ACCESS FLORIDA SYSTEM TECHNICAL ARCHITECTURE OVERVIEW · ACCESS FLORIDA SYSTEM TECHNICAL...

STATE OF FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

ACCESS FLORIDA SYSTEM

TECHNICAL ARCHITECTURE OVERVIEW

ITN# - 03F12GC1

JUNE 1, 2012

STATE OF FLORIDA – DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES June 1, 2012

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Table of Contents 1.0 Background and Organization Overview .......................................................................................... 1

Background ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1

Program of Service Specific Terms ................................................................................................ 3 1.2

ACCESS Florida IT Organization and Activity Overview................................................................. 6 1.3

Northwood Shared Resource Center ............................................................................................ 7 1.4

2.0 Technical Overview ........................................................................................................................... 8

Application Frameworks ............................................................................................................... 8 2.1

Databases Types ........................................................................................................................... 9 2.2

Data Access Technologies ........................................................................................................... 10 2.3

Data Security ............................................................................................................................... 11 2.4

3.0 ACCESS Florida System .................................................................................................................... 12

ACCESS Prescreening Tool .......................................................................................................... 14 3.1

ACCESS Web Application............................................................................................................. 16 3.2

My ACCESS Account .................................................................................................................... 19 3.3

My ACCESS Account Authentication & User Administration ...................................................... 21 3.4

FLORIDA ...................................................................................................................................... 23 3.5

ACCESS Management System (AMS) .......................................................................................... 28 3.6

ACCESS Document Imaging (ADI) ................................................................................................ 31 3.7

Integrated Benefit Recovery System (IBRS) ................................................................................ 35 3.8

HP ExStream Software ................................................................................................................ 37 3.9

Power Tools ................................................................................................................................. 39 3.10

ACCESS Florida KidCare ............................................................................................................... 41 3.11

ACCESS Online Applications ........................................................................................................ 44 3.12

Food for Florida (FFF) .................................................................................................................. 48 3.13

Food for Florida Volunteer and DHL Tracking ............................................................................. 51 3.14

4.0 ACCESS Customer Call Centers........................................................................................................ 52

5.0 ACCESS Florida System Batch Overview ......................................................................................... 54

Batch Framework ........................................................................................................................ 54 5.1

Backup Routines .......................................................................................................................... 54 5.2

Batch Jobs ................................................................................................................................... 55 5.3

6.0 ACCESS Florida System Interfaces ................................................................................................... 56


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7.0 Key Statistics ................................................................................................................................... 61

8.0 Application Hardware and Software ............................................................................................... 63


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1.0 Background and Organization Overview

Background 1.1The Department of Children and Families (DCF) impacts the lives of Floridians at a moment when

their needs are greatest. DCF is responsible for managing the cash assistance program known as

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Food Assistance (formally known as the Food

Stamp Program) and Medicaid eligibility. This equates to more than $4 Billion1 in food assistance

and cash assistance, and eligibility determination for the State of Florida’s $18 Billion2 Medicaid

program. Customers in Florida use these various forms of assistance to provide the necessities for

their families, while moving towards self-sufficiency.

The current public assistance eligibility mainframe system, known as FLORIDA, was implemented

in 1992. It is transfer technology from the State of Ohio, and was originally designed in the early

1980s. Since 1992, DCF has relied almost completely on legacy technology centered on the

FLORIDA mainframe system. It was designed to support an older service delivery model that

consisted of face-to-face interviews conducted at local offices, a heavier reliance on data entry, and

first-hand documentation with no self-service options for customers.

In 2004, DCF began to modernize its approach to administering cash assistance, food stamps, and

Medicaid Programs. Known as Automated Community Connection to Economic Self-Sufficiency

Florida, or ACCESS Florida, this new business model drastically changed the way DCF staff

processes applications and manages caseloads, and how clients interact with DCF. DCF conducted a

complete review of federal and state law and eliminated outdated, labor-intensive policies and

practices which were not required and added little or no value to the process. The face-to-face

interview requirement was eliminated, and verification requirements were simplified with a

greater reliance on electronic verifications. Call centers were established to provide customers

greater access to the Department to report changes in their household situation.

The initial ACCESS Florida efforts focused on streamlining workflows and simplifying policy with

plans for enhanced technology at the foundation. Florida has experienced a food assistance

caseload increase of 169 percent since initiating the modernization effort, mainly as a result of

economic factors’ impact on families and individuals as the recession began to affect the caseload in

April 2007.

The Department has met this expanding workload with the implementation of a variety of

applications that increase efficiencies and support customer self-sufficiency through the use of

technology. The technological changes which came with ACCESS Florida affected almost all aspects

of customer intake and case management, beginning with a web-based application which could be

submitted online using an electronic signature, and work management tools which helped move

1 FY 2009-10 actual food assistance benefits was $4,034,447,154 and cash assistance benefits were $166,095,940. 2 FY 2009-10 projected Medicaid spending was $17.9 Billion, serving 2.6 million people with projected future year increases (Select Policy Council on Strategic & Economic Planning, January 11, 2010)


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information from the customer application to the FLORIDA System. Other technologies were

developed to support call center operations and the document management.


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Program of Service Specific Terms 1.2

Term Definition

ACCESS Automated Community Connection to Economic Self-Sufficiency

ACCESS Florida System

The Department's existing public assistance eligibility system, which includes the following applications and subsystems: FLORIDA, ACCESS Community Partner Internet Search, ACCESS Document Imaging, ACCESS Florida KidCare, ACCESS Florida Prescreening Tool, ACCESS Florida Web Application, ACCESS Integrity Online System, ACCESS Knowledge Bank, ACCESS Management System, My ACCESS Account Authentication and User Administration, Community Partners Tracking System, Data & Reports System, Exceptions Management System, Extreme Notice System, FLORIDA, Food For Florida, Food For Florida Volunteer and DHL Tracking, Integrated Benefit Recovery System, My ACCESS Account, Quality Management System, Streaming Tools, Telephonic Interactive Voice Reponses, Quality Control System.

ACD Automatic Call Distributer

ADI ACCESS Document Imaging

AHCA State of Florida, Agency for Health Care Administration

AHCA Agency for Health Care Administration

AMS ACCESS Management System

API Application Programming Interface

ARC Application Restart Control

ARU Audio Response Unit

ASPX Server-generated Web page that may contain VBScript or C# code

BSAM Basic Sequential Access Method

BTS Batch Terminal Simulator

CAMS Child Support Enforcement Automated Management System

CCC Customer Call Center

CD Connect Direct

COBOL Common Business Oriented Language

COTS Commercial Off-the-Shelf Software

CSE Child Support Enforcement

CSS Cascading Style Sheets

DASD Direct Access Storage Device

DBMS Database Management Systems

DCF Department of Children and Families

DHL Global company used for providing logistical support to Food for Florida.

DMS Department of Management Services

DPS Document Processing Service

Driver The enforcement of business rules in FLORIDA by program selection-based screen flow and processes (screens) that must be executed in sequence.

EBT Electronic Benefits Transfer

EBT Electronic Benefit Transfer


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Term Definition

EDB Florida Eligibility Database

EFA Emergency Food Assistance

EJB Enterprise Java Bean

ESS Economic Self Sufficiency

FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency

FFF Food For Florida

FHK Florida Healthy Kids

FLODS FLORIDA Operational Data Store

FLORIDA Florida Online Recipient Integrated Data Access System

FTP File Transfer Protocol

GB Gigabyte

GSAM General Sequential Access Method

HDAM Hierarchical Direct Access Method

HIDAM Hierarchical Indexed Direct Access Method

HTML Hypertext Markup Language

HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol, the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web.

IBRS Integrated Benefit Recovery System

IIS Internet Information Server - Microsoft's Web server that runs on Windows NT platforms.

IMS IBM Information Management System (mainframe hierarchical database)

IMS Information Management System

IP Internet Protocol

IVR Interactive Voice Response

J2EE Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition

JAM Java Adapter for Mainframe

JCL Job Control Language

JDBC Java Database Connectivity

JSF JavaServer Faces

JSP JavaServer Pages

Mass Change

A change in tables/data/policy that may affect the entire or a significant portion of the caseload

MFN MyFloridaNet

MFS Message Formatting Services

MMIS Medicaid Management Information System

MVC Model-View-Controller

NSRC Northwood Shared Resource Center

ODBC Open Database Connectivity

ORM Object-relational mapping

OSAM Overflow Sequential Access Method

Parallel Sysplex

A cluster of IBM mainframes acting together as a single system image


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Term Definition

QMS Quality Management System

RAC Oracle Real Application Cluster

RAC Oracle's Real Application Cluster

RACF IBM’s Resource Access Control Facility Security System Software for mainframe security

RDBMS Relational Database Management System

SDX State Data Exchange

SNA Systems Network Architecture - IBM's proprietary networking architecture

SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

SQL Structured Query Language

SSL Secure Socket Layer

SSN Social Security Number

Struts Apache Jakarta Struts Framework

TANF Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

TB Terabyte

TCA Temporary Cash Assistance

TDF Telon Development Facility

TM Transaction Manager

TWAIN A widely-used program that lets you scan an image (using a scanner ) directly into the application.

