State agencies partner to create a vision for streamlined services
The Washington Plan for Removing Barriers to Health and Human Services sets forth a future where accessing benefits is simple and seamless.
The Washington State Health and Human Services Enterprise Coalition – a cohort of Washington state health and social service agencies – has published the Washington State Action Plan for Removing Barriers to Health and Human Services.
The plan outlines two goals:
- Remove client barriers to accessing benefits. We imagine a future where clients can seamlessly apply for multiple programs in less than 20 minutes and immediately know their eligibility status.
- The state and its programs have a comprehensive view of clients and share information across organizations to proactively offer other benefits for which the client may qualify.
The plan envisions a state where Washington residents can easily and seamlessly access benefits such as Apple Health (Medicaid), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Working Connections childcare programs.
“With the right technology in place, individuals should no longer need to spend hours navigating multiple complicated systems,” said Christine Nolan, deputy chief information officer at the Washington State Health Care Authority. “Our north star is to provide the most complete care possible, connect people to services, and ensure they maintain access to those services.”
This vision is driven by human-centered design principles. Human-centered design is an approach to problem-solving that puts the needs, wants and limitations of people at the center of the design process. It involves understanding the end-users' perspectives and incorporating their feedback to create products, services and experiences that are more effective, usable and desirable.
To create the action plan, the HHS Coalition worked closely with Benefits Data Trust, a national nonprofit that improves health and financial security by harnessing the power of data, technology and policy to provide dignified and equitable access to assistance. BDT guided the development of the Action Plan and provided expertise in how to reduce barriers to accessing benefit programs.
“Washington is applying innovative strategies to improve the ways families learn about, apply to, and access benefit programs,” said Trooper Sanders, CEO of Benefits Data Trust. “We applaud the HHS Coalition’s commitment to comprehensive improvement of benefits access and look forward to helping Washingtonians connect to the programs they need in a way that is dignified, equitable and proactive.”
About the HHS Coalition
In 2018, to promote service coordination, the leaders of Washington’s state health and human services organizations decided that increased collaboration on IT investments is critical to improving the health and well-being of the people, families, and communities of Washington. The decision established the HHS Coalition as a collaborative to govern IT project investments across Washington’s state HHS organizations, and the Washington Legislature formally recognized the HHS Coalition in the 2019 legislative session. The HHS Coalition includes the Department of Children, Youth, and Families, the Department of Health, the Department of Social and Health Services, the Washington Health Benefit Exchange, the Health Care Authority and Washington Technology Solutions. The Office of Financial Management is an ex-officio member advising on issues around state financial budget and legislative processes.
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