Two state officials will take the fall for the rocky roll out of the state’s new online benefits system, UHIP. And system consultants Deloitte will not be receiving some $15 million dollars it is owed until the state can conduct a full review of their performance.
Governor Gina Raimondo pointed out that the state was required to implement UHIP because old systems were out of federal compliance. But she admits the rollout has been anything but smooth.
She’s accepted the resignations of Department of Human Services head Melba Depeña-Affigne and chief digital officer Thom Guertin for their roles in the failures. Raimondo says the pace of improvements in the system has been unacceptable.
“And my frustration isn’t nearly as deep or as relevant as the frustration of our clients who deserve and will receive better customer service,” said Raimondo.
Raimondo says the state will also withhold $15 million dollars in payments owed to the system implementation consultants, Deloitte, until her team has time to review their performance.
Raimondo has reassigned her chief operating officer, Eric Beane, to diagnose UHIP’s problems. She says the agencies responsible are also adding 35 staff to help clear the backlog of applications for services like food stamps and payments to vendors, such as nursing homes.