UI User Interface

USPS United States Postal Service

VSAM Virtual Storage Access Method

XML Extensible Markup Language


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ACCESS Florida IT Organization and Activity Overview 1.3The ACCESS Florida System application development and production support team is comprised of

a combination of DCF staff and consulting resources as outlined below:


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Northwood Shared Resource Center 1.4State legislation creating the Northwood Shared Resource Center (NSRC), Chapter 2008-116, Laws

of Florida, was passed on June 10, 2008, as part of the State’s efforts to consolidate data centers.

Effective July 1, 2009, the NSRC was established. At that time, the Department of Children and

Families transferred to the NSRC data center all of its current hardware, software, staff, contracted

services and facility resources that performed data center management and operations, including

security, backup and recovery, disaster recovery, system administration, database administration,

job control, production control, print, storage, technical support, and managed services.

Applications maintenance, operations and development activities remain within the Department.

As a primary data center the NSRC is a separate budget entity that is not subject to control,

supervision, or direction of the Department of Children and Families in any manner, including, but

not limited to, purchasing, transactions involving real or personal property, personnel, or

budgetary matters. The NSRC is headed by an Executive Director with a board of trustees

comprised of NSRC customer delegates.


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2.0 Technical Overview While the majority of the ACCESS Florida applications are “home grown,” the technology used to

develop these systems has stayed fairly consistent. The primary or larger applications are Java-

based with an Oracle database backend. However, there are also several .Net (C# and VB.Net)

applications with a Structured Query Language (SQL) Server database backend within the

environment.

Application Frameworks 2.1The ACCESS Florida Java applications are based upon a Model View Controller (MVC) architecture

design pattern, and the .Net applications are use ASP.Net Web Forms.

The application framework is non-proprietary, and while most Java applications are based on the

Struts, some applications have been developed using JavaServer Faces (JSF), Spring Framework and

Enterprise Java Bean (EJB).

Model View Controller

The MVC architecture separates core data access functionality from the presentation and control

logic that uses this functionality. Such separation allows multiple views to share the same

enterprise data model, which makes supporting multiple clients easier to implement, test, and

maintain. It also supports robust security measures, promotes reuse of code for multiple functions,

and enables tuning for optimal performance.

The model represents enterprise data and the business rules that govern access to this data. Often

the model serves as a software approximation to a real-world process, so simple real-world

modeling techniques apply when defining the model.

A view renders the contents of a model. It accesses enterprise data through the model and specifies

how that data should be presented. It is the view’s responsibility to maintain consistency in its

presentation when the model changes. This can be achieved by using a “push” model, where the

view registers itself with the model for change notifications, or a “pull” model, where the view is

responsible for calling the model when it needs to retrieve the most current data.

A controller translates the interactions with the view into actions to be performed by the model. In

a stand-alone graphical user interface client, user interactions could be button clicks or menu

selections, whereas in a Web application, they appear as GET and POST HTTP requests. The actions

performed by the model include activating business processes or changing the state of the model.

Based on the user interactions and the outcome of the model actions, the controller responds by

selecting an appropriate view.

The figure below displays a functional view of the MVC architecture.


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Web Forms

The ACCESS .Net applications are based upon an ASP.Net Web Forms architecture. Web Forms are

pages that users request through their browsers which form the user interface that gives web

applications their look and feel. These pages are written using a combination of Hypertext Markup

Language (HTML), server controls, and server code. When users request a page, it is compiled and

executed on the server, and then it generates the HTML markup that the browser can render.

Databases Types 2.2The ACCESS Florida applications use a combination of the following two database types:

Hierarchical Database

Information Management System (IMS) is IBM’s joint hierarchical database and information

management system with extensive transaction processing capabilities and is used by the FLORIDA

mainframe. In IMS, the hierarchical model is implemented using blocks of data known as segments.

Each segment can contain several pieces of data, which are called fields. The root segment is at the

top of the hierarchy and child segments may be added underneath the root and each other.


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Relational Database Management System (RDBMS)

RDBMS is a database management system in which data is stored in tables and the relationships

among the data are also stored in tables. The data can be accessed or reassembled in many different

ways without having to change the table forms. ACCESS Florida web-based applications use

Microsoft SQL Server and both Oracle Real Application Cluster (RAC) and non-RAC database

environments.

Additionally, ACCESS Florida has an Operational Data Store named Florida Operational Data Store

(FLODS), which maintains FLORIDA data in relational structure in order to provide 24 X 7 support

for client and worker-facing web applications. The FLODS database has been designed to have two

sets of tables suffixed with ‘A’ and ‘B’. Initially one set of tables (A tables) is loaded and synonyms

are created to point to that set of tables. The next loading cycle will load the other set of tables and

re-create the synonyms. This redundancy is required for a fail-safe and high availability database in

order to support the consuming applications.

Data Access Technologies 2.3 Data access design elements address the need for the application to store and access data from

shared or non-volatile (persistent) storage locations (as opposed to transient or session data).

Database access in the ACCESS Florida applications is performed by:

Java Database Connectivity (JDBC) - an Application Programming Interface (API) that allows access

across a wide range of databases.

Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) - a standard C programming language interface for accessing

Database Management Systems (DBMS). It is designed to be independent of database systems and

operating systems.

Hibernate - is an Object-relational mapping (ORM) library for the Java language, providing a

framework for mapping an object-oriented domain model to a traditional relational database.

Stored Procedures - are subroutines available to applications that access a relational database

system. A stored procedure is actually stored in the database data dictionary.

TopLink - is an ORM package for Java developers. It provides a framework for storing Java objects in

a relational database or for converting Java objects to Extensible Markup Language (XML)

documents.

Overflow Sequential Access Method (OSAM) - is an IMS-specific access method that optimizes the I/O

channel program for IMS access patterns

Virtual Storage Access Method (VSAM) - is an access method for IBM's mainframe operating system,

z/OS. VSAM succeeded and expanded upon an earlier Indexed Sequential Access Method.

Basic Sequential Access Method (BSAM) - is an access method to read and write datasets

sequentially.


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General Sequential Access Method (GSAM) – is an access method to read and write a sequential

dataset.

Data Security 2.4The confidentiality of data is crucial to DCF and ACCESS Florida. Due to the sensitive nature of the

client-submitted data, the federal partner interface data, and medical information within the

system, security is of the utmost importance. Data is protected from unauthorized viewing while it

is in transit between client and server systems. Most applications are only accessible within the

DCF intranet, and the client-facing applications are secured using Secure Socket Layer (SSL)

encryption to prevent sensitive information from unauthorized access while it is in transit over the

Internet.


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3.0 ACCESS Florida System The ACCESS Florida System is a collection of applications that have been developed and integrated

over the past 20 years. Together they comprise public-facing systems, worker-facing enterprise

systems, workgroup systems, and back-office supporting systems.

The following diagram depicts a high level view of the application and server interfaces of the

ACCESS Florida System:


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ACCESS Prescreening Tool 3.1The ACCESS Florida Prescreening Tool is a stand-alone, public-facing, web-based application. It provides a quick and easy, high-level or preliminary eligibility assessment for potential DCF clients and households for public assistance programs such as food assistance, cash assistance, low or no cost health care, and help paying Medicare premiums. The client answers seventeen (17) questions and the system uses basic eligibility logic to determine whether their household may be eligible for benefits. The Prescreening Tool supports English, Spanish, and Creole languages.

Application Framework

The Prescreening Tool application is a web-based Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) application running on BEA WebLogic / Linux servers with an Oracle 11g relational database. The Prescreening Tool does not interface with any other applications. The application performs customized logging for technical information.

The following diagram is a high-level architecture of the Prescreening Tool application:

Presentation Layer

The presentation layer runs on the client workstation and is browser-based. The Prescreening Tool

is compatible with a variety of industry standard browsers, e.g., Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome,

Mozilla, etc. Data validation is implemented using lookup/reference tables and custom-coded

validations. Business rules are enforced by processes that need to be executed in sequence.


