SR 09-07 Dated 04/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

This SR releases the streamlining of the initial application process for all DFA programs and services. Applicants of DFA assistance are now scheduled for an appointment for the initial eligibility interview. The appointment will be scheduled once Form 800, Application for Assistance, has been received. This appointment schedule replaces the former process in which interviews were conducted on a "First Come, First Served" basis and the applicant waited, sometimes for hours, for the next available Family Services Specialist to conduct the personal interview.

Policy remains unchanged for applicants potentially eligible for Expedited Food Stamps. Applicants potentially eligible for Expedited Food Stamps who come to the District Office are seen the same day of application. If the applicant cannot be seen on the date of application, a personal or phone interview is scheduled for the next business day, or when it is convenient for the applicant.

Form 800V, Examples of Acceptable Verifications Needed to Determine Eligibility, will be provided to all clients requesting an application via the mail. This form was originally a web-based document only but, due to its new use with mailed applications, has now become an official DFA form that can be ordered from Logistics when the District Office is placing a quarterly forms order. Form 800V will continue to be available on the website as well.

This SR also obsoletes electronic Form 800AN, Applicant Notice, also known as the "30-Day Letter," and its associated instructions. Because all applicants of DFA assistance are now automatically scheduled for an initial eligibility interview, the Form 800AN is no longer necessary.

POLICY

All applicants of DFA programs and services are now scheduled for an initial eligibility interview, rather than participating in an eligibility interview on a "First Come, First Served" basis. Applicants are scheduled for the interview upon receipt of Form 800, Application for Assistance.

Applicants potentially eligible for Expedited Food Stamps arriving at the District Office are seen the same day of application. If the applicant cannot be seen on the date of application, a personal or phone interview is scheduled for the next business day or when it is otherwise convenient for the applicant.

All applicants who come to the District Office to apply are provided with the following forms once the interview is scheduled:

·   New HEIGHTS-generated CS0002, Schedule Initial Interview, to inform the applicant of the date and time of the interview. This letter also contains a list of examples of acceptable proofs on the second page to help applicants obtain services more quickly; and

·   Form 800A, DFA Program and Services Guide.

Prior to the applicant leaving the District Office, any additional required forms should be given to the individual. If the applicant is able to complete these required forms and bring the forms and any needed proofs to the scheduled interview, eligibility can be determined more expeditiously.

Applicants who cannot return to the District Office for the scheduled interview due to transportation barriers or an ill family member may be interviewed by phone instead, at the scheduled time of the interview. A DFA supervisor must authorize the use of a phone interview over a personal interview, but all other interview requirements remain unchanged. For example, the same process that is followed at the conclusion of a personal interview in the District Office must be followed when the interview is conducted over the phone. The New HEIGHTS-generated Eligibility Interview Summary must be sent to the applicant along with Form 215, Reporting Requirements Handout, a Business Reply Envelope, and all other required forms. A follow-up call to explain the information on these forms may also be needed.

Note: Current recipients of DFA services who request an additional program of assistance are not treated any differently from any other applicant newly requesting assistance; a Form 800 must be submitted and the individual is then scheduled for the next available interview time slot. Additionally, policy related to failure to participate in a scheduled interview has not changed; see FAM 127.01, Interview Sites, AAM 121.03, Failure to Appear for an Interview, and FSM 127.03, Failure to Appear for an Interview, for more information.

Special Procedures for Mail-In Applications

Any individuals who call requesting an application must be first referred to the electronic versions of the Form 800, Application for Assistance, and Form 800V, Examples of Acceptable Verifications Needed to Determine Eligibility, located on the Department of Health and Human Services’ web-site. Individuals without access to the Internet must be sent a hard copy of Form 800, Form 800V, and a Business Reply Envelope (BRE).

Once the Form 800 is sent back to the District Office, support staff review all the information on the application and complete the "agency staff only" box on the application. Most applicants will then be scheduled for the next available interview appointment. However, the following applications are not immediately scheduled for an interview:

·   applications containing information indicating potential eligibility for Expedited Food Stamps. These applications are given to the Supervisor for review once the support staff determines potential eligibility. If the Supervisor confirms the potential eligibility, support staff calls the applicant to schedule an interview for the next business day, or another day convenient to the applicant. If the applicant cannot be reached by phone, an interview is scheduled no sooner than 5 business days from the date of application; and

·   applications containing information indicating no potential eligibility for any DFA assistance program or service requested. These applications are given to the Supervisor for review as well. If the Supervisor confirms that there is no potential eligibility for all assistance requested on the Form 800, the DFA worker may deny all assistance requested without an interview, per current policy.

