSN. Click ‘OK’ to proceed with the SSN entered.” This pop-up appears before the ”An existing client has been found matching the SSN entered” pop-up appears.
If the user clicks “Cancel”:
- The pop-up disappears
- The user’s mouse returns to the first digit of the SSN.
- The SSN field is underlined in red.
- The user can change the SSN and save the profile with the edited SSN.
- If the user enters another invalid SSN, the pop-up appears again. This continues until a valid SSN (or one with 1-9 non-numeric characters) is entered.
If the user clicks “OK”:
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The pop-up disappears.
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The SSN field is not underlined in red.
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The user can save the profile with the invalid SSN.
Required Action: None.
Updated: Allow Entry of Non-Numeric Characters for Unknown/Refused SSN Digits
Clarity, including the DIT and Operational API, will now allow users to enter a non-numeric character for any digits of a client’s Social Security Number (SSN) that is unknown or refused by the client, and the system will automatically convert those non-numeric characters to an “x.”
- If a non-numeric character is entered for all 9 digits of the SSN, the “Quality of SSN” field defaults to “Client doesn’t know” but is editable.
- If any digit in the SSN has a non-numeric character (such as xxx-45-6789, 123-xx-6789, 12x-x5-6789, 123-45-x789, etc.), and there are no more than 8 non-numeric characters in the SSN, the “Quality of SSN” field defaults to “Approximate or partial SSN reported” but is editable.
- If the ‘Consent Refused’ toggle is enabled in a client profile, Clarity will automatically convert the 0s for the SSN to ‘x’s when the profile is saved.
Required Action: If your community would like Bitfocus to update the existing SSNs in your system containing 0s during the feature release, please reach out to your BFF/CoAD by EOD Friday, August 2, 2024.
If your community chooses to move forward, the script will update the following SSN criteria :
- SSNs with ‘000’ for the first three digits are updated so that the first three digits are ‘xxx’.
- SSNs with ‘00’ for the middle digits (i.e., digits #4 and #5; the second grouping of digits) are updated so that the middle digits are ‘xx’.
- SSNs with ‘0000’ for the last four digits are updated so that the last four digits are ‘xxxx’.
- SSNs that are ‘000-00-0000’ are updated so that they are ‘xxx-xx-xxxx’.
By opting into the script above to update the criteria of placeholders from ‘0’ to ‘x’, four-digit partial SSNs as outlined in guidance for Data Element 3.02 Social Security Number by HUD will no longer be reported as data issues for federal reporting. The reporting logic will be adjusted to accommodate these updated placeholders.
It’s important to note that according to SSA rules as outlined in the HMIS Reporting Glossary, consecutive 0s (for the first three digits, fourth and fifth digits, last four digits, or all nine digits) are considered ‘Data Issues’.
Updated: Field Data Name for Custom Fields Must Be Unique
The system will not allow users to create custom fields with a Field Data Name that already exists in any of the following custom table types, even if the ref_field_type is different:
- Custom
- Program Setup Custom
- Funding Source Custom
- Housing Inventory Custom
Notes:
A Field Data Name that is the same as another Field Data Name except for letter capitalization (for example, “c_custom_field” and “c_Custom_Field”) is considered to be a duplicate and will not be allowed.
If a user tries to create a Field Data Name that already exists, the system will highlight the field with an error message.
Any existing custom fields with a duplicate Field Data Name will be renamed to field_name_ID (e.g., test_field will be test_field_123) for the field data name with the later field id.
Required Action: If your community has duplicate custom fields impacted by this update, your BFF or Community Admin contact will be in touch with your impacted fields.
Updated: Bed/Unit Availability Includes Specific Time
Clarity will now prompt users to enter an availability time, as well as a date, when referring to a unit or bed using the Community Queue or Unit Queue. The date-time selection appears when Bed & Unit Management is set to ‘Optional’ or ‘Required’ in the Referral Settings .
If a date-time is selected for a referral that is within the range of an ‘Offline’ or ‘Inactive’ date-time, the system will underline in red the fields that need adjustment.