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Security Layer

Anyone with access to the Internet can access the ACCESS Florida Prescreening tool. There are no

login or password requirements.

Data Layer

The Prescreening Tool captures user-entered data and stores it in a relational database. DCF uses

Oracle 11g on Linux servers and a RAC environment to house the primary databases and tables

associated with Prescreening. Due to the nature of the application, the Prescreening Tool

production application stores only minimal data on a continual basis.


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ACCESS Web Application 3.2The ACCESS Web Application, or WebApp, is the front door to the Department’s Economic Self-

Sufficiency Services program. It allows customers to apply for benefits from any location with

Internet access. Individuals in need of assistance can apply for benefits at times and locations

convenient to them, outside of traditional office hours, and in locations such as their homes,

libraries, or community partners instead of having to complete paper applications.

Because the application process is extensive, users may need to exit their benefits application and

return at a later time. WebApp allows the users to create a password that is associated with their

unique benefits application number. Recent enhancements to WebApp include the ability for

customers to select the type of benefit they would like to apply for and to only respond to questions

that pertain to their selection. This includes a redirect prompt for customers who only wish to

apply for Medicaid for children using the Florida Healthy Kids application. There are also links to

helpful and required forms for applicants.

Additionally, DCF works with external partners who have developed their own benefits application

systems as part of their workflows. In an effort to reduce double entry, WebApp also has an

Electronic Application Interface. This interface allows other third party groups to utilize their own

on-line application for their customers to apply for various community resources, including public

assistance. Data is then transmitted to DCF as a web service using a schema that matches our

WebApp. Once the data is received by DCF, it is treated like any other benefit application received

through the system.

The Web App application supports English, Spanish and Creole languages.


WebApp is a web-based application with an Oracle 11g relational database. Data entered into the

WebApp is later used in the ACCESS Management System and the FLORIDA mainframe. The

application runs on BEA WebLogic / Linux servers and uses a variety of technologies, including:

Java/J2EE, Struts, Hibernate, Guice, JavaScript, HTML, and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS).

The following diagram is a high-level architecture of the ACCESS Web Application:


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Presentation Layer

The presentation layer runs on the client workstation and is browser-based. The WebApp is

compatible with a variety of industry standard browsers, e.g., Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome,

Mozilla, etc. Data validation is implemented using lookup/reference tables as well as custom data

validation. Business rules are enforced by a selection-based screen flow implementation that

enables or disables modules, screens, screen sections and fields.

Security Layer

When a customer submits a benefits application, a unique application ID is generated and provided

to the customer. The application prompts the customer to create a password (protected by 64-bit

encryption) for authentication. The Application ID and customer-selected password can be used to

log in to the Web Application process and complete an unfinished application at a later time. This

temporary User ID and Password are stored in an encrypted Oracle database.

Data Layer

The ACCESS WebApp captures user-entered data and stores it in the highly optimized relational

database. DCF uses Oracle 11g on Linux servers and a RAC environment to house the primary

databases and tables associated with WebApp. Data is accessed using Hibernate, Stored

Procedures and JDBC.


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The WebApp production application uses the primary ACCESS production database – ACCESSP.

This database has approximately 634 tables, 111 files and 621 Gigabyte (GB). All databases have

indexes that have been designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to provide for optimal

performance.


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My ACCESS Account 3.3At the heart of the self-service model, the My ACCESS Account is to public assistance what on-line

banking is to a financial institution. This web-based application allows customers easy access to

their public assistance case information. It is a secure system that uses an authentication

application to ensure confidentiality and data security.

My ACCESS Account allows customers to review their benefits, submit a change to their current

case, apply for additional assistance, complete a review on-line, view a copy of their notices, upload

documents that the Department needs to determine eligibility, view their current and past benefits,

check on appointments, keep abreast of their next review dates, view the reason their case is

pending, and print their own temporary Medicaid card or request a replacement card. Customers

can use the My Account system to sign-up and receive email notifications when notices related to

their accounts are created. The email notification advises customers that a new notice has been

generated and is available for online viewing. Customers who do not sign-up for this new method

of notification receive paper notices via United States Postal Service (USPS).

In addition, there are also views to My ACCESS Account for Medicaid providers and community

partners. The provider view allows Medicaid service providers the ability to view Medicaid

information. The community partner view of My ACCESS Account allows eligible community

partner agencies to inquire about the status of a customer’s application. This encourages

community partner agencies to assist their customers in applying for public assistance to help

individuals and families reach self-sufficiency while obtaining potential wraparound services.


The My ACCESS Account application is a web-based application with an Oracle 11g relational

database. The application runs on BEA WebLogic / Linux servers and uses a variety of technologies

including: Java/J2EE, JSF, Struts, Hibernate, JavaScript, and HTML. My ACCESS Account primarily

uses data from the FLODS database; therefore, the information displayed is one day old. If the client

makes changes in the My ACCESS Account system, the changes will not be available to view until the

following day. They have to be processed by FLORIDA and loaded back into FLODS during the

nightly batch cycle. The date of the information, the last FLODS refresh date, is displayed at the top

of the screen. The application also interfaces with the ACCESS Web Application, My Account

Authentication and ACCESS Management System (AMS).

Process control is accomplished by the sequential progression of applications through various

stages and the sequential execution of batch processes.

Automated messaging for exception handling/messaging/logging and customized logging for

technical information is included.

Presentation layer

The presentation layer is browser-based, designed and tested for Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Presentation layer for the My ACCESS Account application is built using JSF. Data validation is


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implemented using custom coded validations, and business rule enforcement is controlled using

processes that are executed in sequence.

Security Layer

The My ACCESS Account system relies on the My Account Authentication system. Further detail is

provided in Section 2.4.

Users accessing the Provider View are first authenticated against State of Florida, Agency for Health

Care Administration (AHCA’s) Medicaid provider system and then directed to the provider view of

My Account.

Data Layer

The My ACCESS Account application primarily uses FLODS. In addition to FLODS, the application

uses the primary ACCESS production database – ACCESP database, which is an Oracle 11g RAC

environment. Data is accessed using Hibernate, TopLink, Stored Procedures and JDBC.

The ACCESSP database has approximately 634 tables, 111 files and 621 GB. All databases have


performance.

Audit records from the AMS system are stored in the AMSAUD database, which has 14 files, 8 tables

and 70 GB of data.


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My ACCESS Account Authentication & User Administration 3.4My ACCESS Account Authentication and User Administration is a single application with two

distinct interfaces: The Authentication portion of the application is used by the public to

authenticate their self-service My ACCESS Account information. The User Administration interface

is used by DCF workers to view, and sometimes, update a client’s authentication information. This

User Administration interface is used primarily by call center staff when clients contact the

Department and is accessed through AMS.

The My ACCESS Account Authentication system is used by clients to create their self-service

accounts. This is achieved by validating specific information against the client’s case data to ensure

the account creation is valid. Password reset functionality can be achieved by successfully

answering security questions identified at account creation, or by having a temporary password

sent to the client's email address.


The My ACCESS Account Authentication and User Administration application is a web-based

application that uses both Oracle 11g Microsoft SQL relational databases. The application runs on

Windows Internet Information Server (IIS) web servers and uses a variety of technologies

including: .Net (ASP.Net, C#.Net, ADO.Net), JavaScript, and HTML. Process control includes

scheduled Data & Reports batch extracts. Exceptions are reported using automated messaging and

supported by customized logging for technical information.

Presentation Layer

The presentation layer is browser-based. The Authentication user interface is compatible with a

variety of industry standard browsers, e.g., Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome, Mozilla, etc. The User

Administration user interface is designed to work with Microsoft Internet Explorer. Data

validation is implemented using custom coded validations and business rules are enforced by

processes that must be executed in sequence.

Security Layer

My ACCESS Account Authentication - Security is used to maintain current users (suspend inactive

accounts), and provide customer self-reset and forgot password capabilities as well as provide for

maximum login attempts/automatic lockout capability. User ids and passwords are maintained in a

secure SQL database.

User Administration – Role-based access to the system is controlled through the AMS. AMS

authenticates users through a seamless handshake with the User Administration application.

Selected worker and client activities, including profile modifications and login details, are audited.

The audit level may be modified and customized by system administrators.


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Data Layer

The My ACCESS Account Authentication and User Administration application uses both Microsoft

SQL Server and Oracle 11g database environments. Data is accessed using SQL, T-SQL, Stored

Procedures and JDBC.

