NEWS ITEM
Albert
Hawkins
Executive Commissioner
Date: Jan. 23, 2006
Contact:
Stephanie Goodman, (512) 424-6951
At Airport Boulevard Office,
Early Reviews
Are Good for Enhanced Eligibility System
Excitement and a few opening-day jitters were in the air Monday at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s Airport Boulevard office in Austin. It was the second day of new service options for Travis and Hays county clients of Medicaid, CHIP, TANF, food stamps, nursing home care and other programs.
By early afternoon, however, employees were able to wipe their brows and declare the launch a solid success. When Executive Commissioner Albert Hawkins strolled through the doors at 1:30, he saw the proof: a steady flow of clients opting to bypass formal interviews by using the new self-service room or by applying from home via phone, PC, mail or fax.
“I’ve seen that lobby before; it sure looks different now,” Hawkins said, smiling as he noted the much smaller crowd of people waiting for service. “Anytime you have major change you’re going to have an adjustment period, but it won’t be long before people start seeing the benefits of the new system.”
Regional Director Bob Arbuckle and Supervisor Gloria Meave then led the commissioner on a brief tour of the office, which has two sectors whimsically dubbed The Old World and The New World. In the former, most business is done via face-to-face interviews using bulging paper client files. In the latter, client files are in a digital format and people who prefer not to wait for interviews can use a host of self-service options.
“There’s a universal desire around here to see these go,” Arbuckle said dryly, indicating long rows of file cabinets jammed with client files and forms destined to be boxed and shipped to the Midland service center, where they’ll be scanned to digital images. “It’s going to be a big benefit to both the clients and our employees once we get this new system ramped up.”
The focus on enhanced client service also took more subtle forms, including a helpful set of vinyl arrows appliqued to the floor heading to the self-service room, where clients were already using the newly installed Internet PCs, fax/copy machine and telephones with direct lines to the 2-1-1 system. (The arrows soon will be replaced with even more clearly instructive outlines of human feet, one detail-oriented employee pledged.)
Director of Eligibility Services Aurora LeBrun even got into the direct-service game, standing in the entryway and describing the new system to arriving clients. “This is all new to them, and it takes time to full explain, but once they hear about the new resources they’re pretty excited,” LeBrun said. “I just talked to three different clients, and they all decided to turn right around and do their business from home.”
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