When reassigning from the Community Queue, if Bed & Unit Management is set to ‘Optional’ or ‘Required’ in the Referral Settings, the ‘Reassignment Date’ field on the Community Queue Reassign page is a Date-Time picker field. When the user selects a date and time for the ‘Reassignment Date’ and selects a ‘Program’ from the picklist, the system will check for units/beds that are ‘Active’ as of the selected date and time.
When the user opens the Modify Community Queue page, within the Reassign section → Reassignment Date, the user will see the date from the filter within the Community Queue tab. When the filter date is the current date, the user will see the current date and nearest past time in the Reassignment Date field. If the filter date is a future or past date, the user will see the same date and 12:00 AM in the Reassignment Date field.
Note: Time is not stored when ‘Bed & Unit Management’ is disabled and referrals are sent to openings or directly to a program.
Required Action: Communities that want to implement this functionality need to adjust Bed & Unit Management in the Referral Settings to ‘Optional’ or ‘Required’.
Updated: Foreign Countries Included in Geolocation Address Search
Prior to this update geolocation address suggestions were limited to U.S. based suggestions. With this update, agencies can collect locations outside of the U.S. for geolocation fields, for example, a custom Country of Origin field.
This function is controlled by an agency’s Location & Outreach Settings. In these settings, the Area Limited By field includes a drop down menu with choices for:
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Country
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State
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Radius in Miles
Geolocation suggestions include non-U.S. based addresses when the setting is set to Radius in Miles OR as shown below, the LIMIT GEOGRAPHIC AREA ADDRESS SUGGESTIONS toggle is disabled.
Required Action: None
Updated: CE & HMIS Participation Status Warnings
Updates have been made to the appearance of the CE Participation Status and HMIS Participation Status dates on the program setup page, and appearance of associated status warning banners.
For programs that have an Operating End Date that is in the past, the latest CE Participation Status will appear on the program setup page. This includes the following fields:
- Project is a Coordinated Entry Access Point
- Project Receives CE Referrals
- CE Participation Status Start Date
- CE Participation Status End Date
For programs that have an Operating End Date that is in the past, the latest HMIS Participation Status appears on the program setup page. This includes the following fields:
- HMIS Participation Status
- Participation Status Start Date
- Participation Status End Date
If a program’s Operating End date is at a date after the CE Participation Status End Date or Participation Status End Date the system will display the following warning banner:
- “There is a gap in the HMIS Participation Status dates for this program. Please update the HMIS Participation Status Start or End Dates as appropriate.”
or
- “There is a gap in the CE Participation Status dates for this program. Please update the CE Participation Status Start or End Dates as appropriate.”
If a program’s Operating End date field is blank and the CE Participation Status End Date or Participation Status End Date is a past date the system will display the following warning banner:
- “There is no active HMIS Participation Status for this program. Please enter an HMIS Participation Status.”
or
- “There is no active CE Participation Status for this program. Please enter a CE Participation Status.”
Before this update, when a program had an Operating End Date that was in the past and the latest CE Participation Status had the same date for the Status End Date, the warning banner “There is no active CE Participation Status for this program. Please enter a CE Participation Status.” would appear on the program setup page. This banner no longer appears in this scenario.
Before this update, when a program had an Operating End Date that was in the past and the latest CE Participation Status had the same date for the Status End Date, the warning banner “There is no active HMIS Participation Status for this program. Please enter an HMIS Participation Status.” would appear on the program setup page. This banner no longer appears in this scenario.
Required Action: None
Updated: Behavior Logic Change for Save Changes Button
Several screens have been updated so that a user is no longer redirected to a previous screen after updates are saved.
Those screens are:
Client:- Add/Modify ROI
- Add File/Program File
- Modify File/Program File
- Add Status Assessment
- Add Annual Assessment
- Add Follow-Up Assessment
- Add Current Living Situation
- Add/Modify HMIS Participation Status
- Add/Modify CE Participation Status
- Bed & Unit Inventory Information → Add/Modify Inventory
- Coordinated Entry Events → Add/Modify Event
- Add new Vendor
- Vendor modify → Add new Document
- Add new Employer
- Settings → File Categories → Add/Modify File Name
Required Action: None
New: Cross Agency Access Role Functionality for Referrals
With this update access role types have the ability to send referrals to other agencies using the new Referrals - Send Referrals to Other Agencies access right. This access right is on by default for System Administrator access role types and off by default for all others. The access right is able to be turned on for all roles types except for the Volunteer access role type.
