North Carolina
Department of
Health & Human
Services
WSS & NC FAST
Town Hall Briefing
February 2013
1
Agenda
 Project Update
 Spotlight Topics:
 Reporting
 Help Desk
 System Performance and Performance Monitoring
 Training
 Reception
 Case Routing, Work Queues, and Roles
 Task Utilization
 Universal Worker and Evidence Management
 Next Steps and Best Practices
2
North Carolina
Department of
Health & Human
Services
Project Update
3
P1 Update
 All counties have gone to Hard Launch – Stage 1
 98 counties have fully converted
 Two counties remain to be converted in March
 Mecklenburg
 Forsyth
 Supported 428,732 issuances for active FNS and SNAP cases in
January, representing approximately $306M in FNS benefits issued
since go-live
 Received over 15,100 Help Desk tickets since go-live of which over
14,600 have been responded to and closed
 Working to address open ticket backlog
 NC FAST continues to provide On-Site Support (OSS) to assist
counties through the transition
4
P1 Deployment Status
Alleghany
Haywood
Davidson
Rutherford
Graham
Lincoln
Cabarrus
Stanly
Gaston
Mecklenburg
Transylvania
Orange
Lee
Va
nc
e
Harnett
Craven
Pamlico
C
um
nd
la
d
on
r
be
hm
ic
Anson
Hyde
Greene
Lenoir
Hoke
Beaufort
Wayne
Moore
R
Clay
Union
Johnston
y
Cleveland
Dare
Wilson
Pitt
er
Macon
Polk
Chatham
Rowan
Henderson
Jackson
Cherokee
Randolph
Catawba
n
gto
hin
Tyrrell
s
Wa
Martin
Wake
om
tg
on
M
Swain
McDowell
Nash
Edgecombe
Iredell
Burke
Buncombe
ur
ha
m
Davie
Bertie
Franklin
D
Alexander
Alamance
ll
he
Caldwell
Yancey
Guilford
an
w
ho
itc
M
Madison
Forsyth
Halifax
C
Yadkin
Avery
Hertford
r
Pe
Wilkes
Watauga
Gates
Warren
s
Pa
Stokes Rockingham Caswell
Person
Gr
an
vil
le
Northampton
Surry
k
uc
rit
k
en
ur
d
C
an
am uot
s
C
q
an
im
qu
Ashe
Jones
Sampson
Scot
land
Duplin
Onslow
Carteret
Robeson
Bladen
Pender
2 Counties Convert
March 18th
w
Ne ver
no
Columbus
Ha
98 Counties Fully
Converted
Brunswick
5
ePASS Update
 ePASS should be able to accept applications for FNS beginning in
March-April; specific date to be determined
 Applications received will appear in the NC FAST online applications
work queue
 Supervisors will need to subscribe appropriate workers to the online
applications and withdrawals work queues prior to ePASS upgrade
 Specific details to come
 Confirming an approach to “pilot” the new ePASS application
functionality before widespread use
 Counties will need to make a determination about how much they
want to publicize the availability of this ePASS enhancement to the
general public
6
P2&6 Overview
 Detailed Design is complete
 System development is well underway and is targeted to be
completed in April
 Training material development is in process
 Will be delivered in 2 waves – similar to Project 1
 Will rely more extensively on distance learning than Project 1
 Test script development is wrapping up and test execution is in
process
 Would like counties to be involved in testing activities
 Formal testing
 Sandbox access
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Wanted: Test Resources
 Looking for at least 10 resources
 Commitment Period: March 1 through June 15, 2013
 Looking for 100% dedication to NC FAST
 If not 100% dedicated, then specific allotted time period’s ex. 2/3 full
days a week.
 Seeking program knowledgeable, independent, problem-solving
individuals to execute test scripts – predominantly in the areas of
Medicaid and Special Assistance, experience with FNS/SNAP
welcomed.
 Preferred that resources be on-site throughout testing duration,
MINIMALLY required to be on-site for 2 weeks at start of testing and
for periodic check-points.
