Smith, who has more than 30 years of experience in child welfare, would be more knowledgeable. But she had been in Nebraska for only five months at that time.
She told lawmakers that while many people believed that St. Francis had underbid the contract, she also heard from many people who said PromiseShip was being overpaid. In particular, she pointed to a 2018 state auditor’s report that questioned an estimated $26 million of state child welfare spending, including spending on PromiseShip.
But HHS also had cost comparisons developed by The Stephen Group, a New Hampshire-based consulting firm. HHS hired the firm in 2018 to assess whether Nebraska should continue contracting out case management in the Omaha area and to develop the request for proposal used to bid out the contract.
The Stephen Group concluded that costs per case under PromiseShip were in line with those in other areas of the state, where state workers handle case management. In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2018, average costs ranged from $2,700 per month in the Northern area to $3,400 per month in the Central area, with the Eastern area costs averaging $3,200 per month.
In addition, St. Francis officials told Nebraska in June 2019 that they would need to up their bid by $15 million to comply with the state’s caseload law. The original proposal was built around a target of 25 cases per case manager.
