RHODE ISLAND DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES

MEMORANDUM

To: Department of Human Services (DHS) Staff

From: Eric J. Beane, Acting Director of DHS

Date: March 31, 2017

Re: My Top Priority Timely Access to Benefits

Our highest priority at DHS is to ensure that public benefits are being disbursed in a timely and accurate
manner to all eligible clients. Over 300,000 Rhode Islanders rely upon the social services that the State
provides. I know that many of you were drawn to positions at DHS precisely because our work is
profoundly important to so many individuals and their families.

For DHS to be effective in achieving our mission, it is critical that the State and the public have regular
access to accurate data on the volume of outstanding pending applications for benefits. These are new
applications that have been registered in RI Bridges, but for which an eligibility determination has not
been made, including applications that are already overdue and those not yet overdue. While we do
plenty of other work as well, such as processing changes to applications, re-certifications, and other
tasks, a primary challenge with UHIP has been the delay in getting clients their benefits because of the
slowdown in processing new applications.

Despite the challenges with the system, all of you have worked hard since September and before to make
sure that accurate benefits get out the door as quickly as possible. Staff have been performing overtime
to process applications day after day and making extra effort to hold Deloitte accountable for technology
problems. We now have new data that suggests that this time and dedication is yielding progress the
number of pending SNAP cases, for instance, has fallen from 2,692 on February 28 to 1,998 on March
30, a 26% reduction.

Deloitte had previously provided data on pending applications, but through the UHIP assessment process
the State raised questions about the accuracy of those reports. In the assessment itself, I noted that
extracting basic, reliable data from the system is difficult and time-consuming. Since February, the State
has been working with Deloitte to create more meaningful application metrics by rigorously evaluating
previous data queries to identify errors, and developing new, more accurate queries.

The previous weekly data extract from Deloitte showed a total backlog of approximately 28,000
applications a figure that has recently been reported publicly. After a great deal of analysis, we now
have a refined data set that shows that there are 13,630 pending applications as of March 30. This
number is, of course, significantly lower than what was recently reported. The differences in the numbers
are primarily due to the following factors:

Pending applications previously reported to the State by Deloitte as having no determination were
found to have been determined and closed. (For example, if a client had submitted an application for
two programs but had already received benefits for one of those programs, it would still have been
counted as two pending applications in the backlog.)
Some updates to medical client cases that were submitted through the self-service portal, such as
changes in address, were incorrectly reported as new applications.
Duplicate applications were previously reported by Deloitte. In the new process, applications that are
known to be duplicates have been removed from the report.
Applications for long term services and supports were not previously reported by Deloitte.

A further breakdown by program and overdue status is available in the enclosed table.

Both the public and our staff are rightfully frustrated at the length of time it has taken to get a clear picture
of the number of pending applications. Unfortunately, Deloitte delivered a system that was incapable of
readily providing accurate, comprehensive data. The State is substantially more confident in the quality of
this new data, but we are still reliant on Deloitte to properly query and extract the values from RI Bridges.
We will continue to monitor the reliability of the data extraction process as closely as possible.

Our more rigorously vetted data now indicates that although the volume of pending applications
consistently rose in the months after UHIP go-live, it finally began to stabilize in late February. It is now
actually beginning to show a downward trend due in large part to our progress with SNAP. In addition to
the brief enclosed snapshot, I will release a more detailed data dashboard next week that illustrates these
trends and dives more deeply into the status of each benefit program. Going forward, we will release the
more detailed dashboard at the beginning of every month.

When I first arrived at DHS in January and began working with all of you to assess the UHIP situation, it
quickly became clear that there were significant problems with the system that would take many months
to address. DHS staff and our partners in EOHHS, HSRI, other agencies, and the community know that
there is plenty of work ahead of us. However, the new data suggests that we are making progress and
improving service for our clients despite the constraints of the system. I am confident that the data going
forward will show that our efforts have allowed us to turn the corner.

Thank you for your hard work. I look forward to continuing to serve the people of Rhode Island together in
the months ahead.

Regards,

Eric