8
Health Benefit Exchange Update
 North Carolina has elected to use the federal portal for initial intake
of applications under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
 Applications received through the federal portal will be transmitted
via interface to NC FAST
 Health Benefit Exchange integration web-based training will be
made available to all 100 counties in September 2013 in preparation
for October 1 deadline to begin accepting ACA applications
 Additional information will be provided in the next few months as the
team analyzes implications of ACA on the counties
9
P4 Update
 Received notification that DHHS did not receive US HHS
Administration for Children and Families (ACF)/Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services (CMS) federal partner approval to expedite
NC FAST Project 4 –Children Services
 DHHS will continue to work with ACF/CMS to clearly define the cost
allocation methodology
 DHHS management decided to suspend expediting the project
 Will slow the effort until assured of 90/10 funding
 Will be able to gear up quickly if DHHS gets positive results in the
future
 Appears that the process may take some time given the magnitude
of federal partner questions
 If approval is not received in time to expedite Project 4, Project 4 will
return to its original implementation timeframe
 Planned timeframe to implement Project 4 is now 7/1/14 to 6/30/16
10
Document Management
 With the deployment of Project 2 and 6, document management
functionality will be available through the evidence screens
 Will support all case types in NC FAST
 Use of NC FAST document management functionality is optional –
yet encouraged
 Counties will be responsible for procuring scanning hardware and
software (usually bundled with the scanner)
 Refer to January 7 communication on document management
 Integration design document to be released within the next 60 days
11
P2&6 Implementation Schedule
January - May
P2&6 Preparation
June
Pilot
• WSS Town Hall • Statewide WebMeetings
based Training
• Foundation
Delivery
Workshops
• Pilot Wave 1
• WSS Leadership
Classroom
Summit
Training Delivery
• Change
• Pilot Go-live with
Discussion Guide
Applications
Reviews
• Readiness
Assessments
• Training
Development
• Testing
July-Sept
Soft
Launch
• Phase by Phase
Web-based
Training Delivery
• Phase by phase
Wave 1
Classroom
Training Delivery
• Rolling Go-live
with Applications
• Readiness
Assessments for
Hard Launch
Fall 2013
Early 2014
Hard
Launch
• Pilot Wave 2
•
Classroom
Training
• Pilot Conversion
• Phase Web-based •
Training Delivery
• Phase by Phase •
Wave 2
Classroom
Training Delivery
• Begin Rolling Golive with
Conversion and
Recertifications
Complete
Roll Out
Optimization
and
Maintenance
Conclude Phase • Continue system
by Phase Wave 2
optimization
Classroom
• Support system
Training
maintenance
Complete
Conversion
Complete
Statewide
Implementation
Note: The proposed P2&6 Implementation Schedule above is subject to change
12
P2&6 Implementation Plan
The implementation of P2&6 will follow a similar plan to that of P1, including the
use of Pilot Counties and subsequent Phases of a Soft Launch and Hard
Launch moving geographically across the state.
Alleghany
Ashe
Northampton
Surry
Stokes Rockingham
Gates
Warren
Caswell Person
Hertford
Forsyth
Caldwell
Davie
Madison
Iredell
Burke
Buncombe
McDowell
Swain
Rutherford
Catawba
Lincoln
D
Nash
Martin
Wilson
Pitt
Johnston
Lee
Cabarrus
Harnett
Stanly
Tyrrell
Dare
Chatham
Rowan
Gaston
Bertie
Franklin
m
ha
ur
Wake
Davidson
Randolph
Graham
Polk
Guilford
Alamance
Yadkin
Avery
Halifax
Orange
Wilkes
Watauga
Beaufort
Hyde
Greene
Wayne
Moore
Lenoir
Craven
Macon
Cherokee
Clay
Union
Legend
Hoke
Anson
Jones
Sampson
Duplin
Scot
land
Onslow
Carteret
Robeson
Primary Pilot
- 3 Counties
Secondary Pilot
- 11 Counties
Bladen
Pender
Columbus
Brunswick
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Implementation Approach
 Pilot
 June 17 – 3 primary pilots
 Remaining 97 counties will see screen changes; Web-based
training will be provided to address these changes
 Soft Launch
 July – September – Geographically focused
 Focuses on applications for persons not on active EIS cases
 Will need to convert historical person data out of EIS to support
this; no going back to EIS during implementation
 Health Benefit Exchange
 Web-based training in September for all 100 counties
 Able to take ACA applications on October 1; benefits start
January 1, 2014
 Hard Launch
 September – February 2014; conversion of active EIS cases
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Conversion Approach
 Soft Launch


10 years of history including all IE segments and all associated data for persons on
closed cases as well as providers and facilities will be converted from EIS
Converted twice a month by county in accordance with training schedule
 Hard Launch







Pilot Hard Launch in September and begin statewide deployment in October
