QUESTION
How is the backlog defined for cash assistance and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and what strategies have been implemented to address it?
1:05:32
·
8 min
The Department of Social Services (DSS) defines a backlog as any new application or annual recertification not processed within 30 days for both cash assistance and SNAP, and they use a three-pronged strategy to address the backlog.
- A backlog includes unprocessed applications or recertifications within 30 days for both cash aid and SNAP.
- DSS's approach to clearing the backlog involves hiring staff, investing in technology, and enhancing processes including securing waivers from the state.
- Initial timeliness rates for fiscal year 2024 show significant delays, but improvements are noted by January with a cash assistance timeliness rate of 55.4% and SNAP at 62.9%.
- The agency prioritizes staff on cases necessitating action and utilizes waivers to streamline processes, including a waiver for cash case recertification, significantly reducing the manual review workload.
Diana I. Ayala
1:05:32
During the November plan, hearing the OMB Director told the counsel that the SNAP program had addressed all the backlog.
1:05:39
Under the administration expected the cash assistance program to be rid of their backlog by February.
1:05:44
HRA has also stated that the agency has hired over 700 new staff to assist in making sure that the backlog was taken care of.
1:05:51
The PMMR, which was recently released, reported the timeliness for both programs, has continued to be troubling for the 1st 4 months of fiscal year 2024, cash assistance timelines reached a new low of 14.3% and snapped timeliness was at 41.6%.
1:06:10
On March 4th, the mayor announced that the cash snap backlogs had been entirely eliminated, nearly entirely eliminated.
1:06:18
Can you explain to us how HRE defines backlog for cash assistance and snap?
1:06:22
And does it relate to both applications and recertifications?
Molly Wasow Park
1:06:27
Yeah.
1:06:27
Thank you, deputy speaker.
1:06:29
Yeah.
1:06:29
So Yes.
1:06:31
The backlog includes any new application or annual recertification that's not processed within 30 days, and that's true for both cache and snap.
1:06:40
I wanna maybe take a minute to explain the excuse me.
1:06:44
The distinction between what was in the PMMR and and what we are saying now because it certainly does matter.
1:06:51
The timeliness rates from the PMMR, as you know, reflect the 1st 4 months of the year.
1:06:56
Over the summer.
1:06:57
So at the beginning of this fiscal year, that was our peak backlog.
1:07:02
Right?
1:07:02
We were at 46,000 cash cases backlogged in July of 2020 3.
1:07:07
And and as a result, timeliness rates at that point in time were were very, very challenging.
1:07:13
As we are reducing the backlog, the timeliness rates are improving significantly.
1:07:19
So for January, which actually reflects December applications.
1:07:25
It was 55.4 percent for cash and 62.9 percent for SNAP.
1:07:29
So still still room for improvement there, but significantly better than they were in the PMMR numbers.
1:07:36
Because the timeliness rates lag slightly, they're always calculating calculated on the previous month, you should see much better numbers for when April is released.
Diana I. Ayala
1:07:46
K?
1:07:48
And and did that relate to both applications for re applications and recertifications?
Molly Wasow Park
1:07:54
Correct.
1:07:54
Those are combined timeliness numbers.
Diana I. Ayala
1:07:56
Okay.
1:08:00
Alright.
1:08:00
And it's okay.
1:08:01
So how did it already clear the backlog?
Molly Wasow Park
1:08:06
Great question.
1:08:07
I'm very happy to answer that one.
1:08:08
I'm going to give the top lines, and then I will turn it over to administrator French.
1:08:12
So we really had a 3 pronged strategy.
1:08:15
We were focused on hiring staff, as I mentioned, multiple times, close to a thousand people over the last year for frontline cash and snap processing, investing in technology changes, and then doing some really significant process improvement, including waivers from the state.
1:08:33
But I will let administrator French give the details.
Scott French
1:08:37
Thank you, commissioner.
1:08:38
So yes, as the commissioner said, we took a 3 pronged approach at really works together to get us to a place where we are operating as efficiently as we can.
1:08:47
So aside from the staff, which we have been able to also hire throughout the hiring freeze.
1:08:52
So we were able to continue to stay focused on having our eligibility staff to be able to take in the applications, work with our clients and make assessments, you know, through the use of technology and waivers from the state.
