State-run computer systems that provide federal welfare benefits to the public are behind schedule on year 2000 conversion, a new report says. The General Accounting Office found that only one-third of the 421 state government welfare systems were year 2000 compliant by August. In its year 2000 guidelines, the Office of Management and Budget said systems fixes should have been completed by September.
Many federal programs rely on non-federal computers to function.
Potential problems states cited were that new recipients could not be added to the recipient file, eligibility for new applicants could not be determined, recipients could be denied benefits, payments could be underpaid or overpaid and payments could be delayed. GAO surveyed Y2K coordinators in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands. Only 16 percent of state Medicaid systems were Y2K-compliant, even though 64 percent of states reported receiving guidance from the federal Health Care Financing Administration. Seventy-seven percent of the states said they need more funding from the federal government to fix the welfare systems. Y2K best practices with them.