Applying online for benefits like food stamps and child-care subsidies used to be an ordeal for Pennsylvania residents. The online forms were hard to decipher and the questions made little sense.
An upgrade to the state’s portal for many social services greatly simplified that process, and that upgrade was recently recognized in the Computerworld Honors Program.
The revamped COMPASS website, launched last June, is now comparable to the software millions of people use to file their tax returns.
Applicants answer questions worded at an easy-to-understand fifth-grade reading level and are given other queries based on their answers. This makes it much easier for agencies to determine whether state residents are eligible for various benefits. Plus, recipients can log into the site to check on their eligibility and when their benefits are deposited into their bank accounts.
James Weaver, chief technology officer in the Department of Public Welfare’s Bureau of Information Systems, says an easy-to-use system to apply for services is imperative for young adults who are used to accessing information online. “You have a different clientele that’s out there,” Weaver says.
Not only that, but the more people apply for benefits online, the more state employees can focus on helping those who need it. The Department of Public Welfare isn’t done upgrading COMPASS. Starting in August, the system will allow nonprofit agencies, hospitals and others submit information on behalf of state residents who are applying for services.
Source: James Weaver, Department of Public Welfare
Writer: Rebecca VanderMeulen