A project supported by: WRMA’s State and Local Team
Oklahoma taps WRMA
for planning, validation, and verification services for its enterprise solution
Client:
Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS)
Service Areas
Areas of Expertise
Summary
Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) manages and oversees numerous federal human services programs, such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), health-related and medical services, child support, child care, child welfare, aging, and developmental disability services. As OKDHS developed incrementally, business data became compartmentalized by program area even when it was common to multiple business units. Consequently, its clients may provide the same information for each benefit or service they receive.
OKDHS initiated the OK Benefits project to transition from siloed business units and legacy technology to enterprise business processes and supportive technology. Due to the complexity of the project, state and federal partners required a full-time, embedded independent validation and verification (IV&V) team. Oklahoma chose the partnership of WRMA and Maximus due to their proven experiences applying Agile methodology to similar program areas.
Details
The OK Benefits project sought an IV&V team due to the complexity of the project. Validation ensures the right product is being built, and verification ensures that the product was created the right way. WRMA and its partners will replace and integrate existing OKDHS automated systems using Agile methodology and an enterprise architecture approach throughout this eight-year project.
The team will provide management and technical recommendations throughout the project. A primary objective of the solution by the WRMA team is to develop an effective service-oriented solution that works on an enterprise level, providing support, services, and expanded capacity to all relevant departments, agencies, and functions in Oklahoma. This objective serves to ensure that the resulting system is effective for the largest number of users possible. Initially, these existing systems will be replaced:
- Oklahoma Child Support Services, Oklahoma Support Information System, which administers the statewide child support enforcement program under the provisions of Title IV-D of the Social Security Act
- Adult and family services systems for food stamps, TANF, Medicaid eligibility, and child care
- Child welfare services statewide automated child welfare information system, which is referred to as “KIDS”
The WRMA team approach incorporates the applicable federal requirements from the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services, and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services into the project’s oversight activities and deliverable reviews to help ensure the project team provides the appropriate documentation necessary for established reviews by federal partners.
At the start of the project, WRMA developed a process for documenting the state’s requirements for the system, reviewed options for system maintenance, and assisted in developing the advanced planning document required for federal approval. This document outlined the requirements for the system, including functional requirements, technical requirements, and business process flows.
As the project progresses, WRMA will provide an independent assessment of all aspects of the project components to assure program and business objectives are achieved and aligned with state objectives and federal regulatory guidance. WRMA will also advise and support Oklahoma to ensure approaches align with its ability to leverage enhanced Federal Financial Participation and to maintain and secure funding from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
