DHHS closing offices, eyes online service

The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has not changed its decision to close its Calais office on November 1, despite the outcry from both employees and area residents. The closure appears to be part of a move by DHHS, with no opportunity for public or legislative input, to close a number of its offices and have clients use phone and online services instead of being able to be assisted by staff at regional locations.
The Calais office employees and area residents have cited the difficulties that will be faced by both staff and clients in traveling to the regional office in Machias and the obstacles that are posed by the new DHHS online and phone services. However, petitions and letters opposing the decision have had no effect on the agency, which has not responded to requests for information.
Following the announcement of the decision on July 29, Rep. Joyce Maker, Rep. Beth Turner and Senator David Burns did meet with DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew in September to discuss the issue. They presented the letters and petitions, with over 1,000 signatures, to not close the office. They also presented lease options with less costly rent, which is the reason that DHHS cited for closing the office. DHHS has been leasing a building on South Street, next to the Calais District Court building, for approximately $100,000 a year. One of the offers was for under $20,000, and there were other offers for even less, according to Maker. It was also mentioned that the visitor's center that the city recently acquired might be a possible space for the office.
Maker, though, believes that the lease cost is not the reason for the closure. She understands from Commissioner Mayhew that there will be other offices closing in the future, as the agency "is trying to do it with technology and phones." The agency has been changing over to a service center approach with a statewide processing system, with clients calling in to a customer service center. DHHS also is providing an online option for service.
Maker believes eventually DHHS won't even see clients at its Machias office. "They want to use phones or technology," she says, noting that her father, near the end of his life, could not hear over the phone. Maker says that Mayhew admitted that there are many people in the state who have similar difficulties.
Those opposed to the closure have noted that rural areas, with an aging population and little public transportation, need offices nearby and person-to-person contact. Many of the elderly do not have access to computers, and the elderly may not have a reliable way to travel significant distances.
Noting that she was recently up in Danforth, Maker says, "I can't imagine them trying to travel to Machias." Also there was no cell phone service there either. "It's sad," she says of the DHHS decision.
Among the services offered at the Calais office are the determination of eligibility for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and MaineCare. There are also ASPIRE program staff and an adult protective worker at the office. The 13 workers at the Calais office are being transferred to the Machias office.
The Calais office, though, was serving more clients than the Machias office. According to figures that Maker had obtained, the daily average number of visits at the Calais DHHS office, at 21.99, is higher than the daily averages at the Ellsworth, Farmington, Fort Kent and Machias offices. However, those number did not agree with the figures that DHHS recorded and that Mayhew provided.
As for the services that will still be offered in Calais, Maker understands that DHHS will rent a space for one day a week, reportedly for eligibility staff from the Office for Family Independence to conduct meetings in the Calais area.
DHHS has set a precedent for reversing its decisions, since the agency had announced earlier this year that it would be closing its office in Fort Kent but following protests decided instead to find a new site in that town. However, at the September meeting with the legislative delegation, Mayhew led them to believe the Fort Kent office could still be closed.
Maker says the legislature's Health and Human Services Committee knew nothing about the closures and wants to discuss the issue after the legislative session begins in January. "There's nothing we can do in the meantime," says Maker. "They are just pushing ahead. There's something wrong with that."
"I think DHHS needs to be more accountable. They're not telling the committee what they're doing," she points out, adding that she believes that DHHS should be made to submit a line-item budget. She comments, "DHHS is being very secretive. They're not very transparent."