A brief report on our quantitative research about messages that increase people's take-up of government benefits by making them feel like those benefits belong to them.
President Biden believes that every American—regardless of where you live, where you work, or who you are—should have simple, seamless, and secure access to the Federal services they need. Over the past six months, we’ve gotten off to a fast start translating the President’s historic Executive Order on customer experience into action. Today, at the half-year mark, we have more key updates to share.
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.
APHSA established a working group to identify strengths, barriers, and opportunities for better system alignment in human services for young parents and children, leading to the development of a roadmap to support meaningful systems-level changes.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Prior issues of Policy & Practice have introduced framing and what effective framing can do to make our shared narrative more productive and impactful. In this column, APHSA's President and CEO shares two framing strategies that can help us avoid the most common mistakes and produce more effective frames: Widening the lens and using numbers more effectively.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
This paper explores the background of the asset verification system requirement, the vendors that administer the systems; and the typical AVS process. It discusses AVSs’ current limitations and highlights best practices for advocates to promote and state agencies to implement to improve the AVS process and streamline eligibility determinations. Finally, it recommends federal action to help AVS states streamline processing.
In recent years, there has been a deliberate shift to move our public systems that support child and family well-being upstream. These efforts reflect the growing consensus that true and lasting progress toward a nation where everyone can thrive requires we get to the root of the barriers that keep people and communities from achieving their potential. A foundational building block of this effort is the work happening to advance prevention strategies within child welfare agencies. In this brief, we focus on the challenges and opportunities that the Family First Prevention Services Act (Family First) offers to accelerate the shift toward a prevention-oriented child well-being system.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
APHSA's President and CEO reflects on lessons and opportunities the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted and constructs a national narrative around the moment.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
This brief highlights key takeaways from APHSA’s work on young families, starting with an overview of the young families work and its early years, followed by key takeaways and highlights from its final year, ending with opportunities for future work in the young families space.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
This toolkit provides links to a multitude of resources to help health and human services leaders evaluate and intentionally design programs to meet the unique needs of young families.
American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Millions of people could lose health coverage when the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) ends, but states can make changes to avoid massive coverage losses.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should provide detailed guidance and oversight to help states improve automatic Medicaid renewals using available data, through the ex parte process.
