This Issue Spotlight explores the challenges that recipients of public benefits programs offering cash assistance encounter in accessing funds through financial products or services, with a specific focus on assistance provided on prepaid cards.
In this webinar, a panel of experts discuss what states can do right now to improve EBT security, how to use data to analyze theft patterns, and how EBT payment technology needs to evolve to ensure efficiency, security, and dignity for beneficiaries.
The Technology Transformation Service at GSA recently created a new Public Benefits Studio to focus on fostering a more cohesive, coordinated experience for the public, across programs.
This study examines how bureaucratic interactions differ among public assistance programs—WIC, SNAP, and Medicaid—highlighting variations in participant experiences and the psychological costs associated with each.
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.
As a part of Benefit Data Trust (BDT)’s Medicaid Churn Learning Collaborative, BDT has created a memo describing policy options and state examples for Medicaid administrators to reduce churn for non-MAGI Medicaid enrollees when the federal public health emergency ends.
As a part of Benefit Data Trust (BDT)’s Medicaid Churn Learning Collaborative, BDT has created a memo describing strategies for states to collect current mailing addresses of Medicaid beneficiaries in advance of the Medicaid continuous coverage requirement — in effect under the federal public health emergency — unwinding.
The Texting Playbook provides guidance and well-researched strategies to help state agencies implement texting in support of Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, and other benefits programs. It provides an overview of how to start texting clients; the types of messages to send, including real examples; Federal Communications Commision (FCC) policy guidance; how to encourage opt-ins and collect consent; how to avoid coming across as spam; and a cost analysis of texting.
Implementing client-centered communication strategies, such as clear language and digital reminders, can significantly reduce churn in public benefit programs, ensuring eligible individuals maintain continuous access to essential services.
Our work with Pennsylvania to implement user experience and user interface changes shows that innovation can be easier to implement than it might seem.
Applicants to federal aid programs face numerous barriers in accessing benefits they are eligible for. The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare conducted an extensive qualitative user research study to better understand applicant experience in enrolling in public assistance programs. Based on the results, the study emphasizes the need for simplified, streamlined and less burdensome application processes.
