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Friday, October 23, 2009

Ind. Gov't. - More on "Welfare officials to reveal post-IBM process" [Updated]

That was the headline to Mary Beth Schneider's report in the Indianapolis Star this morning. This afternoon she reports under the heading "Post-IBM welfare process cloudy" in a story that begins:

Bloomington, Ind. -- Secretary of State Anne Murphy had few answers for lawmakers today about how the state will transition to a new welfare delivery system now that the $1.34 billion contract with IBM has been canceled.

She only received the contracts with the 22 subcontractors yesterday, she told members of the State Budget Committee meeting at Indiana University, and said she expects to have more details when the committee meets again in December.

But she did describe how the new system is expected to work as it seeks to blend the best of the former caseworker system with the best of the modernized system. People seeking food stamps, Medicaid and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) will be able to go into county offices for a face-to-face meeting, instead of being pushed to do so only by phone or computer. Those options, though, will remain for people who prefer to apply online or over the phone.

Instead of having cases routed through the two call centers, located in Grant and Lake counties, calls will be sent directly to the counties. And while those call centers will become "change centers," where workers can make basic changes to people's information, such as a new address, the actual cases will be managed by caseworkers in each county.

This brief story from the AP's Ken Kusmer.

[Updated 10/24/09] See also these stories today from the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette and the Louisville Courier Journal.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 23, 2009 06:04 PM
Posted to Indiana Government