The Microsoft SQL Server Database used to store the Production Authentication information has

approximately 29 tables and is 8,744 MB. The production application also uses the primary ACCESS

production database – ACCESSP. This database has approximately 634 tables, 111 files and 621 GB.

All databases have indexes that have been designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to

provide for optimal performance. Additionally, the FLODS database is also used by the system.


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FLORIDA 3.5FLORIDA is the legacy mainframe system containing the business rules, workflow, and interfaces

for the public assistance programs. The system was originally designed and operated as an

integrated public assistance and Child Support Enforcement (CSE) system for 20 years. In January

2012, the Department of Revenue’s Child Support Enforcement Automated Management System

(CAMS) was implemented. This signaled the first step in the separation and shutdown of the CSE

portion of the mainframe. In June 2012, the Department is scheduled to complete the shutdown of

the CSE portion of the mainframe.

Application Framework/Architecture

FLORIDA is an on-line and batch system written in COBOL, and uses an IMS database. It contains

over 9 million lines of code, (approximately 1,600 programs, which includes approximately 470 on-

line interactive programs). The system has approximately 4,700 users per day executing anywhere

from 4 to 15 million transactions a day. FLORIDA is available from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday

through Friday and during select weekend hours.

Approximately 1,200 of the batch programs are written in COBOL, and around 65 are written in

EZtrieve Plus. The programs are executed using batch jobs created using Job Control Language

(JCL) and JCL Procedures (PROCs). Batch Cycle Scheduler is Computer Associates CA-7 Job

Management system with CA-11 Restart and Tracking system. All FLORIDA IMS batch programs

are programmed to be Checkpoint Restartable in order to recover and restart from a failure point.

The automatic restarts are supported by BMC ARC utility. The ARC utility also enables the system to

do Checkpoint pacing that optimizes the Application Program Checkpoint frequency. Configuration

Management is handled by Computer Associates’ Endevor product.

The primary development environment for the application’s COBOL and EZTRIEVE programs is the

TSO/ISPF/PDF facility; for Online programs it is the Telon Development Facility (TDF). The

development environment supports debug, test, and analysis tools that include the Compuware

Xpediter, IBM BTS, Compuware Abend-Aid, and Compuware File-AID for IMS. JCLPREP is used to

enforce JCL and JCL PROC standards. REXX language programs are written to support relatively

simple utilities. Compuware STROBE tool is used for performance analysis of individual programs,

and transactions in the test and production environments.

The FLORIDA system has multiple IMS development regions, UT, U2, and U3, where all

development and unit testing activities are performed. The IMS system test regions, ST, S2, and S3,

are used to perform system integration testing in collaboration between the development staff and

the Program Office staff. The program offices use the A1 region to perform User Acceptance Testing.

The release region, R1, is used for staging the user-accepted changes for implementation in the

monthly release to the production environment. The development and testing regions run on the

FLIF logical partition of the Sysplex. The IMS training region is used to provide training on the

FLORIDA applications for DCF workers. The training region has its own testing region, T2 and a

production-training region, T3.


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FLORIDA is comprised of several major components:

Application Entry

Auto Update

Authorization

Benefit Issuance

Benefit Recovery

Client Notices

Standard Filing Unit

Eligibility

Determination and

Benefit Calculation

Medicaid Interface

History

Maintenance

Mass Change

Periodic Reporting

Quality Assurance

and Reporting

Caseload

Management

Client Registration

Comprehensive

Scheduling

Data Exchanges

Help Screens

On-line Manuals

Reference Files

Training Region

Security

Maintenance

Archive

Maintenance

Public Assistance

Interfaces

Presentation Layer

End-user interaction with the FLORIDA system is through secure BLUEZONE Terminal (Seagull

Software) 3270 Terminal Sessions or Personal Computer 3270 Emulation sessions.

The FLORIDA Online Transaction Screens are formatted using IMS Message Formatting Services

(MFS) control blocks. There are over 700 online screens that have been created using Computer

Associates’ Telon Application Generator that generates the COBOL and IMS MFS Source Code.

Security Layer

FLORIDA has role-based access controls which use IBM’s Resource Access Control Facility (RACF)

and the application’s Security Maintenance module. Initial authentication and course authorization

is performed through the RACF to provide the user id, password, and high level data group and

application access. The Security Module of the public assistance application provides more

granular access controls that enable and disable modules, screens, screen sections, and fields.

Data Layer

The FLORIDA system uses an IMS high-performance, hierarchical DBMS from IBM.

The FLORIDA IMS databases primarily use Hierarchical Direct Access Method (HDAM) and

Hierarchical Indexed Direct Access Method (HIDAM) hierarchical database access methods using

OSAM and VSAM access methods. It also uses GSAM and BSAM type of access methods when

accessing regular sequential datasets. In addition, some interfaces use flat files as intermediate

data stores.

The transaction processing environment is IMS Transaction Manager (TM).


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FLORIDA System Hardware Configuration

FLORIDA mainframe environment is an IBM Parallel Sysplex. A Sysplex provides centralized control

of, and data sharing across, all processors in the Sysplex. While the current Sysplex configured by

the NSRC contains three machines, only two of those support the FLORIDA system. The third

machine support’s Department of Health’s Women Infant and Children (WIC) program. The two

DCF-related machines are as follows:

1. IBM 2098-V05 consists of five central processors and one zIIP engine configured with two

internal coupling facilities. This machine serves as the platform for the test Sysplex which

consists of two test LPARs and two test coupling facilities. Also on this machine are five

production LPARs and two production coupling facilities. One of the production LPARs

hosts the production FLORIDA online and part of the production FLORIDA batch system.

Three of the production LPARs host other production and nonproduction database back-

ends. The remaining production LPAR hosts the NSRC network. The zIIP engine is used

extensively by the Florida Safe Families Network (FSFN) DBMS.

2. IBM 2086-430 consists of four central processors configured with three LPARs. Two of the

LPARs are used for operating system and subsystem installation and testing. The third

LPAR is used for FLORIDA production batch work and ad hoc reporting as well as all

FLORIDA nonproduction test and development.

The Sysplex includes local and remote connectivity to both Internet Protocol (IP) and Systems

Network Architecture (SNA) networks and encompasses over 21,000 devices (terminals, PC

workstations, and printers) connected to this processor complex. The current FLORIDA direct

access storage device (DASD) requirement is approximately 2.5 to 3 TB for OS, databases and other

non-tape files. There are currently over 175,700 datasets of undetermined size on tape.

The following diagram depicts the Sysplex environment:


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FLORIDA System Software Environment

The software environment is an IMS transaction-processing environment. Computer Associates’

CA-TELON is used for code generation, with supporting COBOL 390. FLORIDA application software

maintenance and system enhancements use the following tools:

BMC-ARC - Application Restart Control is an IMS utility that facilitates the automatic restart

of abnormally terminated IMS Batch Programs. This eliminates the need to specify the IMS

Checkpoint ID in the restarting JCL. In addition, it performs CHECK-POINT Pacing,

optimizing the checkpoint process enhancing the system performance.

Computer Associates CA-1 Tape management System – Automates tape management tasks

while ensuring protection against the inadvertent destruction of tape files.

Computer Associates CA-7 - Batch Cycle Scheduler. The flow of jobs in the batch cycles are

controlled using triggers and dependencies between jobs and events (such as the arrival of

dataset through the network).

Computer Associates CA-11 - Batch job restart and tracking facility. Automatically

determines the step in which to restart an abnormally ended (abended) job. Performs step


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restarts/reruns with no JCL changes and performs data set and catalog maintenance during

restart/rerun setup.

Computer Associates Easytrieve PLUS - Software tool/compiler which is used to create

reporting programs and data file processing programs.

Computer Associates Endevor - Software configuration manager used for controlled sign-

outs, updates, and promotion of software code resources.

Computer Associates MVS/PC TELON case tools - CASE (computer aided software

engineering) tool used to generate online and batch COBOL programs and IMS/MFS formats

for online programs.

Computer Associates Xpediter – Program debugging tool.

Compuware Abend-Aid – Used to view, modify, allocate and copy files with various access

methods and to perform searches and updates of partitioned data sets.

Compuware File-Aid IMS XPERT - File-Aid for IMS which is used to view, modify, extract,

load, and initialize IMS Databases.

IBM COBOL - Cobol compiler

IBM IMS - IMS Hierarchical Database Management System. IMS Data Communication System

is the IMS transaction manager. The IMS transaction manager performs management and

execution of all online transactions and batch message programs.

IBM JCL - Job Control Language for batch jobs and procedures.

