Policy and Practice | October 2022

he demand for state govern ment health and human services (H/HS), such as child care, cash, food, and medical benefits continues to grow due to the COVID-19 pandemic, rising inflation, and associated societal impacts. The need for virtual access to customers and employees over the past year has also accelerated a reset of the human-technology interface. The digital channel has become a primary source of engagement, unleashing opportunity, as well as creating new challenges for recre ating empathy, sense of belonging, and human connection. State government H/HS programs are increasingly managing com peting priorities such as expanding coverage while containing costs, T

delivering coordinated services across a complex fragmented ecosystem of applications and infrastructure cost effectively, and dealing with uncertainty about future federal funding to maintain a sustainable statewide integrated H/HS ecosystem. Agencies are driving toward a statewide inte grated services ecosystem that facilitates a whole-person-care approach in an effort to increase health and well-being throughout residents’ entire lives. Recent events have furthered the need for a virtual enterprise that operates in an envi ronment where purpose, intent, and wider societal impact have come to the forefront and is designed to advance the next gen eration of modern tools for the workforce and customers.