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New York City Comptroller William C Thompson, Jr., today issued an audit that found the Medical Assistance Tracking Information System (MATIS) implemented by the Human Resources Administration (HRA) has not clearly met its overall goal to provide improved efficiency to the Home Care Service Program (HCSP).  HCSP is responsible for Medicaid-funded, non-institutional, programs providing home care to individuals in need.  MATIS was to replace the Home Attendant Line Operating system.

The objective of the MATIS system was to fully automate the processes carried out by the HCSP staff. The audit conducted between September 2006 and May 2007– which can be read at www.comptroller.nyc.gov  – found issues when sample tests were performed on existing cases and also when test cases were created to review and analyze the information in the MATIS system.

“We could not ascertain whether MATIS met the overall goals for which it was created. Based on the audit results, MATIS contains inaccurate, outdated, and unreliable data,” said Comptroller Thompson.

In August 2003 HRA entered into a $1,480,000 contract to complete the MATIS system. By the time MATIS was implemented, May 2005, the contract had increased to $2,980,000. As of March 2007, $3.4 million had been spent to design develop and maintain the MATIS system.

The MATIS system is operational and the design allows for future enhancements and upgrades.  However, the audit disclosed that 71 percent of the respondents to the auditors’ user survey stated that the data in the system was occasionally incorrect and 52 percent stated that MATIS was not user friendly.

HRA plans to integrate MATIS and other sub systems into a new system, Long Term Care Web, which is to be completed in May 2008.  Comptroller Thompson stated: “The system is to be integrated into a larger system in the near future and we hope HRA seriously looks at the audit findings and makes the necessary changes to ensure the efficiency of the Home Care Service Program.”

The audit included 18 recommendations to HRA:

• A review of client profiles periodically to insure that information in the system is accurate.
  
  
• Modify the system programs to allow user to enter accurate information in MATIS.
  
  
• Develop an archiving and retention procedures that complies with the City’s policy and state and federal legislation.
  
  
• Address the user concerns revealed in the survey conducted. HRA should consider including help menus, screens, and formats that are easier to use and providing additional training to those users who reported that they had limited knowledge of the system.
  
  
• Engage an independent quality-assurance consultant to monitor and review development work and any system enhancements or subsequent work on MATIS.
  
  
• Complete and approve a formal, comprehensive disaster-recovery plan for MATIS.

HRA agreed with 15 of the 18 recommendations and agreed to include help menus and enhanced system security as part of the new development for the MATIS system.

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