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Legislative report bashes Nebraska help hotline

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new legislative report says Nebraska's public benefits hotline intended to help with benefits like food stamps and Medicaid needs to be overhauled.

The Lincoln Journal Star says the special committee charged with looking into the working of the ACCESSNebraska system found it to be lacking.

The system, implemented in 2008, has drawn complaints about long waits to talk to caseworkers and a high rate of busy signals.

The special investigative committee created this year confirmed what audits in recent years have found: That the system consistently fails to reach its service goals.

Jill Schreck, the Nebraska Health and Human Services deputy director for economic support, says the hotline is not a failure and that the report discounts "the really hard work" done to improve it.

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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com

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