30 Republican representatives say to stick with the public assistance outsourcing project, despite problems.
By Corrie MacLaggan <
mailto:cmaclaggan@statesman.com>
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, July 13, 2006
A bipartisan group of 60 state representatives asked Texas officials Wednesday to cancel a controversial five-year contract with a private consortium to enroll Texans in food stamps, Medicaid and welfare.
The letter to state officials from 48 Democrats and 12 Republicans was the largest showing of discontent among lawmakers with the progress of the problem-riddled Texas Access Alliance project, which is anchored by Accenture LLP.
Albert Hawkins Health and Human Services commissioner lauded for delaying system.
Dawnna Dukes Austin representative says constituents had problems.
Dan Gattis Jr. One of 30 representatives who support contract.
* House members' HHSC letter
http://alt.coxnewsweb.com/statesman/news/13callcenters_HouseMembersHHSCLetter.pdf
* Letter to Albert Hawkins
http://alt.coxnewsweb.com/statesman/news/13callcenters_LettertoAH.pdf>
But 30 Republican representatives sent their own letter to state officials saying that despite problems with training and technology, they support the work of the alliance, which has an $899 million contract to run call centers that would replace some state offices where Texans apply for public assistance. (Wonder how much those 30 received in campaign contributions from Accenture? If anyone knows, please comment!)
Both groups of lawmakers commended Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Albert Hawkins for halting the statewide expansion of the new eligibility system until concerns can be resolved.
The state has paid the private group $103 million so far, state officials said.
"At this point it is unclear what work, if any, is being done by Accenture, or what, if any 'deliverables' have been delivered as promised," the 60 legislators wrote. (My sources inform me that all they are doing now is gathering and scanning documents....it seems State workers are actually doing the eligibility determinations.)
But Health and Human Services Commission spokeswoman Stephanie Goodman said "the notion that (the Texas Access Alliance) isn't currently doing any work is wrong." (Yeah - we all know what a mouthpiece Goodman is!)
And Texas Access Alliance spokeswoman Jill Angelo said the companies in the group are "working with the state to meet their requirements and have made significant progress over the past several months to improve performance." (Like what? The workload in the State local offices is still increasing!)
A pilot phase of the new system, originally expected to save the state $646 million over five years, started in January in Hays and Travis counties.
But many applicants encountered long hold times or representatives who couldn't answer their questions. (Lets not forget the long lines the appicants/clients are encountering in the non-rolled out areas because of staffing shortages, caused by HHSC and Accenture! I've heard the lines outside the offices in Houston are blocks away from the front doors!)
In May, Hawkins canceled plans to lay off 1,000 state workers, though other state jobs had already been eliminated as the private group took over some of the state's duties.
The 60 legislators say they are alarmed that an error with the privately run system led to dozens of applications with sensitive personal information being faxed to a warehouse in Seattle.
But state officials say a review shows that the documents were most likely sent to Seattle because of random misdials by public assistance applicants. (Do you honestly expect us to believe that thousands of people misdialed the exact same number? It has already come out that Accenture listed the wrong fax number. Why don't they just admit that instead of trying to imply that all these Texans were so stupid that they dialed the wrong number?!)
State officials point out that the new eligibility system provides the 3 million Texans who receive public assistance with more options: They can now apply for services by phone, fax or Internet or in person, rather than just in person. (Why didn't they give these 3 millions Texans the option to do that without crumbling the system already in place? Again, how much money did Accenture "donate" to ensure the legislators let them jump in and destroy a working system already in place?)
And the letter from 30 Republicans says the fact that more than 540,000 Travis and Hays County callers have accessed the pilot system by phone shows that low-income Texans want new channels of access. (Nope. It shows that they were left no choice but to use the "new channels"....even when it caused their benefits to be delayed or lost. It's not like they can "take their business" elsewhere.)
Democrat Mark Strama of Austin was among 60 representatives who did not sign either letter.
Strama said he was more interested in weighing in on policy decisions that affect public assistance than in whether Texas Access Alliance was properly delivering services.
"You'd have to know an awful lot about the contract, about the technology and their success or failure in delivery to make a judgment on that," Strama said.
But Rep. Dawnna Dukes, an Austin Democrat who said she has heard from many constituents who have been improperly denied services or who have had their public assistance renewal delayed, signed the letter asking Hawkins to cancel the contract. (You go, girl!)
"With the State of Texas having the highest uninsured rate in the nation, it is a travesty that those who are eligible for such vital services are not receiving them due to nonperformance of a private contractor," Dukes said.
cmaclaggan@statesman.com; 445-3548
Central Texans' stands
Signed letter asking state to cancel Texas Access Alliance contract:
State Reps. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin; Donna Howard, D-Austin; Elliott Naishtat, D-Austin; Eddie Rodriguez, D-Austin
Signed letter in support of the new enrollment system for public assistance:
Reps. Dan Gattis, R-Georgetown; Suzanna Hupp, R-Lampasas.
Did not sign either letter:
Reps. Robby Cook, D-Eagle Lake; Harvey Hilderbran, R-Kerrville; Terry Keel, R-Austin; Mike Krusee, R-Williamson County; Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs; Mark Strama, D-Austin
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