Talk:Affiliated Computer Services
Contract Failures
TN: Six Years Past Deadline, Xerox/ACS Spends $19M but Fails to Produce IT System
In 2006, the Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS) contracted with a software company called Albion to replace its "ACCENT" computer system, which handled federal public assistance programs such as Medicaid and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families. The original contract was for $37 million and came with an expected completion date of summer 2008.[1] The contract followed Albion through its sale to ACS in 2007, then ended up with Xerox by 2012. By that time, the contract had been extended twice.[2] Along the way, earlier deadlines and completion dates were missed. According to auditors, by "midway through 2011, DHS had spent $18.6 million, with an additional $19.5 million budgeted for the rest of the effort. The department also budgeted $1.2 million to pay other companies for quality assurance, most of which was spent - bringing the total spent on the program so far to just under $20 million."[3] In spring 2013, the DHS announced that it was "halting work" on the incomplete project and letting its contract with Xerox expire. The project's failure left Tennesseans reliant on an outdated computer system that was still in use in 2014, causing ongoing problems with eligibility and access. [4]
References
- ↑ Tennesee Department of Human Services, "DHS AWARDS CONTRACT FOR NEW COMPUTER SYSTEM," government press release, February 16, 2005. Accessed January 21, 2015.
- ↑ Tennessee Department of Human Services, Contract #11, Vendor Xerox State & Local Solutions," compiled August 21, 2012. Accessed January 21, 2015.
- ↑ "State pulls plug on multi-million dollar computer system," WBIR, April 27, 2013. Accessed January 21, 2015.
- ↑ Tom Wilemon, "TennCare rejection letters sent to those who didn't apply," The Tennessean, October 31, 2014. Accessed January 21, 2015.