IBM REXX - Programming Language under TSO/ISPF.

IBM VSAM - Virtual Sequential Access Method for creating/maintaining/accessing files and

databases using sequential and direct access methods.

DirectConnect – Facility that supports secure data transfer between computers.

Strobe – Performance measurement tool which provides detailed information regarding

application and system programs, helping to fine tune them.

SMTP – Simple Mail Transport Protocol


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ACCESS Management System (AMS) 3.6The AMS is a web front end application to the FLORIDA mainframe. The development of this system

began in 2003/2004 with the vision that the FLORIDA mainframe would remain the “engine”

behind it, maintaining the business logic and array of system interfaces already in existence. The

goal was to build a case management portal for staff that would be a web friendly environment and

increase efficiency and accuracy. Several AMS modules have been completed.

First, was the installation of the client registration module, which greatly streamlined the process

used by administrative staff to match customers and case numbers based on demographic data.

This module replaced approximately ten FLORIDA screens requiring manual entry with a process

that is mostly automated and in an intuitive web environment.

Next, was the completion of the work management module. This module created integrated inbox

functionality for tracking applications, reported changes, additional benefit requests, and

redeterminations; and automated workload assignment for some functions. This module also

replaced an existing system, thereby decreasing the number of independent systems staff had to

use to complete their work.

The latest AMS module is application entry. This module will allow case processors to match data

provided by the customer in the web application against data already in the FLORIDA system. Staff

will review in AMS and when appropriate upload the information to FLORIDA. The result will be

decreased data entry by staff thereby increasing efficiency while decreasing data entry errors. The

AMS application entry module is currently being rolled-out region by region throughout the state

and will be completely implemented by the end of the year.

Although AMS integrates client-entered data from the WebApp and data from the FLORIDA

mainframe, FLORIDA continues to be the system of record containing the official master file for the

client eligibility process.


The AMS application is a web-based application with an Oracle 11g relational database. The

application runs on BEA WebLogic / Linux servers and uses a variety of technologies including:

Java/J2EE, JSF, Struts, Hibernate, JavaScript, HTML, CSS. AMS connects and executes transactions

on the FLORIDA mainframe using IMS Connect. IMS Connect is an application program interface

product of IBM and enables access to mainframe transactions from AMS and other web

applications.

The following diagram is a high-level architecture of the AMS application:


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Presentation Layer

The presentation layer is browser-based, designed and tested for Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Presentation layer for AMS application is built using JSF. Data validation is implemented using

Lookup/Reference Tables and custom-coded validations. Business rules are enforced by processes

that need to be executed in sequence.

Security Layer

AMS has role-based access controls. Authentication is performed through the FLORIDA System

RACF using IMS Connect to validate the user id. Application level access is controlled through

FLORIDA system user profile, worker type, and security levels. Additional AMS level security and

role-based access enables and disables modules, screens, screen sections and fields.

Selected and critical work activities are audited and the audit level may be modified and

customized.


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Data Layer

The AMS application captures user-entered data and stores it in the highly optimized relational


databases and tables associated with AMS. Data is accessed using Hibernate, TopLink, Stored

Procedures, and JDBC.

The AMS production application uses the primary ACCESS production database – ACCESSP. This

database has approximately 634 tables, 111 files, and 621 GB. All databases have indexes that have

been designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to provide for optimal performance.

Additionally, the FLODS database is heavily used by the AMS system.

Audit records from the AMS system are stored in the AMSAUD database, which has 14 files, 8 tables

and 70 GB of data.


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ACCESS Document Imaging (ADI) 3.7ADI is the tool used by staff to collect, index, and file documents critical to verification and eligibility

determinations. The ADI application allows staff, including call center staff, virtual access to

customer records and the ability to store electronic copies of documents, rather than paper case

files. From the customer’s perspective, the Department went paperless in 2007.

Staff with appropriate security credentials accesses the ADI application directly from their

workstations and through an interface with AMS, giving staff the ability to view documents without

having to log directly into ADI. To help ensure accurate indexing, documents are indexed with

demographic data from FLORIDA, which is retrieved and loaded into an ADI Oracle database on a

daily basis. A project is currently underway to add new barcode reader functionality that will allow

the automatic indexing of bill tracking related verifications from medical and pharmacy providers.

There are currently over twenty-three (23) TB of images on-line and immediately available to staff,

and the system is growing at a rate of one (1) TB every six weeks.

While clients cannot view their documents after they have been indexed in the system, they have

the ability to see a list of indexed documents associated with their case. Additionally, clients can

upload documents directly into the ADI through the My ACCESS Account application.

The following diagram shows the workflow associated with the ADI application:


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The ADI application is a custom-developed application made up of several distinct components:

Document Viewer – An intranet web-based application used to view, index, and search

documents. This component also contains a reporting module and user management such

as user creation, password resets, workgroup creation, and administration.

o Written and maintained in C#.Net and VB.Net (Visual Studio 2008).

o The application uses the Atalasoft COTS software.

ESS Scan – A desktop application used to scan and index documents.

o Written and maintained in C#.Net and VB.Net (Visual Studio 2008).

o Each desktop installation uses the Leadtools COTS software.

o The application is compatible with scanners that are 100% TWAIN compliant.

File Mover - Moves scanned documents from local machines to DCF district inbound folders.

o Written in C#.Net.

Document Processor Service – Moves documents from different district inbound folders to

central location in a centralized, consolidated data center HP Polyserve environment


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o Creates XML metadata and writes to Oracle database

o The service maintains a copy in local folders for six days.

Workload Manager - Runs on the server and identifies worker availability and assigns

documents to workers for indexing to a preset limit (up to 25 maximum at any given time).


PDF Grabber – Used by server administrators to create scanner threads (updates databases

with scanner details and their associated folder locations).


The following diagram details the ADI architecture:

Security Layer

ADI uses a custom authentication system built as a part of the application. Users are added and

roles assigned using a system administration user interface within Document Viewer. Although a

worker’s user id is the same as the FLORIDA RACF id, the system does not use RACF for

authentication. The user id and passwords are stored in an encrypted Oracle database table.


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Data Layer

The ADI application captures user-entered data and stores it in a highly optimized relational


databases and tables associated with ADI.

The ADI production application has approximately 102 tables, 81 files and 326 GB in the Image

Database, and the Polyserve environment has over 65 Million files and over 23TB of data. All

databases have indexes that have been designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to provide

for optimal performance.


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Integrated Benefit Recovery System (IBRS) 3.8The IBRS system is designed to facilitate and aid in the recovery of public assistance benefits issued

to customers found to be ineligible for benefits.


IBRS is a web-based Java/J2EE based application used to create, manage, and process Benefit

Recovery claims for public assistance. Business objects that implement the business rules reside in

the application server tier and are available to the client tier. The business logic resides on a BEA

WebLogic application server, incorporating server-side EJB technology.

IBRS maintains interface connectivity to the FLORIDA system via WebLogic JAM, which is an

Advanced Program-to-Program Communication (APPC)-based API for a two-way request-response

communication process between the Java application and the IBM Mainframe.

The following diagram provides a high-level architecture of the IBRS system:


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Presentation Layer

The web tier is responsible for data presentation, processing a user request through a request

handler, event and response approach. This tier is implemented with JSP, XML, and Java in BEA

WebLogic application server.

The client can be any computer running a HTML - compliant web browser.

Security Layer

Authentication is spread over the web tier, the application server tier, and the data server tier. The

web tier requests authentication, EJB business components in the application tier authenticates the

request for access to system functions, and then cache stores the authentication information for

instant access. User requests are authenticated using the FLORIDA RACF system. EJB components

communicate with RACF through BEA Weblogic JAM. User login activity details are also persisted

on the MS SQL Server 2000 database for application-level security access and control.

There is an FTP interface between the two systems (the IBRS DB and the FLORIDA System DB) for

large data transfers.

Data Layer

A SQL Server 2000 database provides access to enterprise benefits and IBRS application data

through a MS SQL Server gateway. The IBRS application has 231 tables and is 24.5 GB.


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HP ExStream Software 3.9As part of eligibility determination the Department is federally mandated to notify clients at various

stages of the application process. To complete this task, the Department has implemented the HP

ExStream Enterprise Document Automation software. ExStream is a COTS product the Department

uses to transform the notices generated by the FLORIDA mainframe into user friendly and

Department standard formats.

Documents or Notices are generated by the FLORIDA, IBRS, and AMS sent to the ExStream software

for processing, and subsequently transferred via FTP to Pitney Bowes for printing and mailing

through the United States Postal Service.

