A Scan of the Status of States’ Integration of Human Services and Health Insurance Programs

Attachment D. Email sent to APHSA members Feb. 23, 2016 alerting them to upcoming federal activities

Dear SNAP Directors:

As you know there is great interest in accurately understanding and documenting how well several aspects of SNAP administration are proceeding, and as a result from time to time you receive surveys from both APHSA and other organizations. We wanted to inform you that two surveys are coming your way in the near future that will be fairly close together and that, while similar in some ways, are different in their specific focus. We have worked to coordinate these surveys, both of which cover issues that are critical to the best future functioning of SNAP and its administration by your agencies as well as the service SNAP provides to individuals and families. These surveys provide important opportunities to shape the development of SNAP, and we extend our appreciation in advance for your attention to them.

1 – The first survey is from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). The survey’s primary focus is on how state SNAP agencies use data matching to obtain or verify income information for eligibility, what challenges states may face in this area, and what federal assistance has or would be helpful. The survey also includes some questions regarding SNAP’s integration with other programs, including Medicaid, as well as other topics. This survey may appear as early as this week.

2 – The second survey is from APHSA and is supported by a grant from FNS. It will examine in depth how Medicaid and other elements of the Affordable Care Act are affecting SNAP operations and access. Many of you will remember a similar grant we had from FNS in 2014 and 2015; this new grant will be more granular and more focused on such areas as specific business processes and how Medicaid and SNAP are or are not aligned in each state. This survey is scheduled to begin no later than April.

Separately, please be aware of a third activity that some of you may hear about from your secretary or commissioner, but which is directed toward agency leadership and information systems officials. This questionnaire will come from the HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation office, probably within the next two months, and will cover high-level questions of agency integration across a broad range of human services programs. We do not anticipate that this activity will have a significant impact on your time.

We will of course keep you up to date if these anticipated dates and plans change significantly. Thanks in advance for taking time to support these important initiatives, and if you have any questions in the meantime, please contact me.

Larry Goolsby

Director of Strategic Initiatives 

APHSA

(202) 682-0100 ext. 239

lgoolsby@aphsa.org