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Q&A
Commissioner addresses accountability measures for shelter providers
1:12:24
ยท
66 sec
Commissioner Molly Wasow Park responds to concerns about accountability, explaining measures in place for both shelter residents and providers. She clarifies that the department has hired additional staff to implement the policy responsibly and emphasizes that providers will face consequences for failing to meet their obligations.
- New staff hired for DHS shelter operations and legal fair hearings team
- Starting on a small scale to understand implications and workload
- Providers may face corrective action plans or impact on future contracting if they fail to meet obligations
- Emphasis on DHS supporting the system to achieve exits to permanent housing
Molly Wasow Park
1:12:24
Right.
1:12:24
Let me start by clarifying that we have hired staff both for DHS shelter operations and for our legal fair hearings team so that we can implement this in a way that is responsible.
1:12:35
Also note that we are starting on a very small scale so that we can understand the implications in the workload.
1:12:43
But I think you really hit the nail on the head when you're talking about accountability across the board.
1:12:48
If a provider is not doing what they need to do with respect to say completing supportive housing applications, there will be no sanctions for the client.
1:12:57
The consequences will be on the provider.
1:13:00
And we have a variety of tools that we use to hold providers accountable, putting them on corrective action plans for example.
1:13:08
It could certainly play into future contracting or lack thereof.
1:13:13
So we will work very closely with the provider.
1:13:16
The idea here really is that DHS is supporting the system across the board to get to the outcomes that we all want, which is exits to permanent housing, but recognizing that we have to be accountable, providers have to be accountable, as do clients.