A nightly batch process transmits approximately 70,000 to 100,000 notices for printing and

mailing. Notices can be printed in English, Spanish or Creole, based upon client selection. Daily, a

few hundred notices are also printed by DCF workers using AMS and handed to customers at

service centers.

When My ACCESS Account clients request to see their notices, ExStream generates the notices on

demand through web services. The on-demand, web-service notice creation was developed as a

cost reduction effort to prevent the Department from having to store the documents in PDF format.

On average, 19,000 notices a day are viewed by customers via this method.

Below is a diagram of the batch process:


The HP ExStream tool is a COTS product that does not have a public or worker-facing front-end.

The software is only accessed by logging into the Windows server where the product is installed.

FLORIDA

AMS

IBRS

FLORIDA

Processes

IBRS

Process

AMS

Process

Exstream Server

Pitney Bowes

Printing & Mailing

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

USPS

Java

Consolidator

FLORIDA

AMS

IBRS

FLORIDA

Processes

IBRS

Process

AMS

Process

Exstream Server

Pitney Bowes

Printing & Mailing

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

FTP

USPS

Java

Consolidator


38 | P a g e

Security Layer

The tool is limited to those users (developers and system administrators) with access to the server

hosting the product.

Data Layer

The HP ExStream product uses the primary ACCESS production database – ACCESSP. This database

has approximately 634 tables, 111 files and 621 GB. All databases have indexes that have been

designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to provide for optimal performance.

Details of all notices created are stored in an Oracle history database. Additionally, a history of the

version control of all changes to notices templates/publications is maintained separately in an

Oracle database. These two databases provide the ability to reproduce a previously

formatted/printed notice without storing an image of the original notice.


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Power Tools 3.10The twelve Power Tools, sometimes call Streaming Tools, are written in Visual Basic, and are small

utilities installed on desktop PCs in order to make employee use of FLORIDA more efficient. The

tools automate certain FLORIDA tasks that may be tedious or repetitive. Rather than replacing

FLORIDA functionality, they assist users in the use of the FLORIDA system.

Some are screen scraping tools, some are used to facilitate data entry, and several automatically

take data in one system and ‘stream’ the data into the FLORIDA system.

– CLRC Power Tool

This tool was designed to make the FLORIDA CLRC (Running list) screen function more like a

word processor. The user can enter free-form text; selecting, cutting, and pasting with

assistance from a mouse. When complete, the tool automatically formats the comments to fit on

CLRC screen and saves them. Additionally, staff can save customized text (boilerplate language)

for later use.

– PA Letters Power Tool

This tool uses the AIAP (Absent Parent) and AFEI (Employment Information) screens to

generate verification letters. The letters are automatically populated with the proper

information, eliminating the need to generate these forms manually.

– QA Navigation Power Tool

Quality Assurance workers have a need to quickly navigate through the many FLORIDA screens

that might be associated with a case. The QA Navigation Power Tool lets users access almost

any screen in two clicks or less; usually without typing any other navigation parameters.

– Data Exchange Power Tool

Correctly completing the AFMI (Monthly Unearned Income) and AFEI (Employment

Information) screens with new or updated information can be a time-consuming process. The

Data Exchange tool scans through all the user’s pending Data Exchange responses, and displays

them in a list, similar to Microsoft Excel. From this list, the user can update the AFMI or AFEI

screens, enter Data Exchange response codes, and browse through pending Data Exchange

responses.

– Web Application Power Tool

The ACCESS Web Application allows clients to complete their application on a PC, rather than

on a paper form. The data added by the client is stored in an Oracle database. Once the client

has submitted their application, an Economic Self-Sufficiency (ESS) worker uses a Power Tool to

“stream” this information into FLORIDA. This removes the need to retype information that the

client has provided.

– AWAA UserID Tool

Due to the way the AWAA screen is designed, many users are forced to copy and paste their

user id potentially dozens of times a day. When you click the AWAA UserID button, this power

tool will populate any userid fields that still need entries made in them.

– Intake Specialist Power Tool

This Power Tool is designed to help intake specialists determine if a case is red track or green

track. It allows staff to search for any current public assistance sanctions, CSE narratives, or


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both. The search can be done by public assistance case, SSN, or name. It then obtains the

necessary data from various screens and presents them in a standard format.

– Caller ID Power Tool

This power tool automates the process that call center workers perform when verifying a

caller’s identity. It collects demographic and case data from several screens, and presents them

in a separate window. This information is then used by the worker to verify that the caller is

who they claim to be.

– SUNCAP Power Tool

This tool, only available for use by designated SUNCAP staff, creates and authorizes a food-

stamp-only case based on data provided in the State Data Exchange (SDX) file. It is used

primarily for individuals who are already receiving regular food stamp benefits, but can be used

to create cases when the batch job cannot due to errors in the individual’s SDX record.

– KidCare Power Tool

This tool is designed to stream information into the FLORIDA system from the ACCESS KidCare

system, and it is only available for use by designated KidCare staff.

– EDB Power Tool

AHCA sends a data exchange file containing individuals who match certain Medicaid category

criteria to DCF via secure FTP. The PowerTool is used to match the individuals in this file

against the FLORIDA database of OPEN individuals to determine if they have a Medicare

number. Matches are updated with correct Medicare number, name, date of birth, sex, and Part

A and Part B begin and end dates.

– MMC (Medicaid for Children between 1 and 17) MMI (Medicaid for Children under 1) PT-MEDS-AD

(Medicaid for Disabled Adults) PowerTool

Modeled after the EDB Power Tool, this tool will automatically execute the appropriate Florida

transaction driver and authorizes benefits.


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ACCESS Florida KidCare 3.11ACCESS Florida KidCare application, or KidCare, is a web-based application used to manage and

process applications for Medicaid/Health Insurance Coverage for children of low-income families.

Client applications are received from FHK, a quasi-governmental organization that administers the

KidCare program and provides health insurance for children from low income families. FHK filters

the applications and routes those that are potentially eligible for Medicaid to the DCF KidCare

application process. These applications are then sent to the FLORIDA mainframe where Medicaid

eligibility is determined. Once the application is processed, the results are grouped and

electronically transferred via secure FTP back to FHK during the nightly batch cycle.

All applications received from FHK are verified against FLORIDA cases by matching against the

FLODS database.


The KidCare application is a web-based J2EE application running on Tomcat instances, and

interacts through a Power Tool with a specialty driver in the FLORIDA mainframe. The application

allows workers to view and update KidCare application data using JSP. The KidCare applications

that do not need any worker intervention and those that the worker completes are automatically

streamed into the FLORIDA mainframe system using the KidCare Power Tool (see Section 2.11 for

additional details on the Power Tool).

Special KidCare functions were developed on the FLORIDA mainframe using an application driver

that displays a limited number of screens and includes a custom KidCare-specific application entry

screen. This driver runs a special eligibility determination process that is customized for KidCare.

The following diagram is a high-level architecture of the KidCare application:


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Presentation Layer

The presentation layer is browser-based, designed and tested for Microsoft Internet Explorer. All

remaining layers, used for business rules enforcement, data validation, data access, and process

control are implemented on the server. The process control is also partly implemented in the user

interface by means of a navigational design.

Security Layer

KidCare workers have separate user-ids and passwords maintained by the application in an

encrypted Oracle database

Data Layer

The KidCare application captures user-entered data and stores it in the highly optimized relational

database. DCF uses Oracle 10g on Linux servers to house the primary database and tables

associated with KidCare. The KidCare production application has approximately 59 tables, 72 files


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and 39 GB in the KID database. All databases have indexes that have been designed to enforce

uniqueness on the tables and to provide for optimal performance.


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ACCESS Online Applications 3.12The ACCESS Online Applications are a collection of small applications accessed through a central

web portal.

– ACCESS Integrity Online Application

The ACCESS Integrity Application (also known as Front Fraud Protection) has been developed

to assist DCF fraud investigators in managing fraud referrals. It is a statewide data collection

application for ACCESS program integrity referrals. When a DCF staff member, processing

applications for assistance in FLORIDA, feels a request for assistance is fraudulent, the user

completes a FLORIDA fraud referral screen and the information is fed into the ACCESS Integrity

application on a nightly basis. There is also capability that supports investigators manually

adding cases that are referred through other sources, and imbedded reporting functionality.

– ACCESS Knowledge Bank

This application provides access to an online version of the ACCESS Knowledge Bank, with an

Online Policy Manual, Transmittals and Clearances, Questions & Answer, and a “Tip of the Day”

documents to optimize or improve case processing.

