RI Dept. of Human Services to close call center on Wednesdays to reduce paperwork backlog

The Rhode Island Department of Human Services is trying to reduce a backlog in applications for public assistance and will try shutting down its call center every Wednesday this winter to help do it.

In a six- to eight-week pilot program the agency is calling "Processing Wednesdays," call center workers will leave the phones and join backroom staff "processing applications, re-certifications, interim reports, change reports" and other paperwork, the agency said in a news release.

That means Rhode Islanders with questions or the need for help with programs such as Medicaid, child care assistance or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps) will not be able to call the department on Wednesdays.

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However, they can make an in-person visit to DHS office lobbies, which will remain open on Wednesdays, or get answers online.

The idea behind the pilot program is that the backlog of applications contributes to lots of phone calls, which in turn diverts resources away from processing applications, creating a loop of delays.

"After careful analysis of staffing, productivity and outstanding caseloads, I am confident this pilot will yield positive results that will be beneficial for all and allow DHS to better perform to a standard of excellence we all expect,” Acting DHS Director Kimberly Merolla-Brito said.

The Department of Human Services, which serves 300,000 Rhode Islanders, has 4,397 overdue benefit applications, 6% fewer than in November, spokesman James Beardsworth said Friday.

He said Connecticut has used a similar approach to reduce case backlogs.

The department has 773 full-time employees and is in the process of recruiting 66 more, Beardsworth said. After that, the DHS will still have 48 full-time equivalent positions it still wants to fill.

The pilot program comes as extra Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits provided during the COVID pandemic are set to end in March.

And the state is preparing to resume checking Medicaid eligibility after states were barred from unenrolling people during the pandemic.