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August 6, 2007 By Tim Evans The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration is making progress in efforts to increase the quality and quantity of care provided to children, the poor, elderly and disabled, but still faces many challenges, Secretary Mitch Roob said today. Roob presented an overview of the agency’s 2007 accomplishments and 2008 goals during a presentation at the Government Center South. The biggest challenges facing efforts to re-invent the state’s largest agency, which touches the lives of nearly one in six Hoosiers, involve controlling cost growth and obtaining federal approval for plans to change the way many programs operate. Roob said the agency has held state cost increases to 5 percent a year by seeking more federal funding and other reimbursements, while streamlining many processes. At the same time, Roob said, the agency is working to reduce the amount of time residents must wait to qualify for programs, such as child care vouchers and services for the disabled. “We need to figure out a way to improve the quality and quantity of care,” Roob said. He also said the state is on track to unveil its new insurance program for the “working poor,” which is being funded by a hike in the state cigarette tax, on Jan. 1. The goal is to have 50,000 Hoosiers enrolled by Dec. 31, 2008. Call Star reporter Tim Evans at (317) 444-6204.
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