Note: There is no change to functionality for users who have ‘Match Maker’ enabled in their access role.
A new, related Allow Referrals from Other Agencies toggle gives agencies control over which other agencies in their instance can send them referrals. There are two pieces to this functionality, the toggle to first allow other agencies to send referrals and the Agencies Sending Referrals multi-select field of agencies in the instance to be defined as the “other agencies”.
Users must have one of the following access rights to setup this functionality:
- Create Sites - Administrative and Housing Inventory Entities
- Edit Sites - Administrative and Housing Inventory Entities
The Allow Referrals from Other Agencies toggle may be turned on or off at any combination of Building, Unit, or Bed screens and the field inherits “downward” in order from the Building screen, to the Unit screen, to the Bed screen. However, each screen’s toggle remains editable and may be turned on or off apart from the other screens. The screens are found on the following navigation path:
Home → Manage → Sites → Housing Inventory Sites → Buildings
Note: If a program is not using Bed & Unit Management and instead receives referrals to the program only, the Allow Referrals from Other Agencies and Agencies Sending Referrals fields appear on the program setup page.
The Agencies Sending Referrals multi-select field appears below the Allow Referrals from Other Agencies toggle and populates with all active, non-deleted agencies in the instance. The agency the user is logged in under is still available for the user to send referrals, but it doesn’t appear in the multi-select field.
Agencies chosen in the multi-select field inherit down from the Building, to the Unit, to the Bed screen. However, each multi-select field remains editable on each screen.
Note: If an agency is made inactive or deleted, the agency is automatically removed from the multi-select field. If the inactive or deleted agency is made active again, it returns to all screens as selected or not based on its last saved selection before it was removed.
If the toggle is turned on for a screen but no agencies are selected in the multi-select field a banner warning will appear with the following text:
- “In order to utilize the ‘Allow Referrals from Other Agencies’ functionality, there should be at least one agency selected in the ‘Agencies Sending Referrals’ dropdown.”
Required Action: If access role types other than System Administrators or Matchmakers need to send referrals to agencies other than their own, the Referrals - Send Referrals to Other Agencies toggle should be updated for the proper access role type.
If an agency would like to allow other agencies to send referrals, the Allow Referrals from Other Agencies toggle should be updated on the desired program, Building, Unit, or Bed screen and appropriate agencies selected in the Agencies Sending Referrals field.
Updated: Clarity XML Schema Sequencing
To better control the processing order of Clarity XML elements, line 1716 of the Clarity XML Schema has been modified from the FY24 HUD HMIS XML Schema's xsd:choice element to a specified sequence of elements matching the order of the element order in the FY24 HMIS CSV specification.
Required Action: Agencies with custom schemas should update and and re-publish their custom schemas, so that the revised order changes take effect.
If custom schemas are enabled, the currently published custom Clarity Schema in effect is available at: https://[clarity_instance_name].clarityhs.com/data-import/schema
If custom schemas are not enabled, the current Clarity Schema is available at: http://www.clarityhumanservices.com/schema/2024/1/HUD_HMIS.xsd
Important Note:
A bug fix was applied to production instances on July 31st, in which when an additional agency user access role is assigned to a role with embedded Data Analysis permission, this will be included in the embedded Data Analysis add on license count. This will only increase the license count if the User doesn’t have Embedded Data Analysis in their Primary role, it will not be counted twice.
We Welcome Your Ideas
We encourage you to suggest improvements and new features for our products. You can create feature suggestions or vote, watch, and comment on existing suggestions at ideas.bitfocus.com. Refer to our Feature Suggestions article for additional details.
New and Updated Help Center Resources
We’ve either updated or created the following articles in response to this Clarity Human Services update.
| Updated Pages | New Pages |
| Creating and Editing Fields | Client Profile SSN validation and partial SSNs |