New system will lessen bureaucracy and improve service delivery
Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) Secretary Michelle R.B. Saddler today announced the creation of a new year-end financial reporting tool that will reduce bureaucracy and enable human service providers to focus more on service delivery. The Consolidated Financial Report (CFR) was developed by a work group of Governor Pat Quinn's Management Improvement Initiative (MII).
"We were able to bring together representatives from the state's five human service agencies and look for a solution to the cumbersome process of year-end financial reporting and we are excited and pleased with the results," Secretary Saddler said. "By revising the CFR already in use by several agencies, the group developed a system that all five agencies can use that significantly reduces the time providers will have to spend on year-end reporting, allowing them to focus on quality service delivery."
The CFR is a key project in the overall MII, which was signed into law by Governor Quinn on August 25, 2011. The goal of the MII is to streamline the often complex and sometimes redundant processes involving accreditation, licensure, contracting, auditing, monitoring and reporting requirements for the state's five human service agencies and community providers.
The MII agencies include IDHS, Department of Healthcare and Family Services, Department of Children and Family Services, Department of Public Health and the Department on Aging. The initiative will ultimately foster a network of human service provision in Illinois that will enable a greater level of direct service to our vulnerable citizens, even despite the current economic crisis. The goal is to have the CFR in place by Fiscal Year 2014.
Earlier this year the MII created the Centralized Repository Vault (CRV) or provider portal. The CRV is a technology solution used to house and manage the key documents of the organizations that provide services on behalf of the state. More than 13,800 documents have been uploaded to the CRV since it was launched in July.
