The Better Government Lab at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University has developed a new scale for measuring the experience of burden when accessing public benefits. They offer both a three-item scale and a single-item scale, which can be utilized for any public benefit program. The shorter scales provide a less burdensome way to measure by requiring less information from users.
This playbook is designed to help government and other key sectors use data sharing to illuminate who is not accessing benefits, connect under-enrolled populations to vital assistance, and make the benefits system more efficient for agencies and participants alike.
Professor Don Moynihan discusses how administrative burden is an effective tool to make it difficult for people to access certain types of benefits, noting that this is particularly harmful to communities of color.
The article discusses how state agencies can effectively use text messaging to communicate with Medicaid and SNAP enrollees, especially following a 2021 FCC ruling that permits automated texts for informational purposes.
The Increasing Stimulus Payment Take-up in California report by the California Policy Lab examines barriers to accessing federal stimulus payments and provides strategies to increase take-up among eligible Californians, particularly low-income and non-filers.
This resource examines how improvements in customer service experiences in public benefit programs like Medicaid, CHIP, and TANF can help better meet enrollees’ needs and build trust in government.
This report summarizes 19 SNAP policy options (in effect as of Oct. 1, 2023) and waivers (implemented as of July 1, 2023) chosen by SNAP state agencies (50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Virgin Islands) in federal fiscal year (FY) 2023.
This article discusses how Code for America enhanced the CalFresh application process to better assist self-employed individuals in accessing their full benefits by clarifying self-employment definitions and simplifying income verification.
This document is a caseworker-facing flowchart for use in screening SNAP applicants and participants to determine if they are subject to work requirements.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
This blog explains how the Rural Health Transformation Program—established under H.R. 1—will channel $50 billion over five years to states to support rural health care, and outlines how states can apply, qualify, and deploy funds strategically.
Association of State and Territorial Health Offices (ASTHO)
Through the interviews, ULP sought to capture details of claimant experience, see how and why system failures occurred, and make recommendations for reform now—before another financial or public health crisis suddenly causes state unemployment rates to spike.