NEW HEIGHTS SYSTEMS PROCEDURES AND IMPLEMENTATION

All interviews are electronically scheduled through the "Schedule Individuals" screen. The activities on this screen will be expanded to include the options: "Initial Face to Face Interview" and "Initial Phone Interview" in the near future. Depending on the activity selected, New HEIGHTS-generated scheduling letter CS0002, Schedule Initial Interview, will then be able to specify whether an applicant must attend a face-to-face or a phone interview. The "Eligibility Interview Summary" screen will also be expanded to identify whether an applicant will receive a face-to-face interview or a phone interview. When these changes have been made, New HEIGHTS will release the updates under separate cover.

DESCRIPTION OF REVISIONS MADE TO FORMS

Form 800V, Examples of Acceptable Verifications Needed to Determine Eligibility, was originally a web-based document only but, due to its new use with mailed applications, has now become an official DFA form that can be ordered from Logistics when the District Office is placing a quarterly forms order. Form 800V will continue to be available on the website as well. This 1-page document contains the same information listed on page 2 of the CS0002, and is only provided when applications are mailed to individuals. The form’s purpose is to help the applicant navigate the eligibility process more efficiently. If the applicant is able to provide these needed proofs at application or at the scheduled interview, eligibility can be determined more expeditiously.

Before an application and the Form 800V is mailed to an individual, the individual should first be referred to the electronic versions of Form 800 and 800V on the Department’s web-site. If the individual does not have Internet access, Form 800V should be mailed along with the application and a business reply envelope. District Offices have been supplied with a small supply of this new form. The normal forms ordering process should be used for future supplies. This form and its newly created associated instructions are attached to this SR for reference.

New HEIGHTS-generated CS0002, Schedule Initial Interview, will be revised in the near future to:

·   specify whether an applicant will receive a personal interview or phone interview; and

·   standardize the list of "Acceptable Verifications Needed to Determine Eligibility" to align with the "examples of proof" page developed during the release of SR 08-06, dated 10/06.

The revised CS0002 will be released by New HEIGHTS under separate cover at a later date.

Electronic Form 800AN, Applicant Notice, and its associated instructions, are obsolete with the release of this SR. The form was issued when an application for assistance was either received in the mail or hand-delivered, and the applicant was unable to have an eligibility interview on the date of application. It provided a scheduled time for the applicant’s eligibility interview and advised the applicant of the timeframes in which an eligibility interview must be completed. The form is no longer needed because all clients now receive a scheduled time and date for their interview via New HEIGHTS-generated notice CS0002, Schedule Initial Interview.

POLICY MANUAL REVISIONS

Revised Family Assistance Manual Topics

PART 109  APPLICATION PROCESS

Section 109.01  Filing an Application

Section 109.03  Processing a Filed Application

Section 127.01  Interview Sites

Revised Adult Assistance Manual Topics

PART 109  APPLICATION PROCESS

Section 109.01  Filing an Application

Section 109.03  Processing a Filed Application

Section 121.01  Interview Sites

Revised Food Stamp Manual Topics

PART 109  APPLICATION PROCESS

Section 109.01  Filing an Application

Section 109.03  Processing a Filed Application

Section 127.01  Interview Sites

IMPLEMENTATION

The Manchester District Office piloted the scheduling of initial interviews in September of 2008. The pilot was successful and only 13% of individuals did not attend their scheduled appointments.

The remaining eleven District Offices implemented the new procedures according to the following schedule:

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

On December 1, 2008, the attached community letter was sent to local municipalities and social service agencies in each District Office’s catchment area. The letter was distributed to notify members of the community about the new application process and included a poster outlining what applicants should do to apply for DFA benefits.

Additionally, on December 1, 2008, January 21, 2009, and February 10, 2009 press releases from the DHHS Public Information Office were posted on the DHHS web-site. The release outlined the change to a scheduled interview system for all applicants as well as the dates each District Office would transition to the new system.

Articles outlining the changes in procedures were also printed in the Union Leader and Concord Monitor newspapers during the months each District Office transitioned to the new system.

Finally, throughout January of 2009, the changes were broadcast on WGIR, WNTK, and New Hampshire Public Radio.

TRAINING

The procedures for scheduling appointments were discussed with DFA staff at each District Office prior to the implementation of the new system.

DISPOSITION

This SR may be destroyed or deleted after its contents have been noted and the revised manual topics released by this SR have been posted to the On-line manuals.

FORMS MANUAL POSTING INSTRUCTIONS

DISTRIBUTION

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for Division of Family Assistance policy releases. This SR, and revised On-Line Manuals, will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/DHHS/DFA/LIBRARY, effective June 1, 2009. The SR, and printed pages with posting instructions, will be distributed under separate cover to all internal hard copy holders of the Adult Assistance, Family Assistance, Food Stamp, and Forms Manuals.

DFA/MPM:s

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CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION

I certify that all electronic copies in shared drives of Form 800AN, dated 10/08, SR 08-06 and its associated instructions have been deleted.

District Office Manager of Operations:                

District Office                       

Return this certificate to the DFA Policy Unit, 129 Pleasant St, Concord, NH 03301, after the instructions in the SR have been carried out.