Active cases including 10 years of historical data and IE segments as well as
pending applications will be converted
If the client has an existing FNS case in NC FAST, only additional data will be
converted from EIS, no existing NC FAST evidence will be overwritten
The CNDS ID of the primary client will be used to convert and map cases into NC
FAST, creating new Integrated Cases if one does not already exist
No income, resources or expenses, with the exception of medical expenses and
life insurance, will be converted in the evidence dashboard
The amount of post-conversion cleanup that is required is expected to be less than
during P1 but will vary depending upon the type of case
Cases will be converted from the caseworker’s EIS District Number in EIS to their
NCID in NC FAST, keeping caseloads intact
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Training Approach
 1 day Foundation Workshops will be delivered in March-April 2013
 Hands on planning session
 Regional locations across the state
 Practical work products to assist with county readiness for P2&6
 P2&6 Training will be delivered in 3 primary segments:
 Web-based Training – Delivered prior to classroom training
waves
 Also addresses system changes introduced at Pilot
 Wave 1 Classroom Training – 2 ½ days prior to soft launch
 HBE – Web-based training delivered in September 2013
 Wave 2 Classroom Training – 2 ½ days prior to hard launch
 Additional Web-based training scenarios beyond what is covered in
formal training will be developed and posted in FAST Help.
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North Carolina
Department of
Health & Human
Services
Spotlight Topics
17
Reporting
 A top concern among county users
 Actions taken:
 Coordinated a working session between NC FAST project team,
DSS Reporting team, CSDW team, and select group of counties
 Identified several “quick wins” to support pulling data out of
CSDW
 Continue to work with CSDW and DSS Reporting team to meet
county needs:
 Publishing reusable queries
 “Data Dictionary” for CSDW
 Clarifying how NC FAST dashboards pull data
 NC FAST continuing to facilitate discussions between DSS
reporting, CSDW and select group of counties
 18,000 cases assigned to owners with “no access” role
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Help Desk
 Increasing coordination among Tier 1, Tier 2, County Readiness,
and Training teams
 Consolidating Tier 1 and 2 Help Desk under one roof
 Considering rotating Tier 1 staff through a period of on-site support
to increase understanding of county operations
 Exploring options for increasing staff supporting Help Desk
operations
 Strongly recommend establishing a single point of contact at the
county level for Help Desk contact
 Reduces number of redundant tickets
 Increases system knowledge at county level; promotes countylevel troubleshooting
 Provides county with a better sense of county support needs and
staff progress up the learning curve
19
System Performance
 NC FAST is aware that several counties are experiencing poor
performance when using NC FAST
 Performance monitoring software has been made available to all
100 counties and is in the process of being installed
 Many performance issues have been tied to county bandwidth
issues
 The project has encountered a few instances of performance issues
on the central servers which have been resolved
 Project leadership monitors system performance throughout the day
and will seek to proactively notify counties when performance
degradation is identified
 Counties should consider implications of adding additional Project 2
and 6 users on overall county network performance
20
System Monitoring Status
 Still need performance monitoring software installed in the following
counties:
 Guilford
 Perquimans
 Scotland
 Wilkes
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Reception
 All counties must begin utilizing Reception functionality with
deployment of Project 2 and 6
 Must begin using Reception at county soft launch
 Use of Reception required to meet federal Medicaid reporting
requirements
 Should consider suspending further use of county Reception work
management systems, unless there is a compelling reason to
continue their use
22
Case Routing, Work Queues, and Roles
 Once a transaction is recorded at Reception, the Reception worker
must either assign the task to a work queue or a specific worker to
move it along the process
 Supervisors currently have the ability to subscribe users to work
queues
 Will need to subscribe staff who will process ePASS applications to
work queues prior to ePASS upgrade
 Instructions for subscribing workers or units to work queues can
be found in FAST Help
 A few additional security roles will be added with Project 2 and 6
 No major changes in direction
 The intent is to continue to support and work towards a Universal
Worker concept