– Community Partners Tracking Application

The Community Partners Tracking Application is provided to facilitate entering and

maintaining information on DCF’s Community Partners. The application enables DCF clients to

identify (search for and print a list of) Community Partners that may help them with the

application and eligibility determination process without having to go to a DCF office. Also,

AMS uses the community partner tables to aid workflow determinations when routing

applications that come from a Community Partner. The application is used by community

partner liaison officers to report and track community partners.

– Community Partner Internet Search

Internet-facing component of the Community Partner Tracking Application that allows

potential or existing DCF clients to search for Community Partner locations in addition to a DCF

office.

– Data and Reports Application

The Data and Reports Application obtains data extracts from many applications (FLORIDA,

AMS, and Document Imaging) in formats that allow users to create or obtain reports for

managing, tracking, and planning for their business needs. Data and Reports is used to report

ACCESS program data as well as the work and caseload data by state, region, circuit, and county

administrative unit. It facilitates the production of daily, weekly, monthly and annual reports as

well as statistical reports. Reports are also produced to show workload generated in other

applications and program areas. The Data and Reports Application was developed to assist

users at all levels of DCF by providing reports on pending work assignments and performance

measures.

– Exceptions Management Application

The Exceptions Management Application supports the management and manual processing of

exceptions to automated process changes that are executed in FLORIDA. Exceptions occur

when cases are blocked from automated processing. The exception case extracts come from

many programmatic sources processed during FLORIDA processing (e.g., Social Security


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Administration, FLORIDA Retirement file, Medicaid Ex-Parte, Passive Pier processing, Refugee

Assistance Processing, UCST Case Closures). The application allows for identification of

individuals requiring immediate benefits eligibility determination based on information

received from other agencies.

– Quality Management System

The QMS was developed to support quality assurance in the issuance of public assistance

benefits. A monthly extract from the FLORIDA system provides a random sample of cases,

based upon the extract requirements provided by Quality Assurance management. In addition,

QMS provides QA staff the ability to manually add reviews as desired. It also allows for multiple

layers of data segregation that permit several layers of standard (routine) and specialized

(custom) reporting. QMS tracks Tier 1 case reviews and Tier 2 validations of eligibility

determination actions completed by the ACCESS staff. The system produces the identification

of error trends in eligibility determination, determines error payment accuracy and creates

performance, validations, and corrections due reports.

– Quality Control Application

The Quality Control Application is a management tool designed to help DCF administer the Food

Stamp Program. It is a Federally-mandated audit application used to determine if Florida

recipients are receiving the proper benefit amounts. QC is managed by the Quality Management

Team. Quality Management's primary responsibility is to review case files in order to

determine the state's active and negative error rates.

– User Administration

The User Administration application controls the authentication and authorization for the

ACCESS Online applications. Authorized users are added to the User Administration application

before they can sign into any of the ACCESS Online Applications.

The following diagram depicts the high-level functional architecture of the ACCESS Online

Applications:


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While several distinct applications make up the ACCESS Online Application, they have all been

developed using the same framework. They are based on the Web Forms architecture

implementation using C#.NET and IIS. Automated messaging, exception handling, messaging and

logging functions are handled on the server side.

Presentation Layer

The user accesses an ASPX page. The programming logic behind the page contains rules and

validations and renders the HTML for the user. Core technologies involved include C#.NET, IIS

stack, Internet Explorer 8, JavaScript and HTML 4. Data validation is enforced through both web-

forms and on the server-side. There is web server and database business rule enforcement.

Exception handling is performed on the server side.


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Security Layer

The User Administration application is used for the authentication and authorization of users.

Distinct user tables are maintained by application administrators with each sub-application

requiring specific authorization at one of four levels of security: Read Only, Standard User, District

Contact, or Administrator. Levels are progressive but may mean something different on a per sub-

application basis.

User ids and passwords are stored in encrypted SQL server tables.

Data Layer

The ACCESS Online Applications uses a Microsoft SQL Server environment that is accessed via

ODBC. There are several databases associated with the ACCESS Online Applications with over 500

tables and over 340 GB. The tables are indexed and have been designed to enforce uniqueness on

the tables and to provide for optimal performance.


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Food for Florida (FFF) 3.13The FFF was created as the State’s Emergency Food Assistance (EFA) application after the

destructive 2004/2005 hurricane seasons. FFF is a stand-alone application to capture and process

application data and transmit the data to FLORIDA for processing.

The system features multiple modules that include a client facing self-service application that

allows clients to pre-register (apply) for benefits over the Internet, a disaster service site worker

module that allows DCF staff to review and approve or deny applications, and issue EBT cards for

approved applications, as well as a function to allow for the processing paper applications. In

addition, the FFF central module features a broad range of functions that include administrative

functions to manage disasters, disaster areas, service site locations and users in addition to the

capabilities for the backroom processing of paper based applications (paper or image). The FFF

system functions in unison with the mainframe FLORIDA system for case creation, benefit

calculation, and issuance through the EBT vendor interface.

In 2010, the Department built an interface with the Federal Emergency Management Agency

(FEMA) that allows the public to submit EFA applications to FFF through FEMA’s disaster

assistance website.


The FFF application is a web-based J2EE application running on Tomcat /Linux servers. The

application is available on workstations and wireless mobile devices on the Internet or the Intranet.

FFF is supported by a batch application that mimics the step-by-step processes that simulate the

FLORIDA creation and processing of an EFA Application.

FTP – receive application files from EFA front end.

Validate/sort process of the EFA records.

Batch client registration/clearance.

Batch application entry.

Batch standard filing unit.

Batch eligibility determination/benefit calculation.

Batch authorization.

The EFA batch process is a series of programs that are executed in a batch environment that only

requires the FLORIDA IMS control region to be available (the ONLINE Message region may stay

down). The process runs during the nightly batch cycle or during the online hours.

The COBOL/IMS programs run as “Transaction Oriented Batches” to invoke existing programs that

are invoked by the EFA driver. The inputs to the process are the files provided by the EFA front-

end system. Upon validation of the file to ensure format, data validity and completeness, the file is

provided to the EFA batch process to perform the FLORIDA functions Client Registration,

Application Entry, SFU, ED/BC, and Authorization.

The following diagram is a high-level architecture of the FFF system.


49 | P a g e

Presentation Layer

The presentation layer is browser-based, designed and tested for Microsoft Internet Explorer. All

remaining layers, used for business rules enforcement, data validation, data access, and process

control are implemented on the server. The process control is also partly implemented in the user

interface by means of a navigational design.

Security Layer

Food for Florida workers have separate user-ids and passwords maintained by the application in an

encrypted Oracle database since the processing of the data occurs by batch, and most of the FFF

workers are temporary and/or volunteers, the requirements to create numerous, temporary RACF

user ids is avoided.

Data Layer

The FFF application captures user-entered data and stores it in the highly optimized relational

database. DCF uses Oracle 10g on Linux servers for the FFF database. The FFF production

Fire

wa

ll, Blu

eC

oa

t & ID

S/IP

S

Radware

FFF

FFF Central

Batch Jobs

FFF Oracle DB

FLODS Oracle DB

FLORIDA

JP Morgan

Internet

DB Link

HTTP HTTP

FTP

Connect Direct

Workers

WebServices

HTTPS

HTTP

HTTPS

FEMA


50 | P a g e

application has approximately 140 tables, 17 files and 5 GB in the FFF database. All databases have


performance.


51 | P a g e

Food for Florida Volunteer and DHL Tracking 3.14The Food for Florida Volunteer and DHL Tracking System is designed as a place where volunteers

can register to assist in the delivery of services in the event of a disaster. After they have registered,

volunteers are able to sign in and edit/update their information and view their history/current

assignments. Management staff is able to use the system to generate reports. The system also

permits DCF staff to sign into the Food for Florida application and submit daily reports.


The FFF Volunteer and DHL Tracking system is accessible through either the intranet or Internet

during a declared disaster. It is a C#.Net application running on IIS / Windows Servers with a SQL

Server database.

Presentation Layer

The presentation layer is browser-based, designed and tested for Microsoft Internet Explorer. Data

validation is in both the web forms, and server side, with business rules enforced on the server side

and in the database. The process control is also partly implemented in the user interface by means

of a navigational design.

Security Layer

Secure user authentication is embedded as a part of the application. Authorized users are

maintained in the application by a User Administrator function built into the application.

Data Layer

The FFF application captures user entered data and stores it in a SQL Server database – Volunteer.

The application has 35 tables and is 4.44 MB.


