The federal government is threatening to withhold nearly $1 million dollars in reimbursements to Rhode Island because of ongoing problems with the state’s computerized benefits system that administers the nutrition assistance program known as food stamps.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said that despite efforts to improve its public benefits system, known as UHIP, “the progress to date has been insufficient to address many long-standing issues,” according to an April 16 letter to Courtney Hawkins, director of the state Department of Human Services.
The federal agency has given Rhode Island until May 16th to deliver a schedule for fixing the problems.
Hawkins said responsibility for the problems lies with the state contractor, Deloitte Consulting, which the Unified Health Infrastructure Project or UHIP.
“This formal warning underscores the fact that Deloitte has not yet delivered a fully functioning system that works on behalf of Rhode Islanders,’’ Hawkins, who was traveling to a conference Wednesday, said in a statement. “We will continue to hold Deloitte accountable until the system achieves performance targets and meets federal compliance standards.”
The federal warning letter includes a list of more than two-dozen problems with UHIP, including food stamps that were improperly cut off and benefits going to households which are ineligible. The state received an “advanced warning” from the federal agency last December, the federal agency said, but its response on Feb. 1st “failed to identify a timeline for addressing the backlog of unprocessed documents.’’
Since its September 2016 launch, the computerized system that administers Rhode Island’s food stamps and other public benefits has cost the state about $492 million, including $108 million in state taxpayer funds. UHIP also is the subject of a lawsuit by the Rhode Island chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. And a federal judge has appointed a special master to oversee its operation.
Hawkins said the state has secured over $85 million in credits from Deloitte, and expects the contractor to cover any federal penalties related to the food stamps program resulting from the computerized benefits system.
Related links:
To read the state’s progress report on UHIP click here.
To read the April 16 federal warning letter to the R.I. click here.
