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Integrated Benefits Initiative
A new approach toward a more human-centered social safety net
In the United States, the social safety net is composed of more than 80 services that together aim to lift almost 50 million Americans above the poverty line each year. Today, tens of millions of those people are still falling through the cracks.
Imagine you are a single parent whose hours were unexpectedly cut. You were struggling to make ends meet while working full-time and now you’re very worried. You have rent, bills, and other basic needs to cover and you know you won’t be able to now. Access to both food assistance and healthcare is huge— while it may not solve for all concerns, having that assurance that you can provide food and healthcare for your family can help ease the burden while you come up with a plan.
For many people, the process of applying and maintaining benefits is complicated, time-consuming, and lacks clarity — leaving people to navigate a system with numerous barriers that push them further away from basic needs, like food and healthcare. We need to break down these silos and demonstrate approaches that are easier and faster for clients and more effective and inexpensive for states. The Integrated Benefits Initiative leverages technology and design to demonstrate a more human-centered social safety net that enables access, improves efficiency, and promotes integrity. To achieve this, Code for America partnered with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and Nava Public Benefit Corporation to conduct pilots in Michigan (in partnership with Civilla), Colorado, Alaska, Vermont (led by Nava PBC) and Louisiana.
A human-centered social safety net guarantees that the needs of clients are put first. It ensures that when individuals or families need help, it is easily accessible. It provides clarity when there is confusion. Most of all, when someone applies for benefits they are met with relief rather than friction. After kicking off our first pilot in Michigan, residents now have access to a more streamlined application process for SNAP and Medicaid, which results in a faster approval process. This online application takes less than 10 minutes to complete and has assisted over 2,000 people since the pilot kicked off.
Our Approach
We are redesigning how people access social safety net be
nefits in states across the country.
Here’s how:
Strategic field research. We conduct state-based field research to help agency leaders dig deep into the programs they manage, uncover new opportunities, surface the challenges that caseworkers face, and identify the evidence-based paths toward truly integrated benefits delivery.
Pilots. Based on the findings of field research, we will rapidly prototype open-source tools in partnership with state agencies. Each prototype will seek to catalyze a more human-centered design of benefit systems.
Special Convenings. To share our open source software and the insights our work generates, we will convene leaders across local, state and federal government to build connections and leverage what works.
ibi-principles.png#asset:4378
These principles represent Code for America’s vision for the Integrated Benefits Initiative. The principles are intended to describe outcomes of an improved system where the user experience and user needs are placed at the center of what and how we build. User needs reflect those of clients, workers, and state and federal leaders while outcomes enable all relevant characteristics of the system—people, processes, IT, and policy—to meet those needs.
Want to learn more about the Integrated Benefits Initiative? Watch the video.
Resources
Blueprint for a Human-Centered Safety Net
Transforming the delivery of public benefits in the digital age
How Louisiana Rapidly Scaled Pilot Solutions to Combat COVID-19
Finding innovative ways to bring client voices into systems change
Streamlining Access to Public Benefits in Michigan Report
Designing a user-centered digital enrollment experience
Integrated Benefits Initiative: Best Practices in Texting
Text messaging can help government agencies reach clients efficiently, especially during times of crisis.
COVID-19’s Impact on the Social Safety Net
What we’ve seen in California and how other state agencies can prepare to respond
Cell Phones as a Safety Net Lifeline
What we learned by delivering text messages to 27,000 Louisianans
Piloting Text Reminders in Louisiana (Report)
Over eight months in 2019, we offered "LA'MESSAGE" text message reminders to help people in Louisiana maintain Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, and WIC benefits.
About LA’MESSAGE
Delivering timely, specific text message reminders to help Louisianians access and maintain the benefits assistance they need
The Missed Opportunity in Online Benefits Applications: Mobile First
Lessons from the Integrated Benefits Initiative
Leveraging Text Messaging to Improve Communications in Safety Net Programs
Lessons from the Integrated Benefits Initiative
Bringing Social Safety Net Benefits Online
Examining online platforms for all 50 states
Delivering a Human-Centered Safety Net in a Time of Crisis
Hear from a panel of speakers who have spent their careers improving safety net outcomes and the delivery of government services.
What people are saying about the
Integrated Benefits Initiative
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Our Supporters
Support is provided by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, helping shape a world that is just, inclusive, and full of opportunity for all people.
Additional support is provided by the Walmart Foundation and the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service.
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Code for America Labs, Inc. is a non-partisan, non-political 501(c)(3) charitable organization. EIN number 27-1067272. |