Think about all the things we do online in our personal and professional lives – banking, buying, registering, applying, shopping, shipping, tracking, blogging – all without leaving the same chair.  In spite of these advances in efficiency and customer service, we don’t make it efficient or easy for low-income families, struggling in a relentless economic crisis, to find help when they need it.  Families frequently navigate a complex maze of referrals, forms, lines at local and state agencies, long waits on the phone and other barriers to accessing needed health and social services programs.

The good news is the public sector is starting to feel the benefits of the modern age, in large part because of innovative efforts to enroll children and pregnant women through CHIPRA activities over the last decade.  And national health care reform (the Affordable Care Act, known as ACA) now puts this phenomenon on the super-fast track.  In 2014, nationwide, consumers will be able to shop for and access private and public health coverage online, from home, without assistance.  In addition, for a limited time, states can use federal funds to extend this service to social services programs too, such as food and cash assistance. This is an unprecedented time to take stock of lessons learned from efforts to streamline access to benefits and to connect families with the maximum number of supports possible.

While there are good examples of this from across the country, I want to spotlight efforts in San Diego County, California, where Social Interest Solutions and community partners (including Text4Baby, 211 San Diego, The Children’s Initiative, county agencies and the Alliance Healthcare Foundation) have linked arms to maximize opportunities to use technology to connect families to services and coverage. One way this happens is through the use of One-e-App, an online system used to screen and enroll families in as many as 15 programs, including Medicaid, CHIP, SNAP (formerly called Food Stamps), Earned Income Tax Credit and more.   Families in San Diego use One-e-App by themselves from home or with assistance from a community organization.

One-e-App also connects electronically to Text4Baby to help eligible candidates enroll to receive important information about prenatal health and the health and care of new babies.  Right now, this is a simple referral and link to Text4Baby in One-e-App – and it’s a perfect example of a low-cost, easy-to-implement way to promote adoption of the valuable services offered by Text4Baby.  But it’s a baby step.  The next step is to truly integrate the two systems so interested consumers can automatically register for Text4Baby with the click of a button, without leaving One-e-App.  Another important next step is to connect consumers who register with Text4Baby with the online, self-assistance version of One-e-App to apply for health coverage and other programs.

It’s a no-brainer.  If I’m buying an airline ticket and I want to rent a car, the airline websites make it easy for me to do so.  If a pregnant woman is applying for Medicaid or coverage for her kids, she should be offered the opportunity to register for Text4Baby. As a One-e-App user in San Diego explained, “You can do a lot online instead of going in person, wasting gas, and standing in line.  Do it online, and it’s done.”

Start today by providing a simple link to Text4Baby in your existing online applications.  And then look beyond that first step to a more integrated two-way connection.