 Workers who fill multiple roles will need to continue to have their
security roles changed to match current duties
23
Task Utilization
 NC FAST does not support “case banking”
 Confusion may result from the term “task management”
 In the WSS context, “task management” has sometimes been
used synonymously with “case banking”
 Confusion may arise because NC FAST does support the
management of caseloads through system generated tasks
 Bottom line: Workers must be assigned to cases to receive
important alerts and reminders which are sent to the case owner via
system-generated tasks
 Refer to DCDL dated February 8, 2013
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Universal Worker
 NC FAST is being designed, and security roles are being
configured, with the vision that one worker manages a household
 Project 2 and 6 will not have program-specific security roles
 Additional roles may be added, but the same eligibility worker
and eligibility supervisor roles will be leveraged across programs
 A single integrated application (IEG) drives the need to adopt an
integrated interview with customers
 In most cases, evidence is managed at the integrated case level
 Changes will ripple across all product delivery cases within the
household
 Counties need to plan ahead for this transition
 Long Term Care and Adult Care Homes could continue to be
maintained by a siloed team, since there is usually only one program
per household
25
Evidence Management
26
North Carolina
Department of
Health & Human
Services
Next Steps and Best
Practices
27
System Functionality Impacts

With the deployment of Project 2 and 6, brand new functionality as well as
enhancements to the existing NC FAST will be released:










Screening for all economic service programs can be done in NC FAST
Additional questions in the Intelligent Evidence Gathering (IEG) interview script
New evidence types will be available in the evidence dashboard
Reception function must be used to adhere to Medicaid reporting requirements
Smart Panel will be activated to provide guidance to caseworkers
Supervisor Dashboard reports will be enhanced to show data for multiple programs
Multiple Product Delivery Cases if clients receive more than one benefit or
service
Changes to evidence may impact all Product Delivery Cases for a client and
subsequently drives the need to adopt a Universal Caseworker.
Counties will have the ability to begin attaching documentation, such as the
required verifications, directly into NC FAST
NC FAST will automatically generate important tasks for caseworkers to
work in order to keep cases current
28
Preparation Activities
 Create NCIDs for all users, ensuring each has the
dhhs_ncfastprd_user role enabled on their NCID
 Ensure that all cases are assigned to real workers in EIS so they
can be mapped to NCIDs in NC FAST at conversion
 EIS District Worker Number is the source field in EIS for
mapping
 Displayed as “District” on screen in EIS
 Validate the EIS district number to NCID mapping
 Complete the cleanup of any cases identified in the pre-conversion
reports
 Ensure that all computers and networks meet the published
minimum system requirements
29
Best Practices
 Expose Medicaid and Work First staff to FNS; consider cycling new
hires through FNS prior to staffing in another program area
 Cross-train staff on policies and concepts for all programs
 Consider organizational changes to support a transition to a
Universal Worker Model:
 Establish a common intake unit
 Explore creation of multi-disciplinary teams to support caseloads
so staff have easy access to people with knowledge across all
programs
 Consider any potential job reclassifications that may be required
 Determine if any physical changes to your DSS office are
required
 Fill all vacant positions and eliminate all case processing backlogs
 Create a budget for overtime and/or temporary staff
 Actively participate in all NC FAST preparatory activities
30
Best Practices (cont’d)
 Establish one point of contact with the Help Desk
 Get involved in Project 2 and 6 testing activities
 Plan ahead for network and hardware upgrades, based on Project 1
experience
 Consider impacts of utilizing Document Management on network
performance
 Reconsider need to purchase document management software
 Reconsider use of Reception functionality in the near term to get
familiar with the functionality
 Align certification periods between FNS and Medicaid cases
31
Next Steps
 Review Change Discussion Guide – to be mailed in the next few
weeks
 Attend Foundation Workshops
 Purpose: Day long planning workshop focused on defining action
items stemming from review of Change Discussion Guide
 Timeframe: March/April 2013
 Audience: Focused on leaders and decision makers
 Location: Regional sites across the state
 WSS Statewide Conference
 April 22-23 in Raleigh
 Readiness Assessments
 Pre-Soft Launch
 Pre-Hard Launch
32