Death Match Report

About the Program

Category: Human Services (Best in Category)

Year: 2013

The In-Home Supportive Services Program (IHSS) provides personal care services for frail individuals in their own homes. More than 440,000 California residents receive IHSS benefits. To preserve public funds, the State of California compiles and distributes the Death Match Report to counties so they can avoid overpayments by discontinuing deceased IHSS recipients and providers from the program. However, information on State’s list is about one year old on average when received by counties even though the list is received typically every quarter. To obtain more accurate Death Match Reports and minimize overpayments, the IHSS Program Integrity Unit (PIU) of the San Bernardino County Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) established its own Death Match program in August 2010. Rather than wait for the quarterly reports from the State, the Unit obtains a monthly report of all recorded deaths within the County directly from the County’s Vital Statistics Office. The report is generated within one to two months of death, and is cross-referenced with IHSS records. This effort has led to more timely discontinuance of IHSS cases and payments after the death of a recipient or provider and has reduced overpayments, thereby increasing the overall cost-efficiency of the IHSS program.