1:09:06
Wearables look at processes that maybe didn't need to be done so manually and or based upon information that we had maybe we could look at a smaller subset of individuals who needed some efforts on our part, but could be received some waivers as well.
1:09:22
So one of those was on recertification.
1:09:24
You know, on a cash case, individuals get a 6 month mailer.
1:09:28
This used to go to everybody.
1:09:30
We looking at our data, realized that usually only 9% or so of clients actually had earned income, which needed to be reported at that 6 month.
1:09:39
So working with the state, we are able to get a waiver for the 91% of individuals who didn't need to submit it because there was no change in their case.
1:09:47
As you could imagine, that's great for clients, but also for our workload, we're able to refocus our staff on applications and recertifications that need action will work done while not having them look at applications where there is no change, so the case would continue as is.
1:10:04
So I'd say that's illustrative of the different types of ways we looked at it to improve the processes and make sure our staff are focusing on the cases that need our efforts, but for cases that didn't clients would knew their benefits and staff could move on to the next case that needed some looking at.
Diana I. Ayala
1:10:20
So with with the the waivers that were approved, are those waivers that we used throughout the pandemic as well?
Scott French
1:10:27
No.
1:10:27
These are waivers that many of them are waivers that we developed.
1:10:30
As we were looking at the backlog, we have group of individuals both on the program side, the legal side, our accountability office, and our IT, constantly looking at the ways in which we're doing our work.
1:10:42
And identifying additional places where we may be able to streamline the process.
1:10:46
So many of these waivers were a result of that.
1:10:50
Additionally, another waiver we looked at and got agreement from the state was around a selective case review for certain cases where usually supervisors needed to look at every case, but we were able to look at cases where We were able to waive the secondary review because the case itself, you know, was gonna move forward, and we had real confidence in that there were no errors related to the case.
Diana I. Ayala
1:11:12
Yeah.
1:11:14
Are these waivers permanent?
1:11:16
I I mean, is there is there any opportunity to change policy here so that they do become permanent?
Scott French
1:11:24
At the moment, the waivers are ongoing.
1:11:26
We continue to work with our oversight OTDA as well as other oversight to the federal level as needed.
1:11:32
We are not looking at this moment to stop any of the waivers.
1:11:36
And so, you know, as of right now, we are looking to keep them in place.
Diana I. Ayala
1:11:40
I mean, I asked because usually waivers are not indefinite, and we saw during the pandemic that they work well.
1:11:46
And then as soon as we no longer had them, we saw an influx of, you know, in in the the number of backlog cases.
1:11:54
So, obviously, we wanna make sure that whatever positive trend we're on, that it's something that you know, we'll we can manage.
1:12:04
Right?
1:12:05
And they're sustainable.
1:12:07
So that's
Scott French
1:12:09
Yeah.
1:12:09
We definitely working with our partners at OTDA are looking to keep the waivers in place.
1:12:14
I will say also, you know, in conversations with others around the state as well who are experiencing the same challenges as New York was as it relates to a high volume of applications and recertifications.
1:12:25
And keeping up with that.
1:12:26
You know, they have definitely looked to us and asked us, but we have done, and I know others around the state are considering similar approaches that we are.
1:12:34
So it's definitely a partnership between us.
Lincoln Restler
1:12:37
Mhmm.
Scott French
1:12:37
And we are looking to keep these in place as long as we can.
1:12:40
No.
Diana I. Ayala
1:12:40
I hope that you could, and I I think that there there has there should be long term conversations with the OTA about just making a policy change so that the waivers are no longer waivers but a matter of policy because a lot of the times where a lot of this work is really redundant and creates more bureaucracy than necessary.
1:12:58
Howard Bauchner:
Molly Wasow Park
1:12:58
Yeah, we're OTDA has been terrific partners in this.
1:13:02
I think and we will absolutely keep that open line of communication going.
1:13:08
I think it's we one of the small alignings here is that we have found ways to make this process actually work better in ways that I think will make us more resilient going forward, and we certainly don't wanna lose any ground there.
1:13:21
Sorry.
1:13:21
I do have to correct one more statement that I made.
1:13:23
The PMMR timeliness rate is only applications.
1:13:26
It doesn't include the
Diana I. Ayala
1:13:27
recertifications.
1:13:29
Okay.
1:13:31
Okay.
