EIght months after the state launched what has been described as a broken computer system, the R.I. Department of Human Services continues to pare a lengthy list of problems.
The to-do list includes resolving call center waits of two hours, average lobby wait times of 75 minutes and a backlog of pending applications for state aid that is falling in number, but still exceeds 10,000.
In a detailed, nine-page update, provided to Gov. Gina M. Raimondo on April 26, Eric J. Beane, the department’s chief operating officer and acting director, revealed the extent of the paralysis that gripped the state system, and progress in getting out of it.
The backlog of pending applications for state aid had “stabilized,” he reported, and predicted that by May 15, would begin to see week-over-week reductions.
By this summer, the backlog of pending applications for programs, including food assistance, temporary cash assistance and child care, should be reaching a steady state, he told Raimondo in the report. Pending applications for long-term medical services should be caught up by the fall, he predicted.
Getting this work done has required both the state and Deloitte Consulting – which provided the United Health Infrastructure Project system – to hire several hundred employees.
The Rhode Island hires have included 113 people brought on by April 28, according to department spokeswoman Alisha Pina. The goal is a total of 143. All are full-time positions, although about half of those hired to date will be engaged on temporary assignments, she said in an emailed message.
The new employees include eligibility technicians, customer-service aides, social workers, career advisers and case-work supervisors. The focus of the new workers will initially be on the program providing food-assistance benefits to eligible individuals. After that, they’ll be trained on additional state programs.
In addition to bringing on more of its own personnel, Deloitte has covered the state’s new employee expenses with a recently announced $27 million payment. This doesn’t prevent the state from seeking additional claims.
The payment is expected to cover expenses for the employees and contractors through the end of the first quarter of 2018, according to Pina. “We are monitoring Deloitte to ensure all major outstanding issues are eliminated within the next five to 10 months,” Pina wrote.
That’s how long the state expects the corrections will continue, Beane explained in his report.
After an update for members of the General Assembly serving on an oversight committee, Rep. Patricia L. Morgan, R-Coventry, said she was frustrated and angry. The acting director was presenting the progress as if it was an accomplishment, she said.
“The vulnerable didn’t ask for this to be launched before it was ready,” she said. “The taxpayers didn’t ask for this to be launched before it was ready.”