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4.0 ACCESS Customer Call Centers The technology used to support the ACCESS Customer Call Centers (CCC) located in Miami,

Jacksonville, and Tampa has been outsourced to a third-party vendor. A managed Automatic Call

Distributer (ACD) and Audio Response Unit (ARU) encompass the two major portions of the CCC

system.

The hosted ACD service provides intelligence to the call routing and call management plan. When

the ARU determines that a caller requires a CCC agent interaction, it will bridge the caller over the

DCF/DMS MyFloridaNet (MFN) connection to the appropriate ACD system located at each of the

ACCESS call centers. The ACD also provides the CCC agent with additional knowledge about the

caller via a screen-pop. The screen-pop contains the information originally collected by the ARU

before the call requested to be transferred to the agent.

While the call centers are staffed during extended business hours, the ARU system provides

customers 24x7 toll-free access to information about their public assistance case status, status of a

reported change, eligibility and benefit information, lists of documents received within last 75 days,

verification items required to process an application or reported change, appointment details, and

other ACCESS Program information. ARU information is provided to the customers in English,

Spanish and Creole.

The following network diagram gives an overview of the CCC technology:


53 | P a g e

DCF’s Supporting Technology for the ARU

Client input is interpreted by the vendor’s ARU system, which resides outside the DCF network. The

ARU servers use stored procedures to access the DCF Oracle databases and retrieve client

information to provide the response to the client inquiry. This connection between the vendor and

the ARU database is via a VPN tunnel. The demographic and benefits data used in this process is

extracted from FLORIDA and loaded into the ARU Oracle database tables on a nightly basis.

Security

Customers access their public assistance information by entering their Date of Birth and Social

Security Number or ACCESS Number. The ACCESS Number is a unique number that is assigned

when the customer submits an application via the web. Customers can also access their reported

change information by entering their unique reported change confirmation number.

Data

The ARU database design has two sets of identical tables suffixed with ‘A’ and ‘B’. Initially one set of

tables (A tables) is loaded and synonyms are created so the ARU application uses that version of the

ARU tables. The next loading cycle loads the second set of tables and re-creates the synonyms. This

redundancy provides a fail-safe and high-availability database in order to support the 24x7x365

ARU applications.

The ARU database is an Oracle 10g environment that is accessed using stored procedures. The ARU

database has around 170 tables, 107 files and 125 GB. The tables are indexed and have been

designed to enforce uniqueness on the tables and to provide for optimal performance.


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5.0 ACCESS Florida System Batch Overview The Florida mainframe has a long history of batch application processing. Over 1,500 batch

processes are critical because they support core business processes that are inherently batch-

oriented. These batch processes have been optimized to perform high-volume, repetitive tasks.

Even today as new functionality is added to ACCESS Florida systems, one or more new batch

applications may be created for updating information, consolidating data, generating reports,

printing documents, and performing other non-interactive tasks that must complete reliably within

certain business deadlines. FLORIDA batch processing tools provide the fault tolerance and

scalability required for high-volume processing.

The batch programs and processes in the ACCESS Florida system are designed to run without

human intervention, with the exception of on-demand batch programs. CA-7 (used for the

mainframe) and Autosys (used for the open systems) are used as the batch scheduling tools to

automatically run scheduled batch jobs, backup procedures, and interface programs. Reports,

which are part of the scheduled run, are produced without any operator intervention.

Batch Framework 5.1The batch processes consist of individual COBOL and Java programs that are arranged in logical

groups called run cycles and run inventories. These run cycles and run inventories are either

scheduled to process information on regular intervals (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly) through the

CA-7 and Autosys schedulers or are initiated on an “on-demand” basis. Certain dependencies may

exist within the run cycles and run inventories. Therefore, in some instances, the order in which the

run cycles and run inventories are initiated is significant. The batch jobs automatically create a log

or a message when they run that is posted as a status message to a management dashboard. These

logs contain program statistics and/or error messages.

Batch programs use control data and parameter files to control processing. Parameters must be

updated before the scheduled start of a batch run and before the operator may enter an on-demand

run for processing.

The NSRC is responsible for performing the nightly operational tasks for the ACCESS Florida

System, which includes running and monitoring all batch job processing as specified by the

Department. NSRC operators also manually submit on-demand batch runs. Re-running scheduled

processes or reports is handled in the same manner as an on-demand run. All the ACCESS Florida

System batch jobs (except for the real-time jobs) are scheduled to process after business hours

beginning after 6:00 P.M.

Backup Routines 5.2Back-up routines are established to prevent a loss of information and allow recovery of data. The

NSRC is responsible for backing up all data as specified by the Department. Data backup is

scheduled to process after business hours beginning after 6:00 P.M.


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Batch Jobs 5.3There are approximately 1,200 FLORIDA mainframe batch processing jobs and 137 batch

processing jobs supporting other applications. They are outlined below:

System Count Area Supported FLORIDA 40 Application entry FLORIDA 143 Archive maintenance FLORIDA 36 Auto update FLORIDA 153 Benefit issuance FLORIDA 93 Benefit recovery FLORIDA 96 Case maintenance FLORIDA 39 Client notices FLORIDA 66 Scheduling FLORIDA 218 Data exchange FLORIDA 32 FLODS FLORIDA 133 Reporting FLORIDA 86 Other AMS 70 General Operational Usage AMS 24 Supplemental Payment Summaries Food For Florida 16 General Operational Usage Other 27 General Operational Usage


56 | P a g e

6.0 ACCESS Florida System Interfaces ACCESS Florida System interfaces are designed to transfer data between the ACCESS Florida system

and internal and external entities in batch and real-time/near real-time. Data transfer reduces data

redundancy and keeps all systems up-to-date. The following is a list of the ACCESS interfaces:

Interface Name

Method Complexity Interface

Type Agency Interface

with Description Frequency

MMIS overall Records

Detail Report file

EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA

MMIS Overall Records Detail

Report file Daily

Medicaid Identification

Card Intercept

Records file

EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA

Medicaid Identification Card Intercept

Records file

Daily

Medicaid Eligibility

Records file EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA

Medicaid Eligibility

Records file Daily

Medicaid Third Party

Liability Report file

EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA Medicaid Third Party Liability

Report file Daily

MMIS Report file

EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA MMIS Report file Daily

Medicaid Third Party

Liability Batch Control

Report

EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA

Medicaid Third Party Liability Batch Control

Report

Daily

Emergency MIC Reports

file EFT Complex FL-->AHCA AHCA

Emergency MIC Reports file

Daily

MMIS Reconciliation Batch Control

Report

EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA

MMIS Reconciliation Batch Control

Report

Monthly

MMIS Third Party Liability

EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA MMIS Third Party

Liability Weekly

MMIS Process Summary

Report EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA

MMIS Process Summary Report

Weekly

MMIS HMO/Part B

EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA MMIS HMO/Part

B Weekly

MMIS HMO/Part B

Process Summary

Report

EFT Complex AHCA-->FL AHCA MMIS HMO/Part

B Process Summary Report

Weekly


57 | P a g e

Interface Name




BENDEX DATA

EFT/ CD

Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA BENDEX DATA Twice

Monthly

BENDEX Requests to

SSA EFT/CD Moderate AHCA-->FL AHCA

BENDEX Requests to SSA

Monthly

SDX DATA/ RECON

EFT/CD Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA SDX DATA/

RECON Yearly

SDX DATA EFT/CD Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA SDX DATA Daily

Medicare BUY-IN "A"

DATA EFT/CD Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA

Medicare BUY-IN "A" DATA

Monthly

Medicare BUY-IN "B"


Medicare BUY-IN "B" DATA

Monthly

Medicare BUY-IN "A"


Medicare BUY-IN "A" DATA

Semi-Annual

Medicare BUY-IN "B"


Medicare BUY-IN "B" DATA

Semi-Annual

8019 Third Party Liability


8019 Third Party Liability DATA

Daily

QMB OUTREACH


QMB OUTREACH DATA

Monthly

Medicaid Waiver Billing

File EFT/CD Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA

Medicaid Waiver Billing File

Bi-Weekly

Medicaid Billing Data

EFT/CD Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA Medicaid Billing

Data Monthly

BEST file Cartridge

Tape Moderate FL-->AHCA AHCA BEST file On Request

Project Independence

EFT/FTP Complex FL<--

>WAGES DMS/OSST/WAG

ES DCF/WAGES

MATCH DATA Daily

IRS FORM 1099 Request

EFT/FTP Moderate FL<-->IRS Internal Revenue

Service (IRS)

UNEARNED INCOME DATA

(IRS 1099) Monthly

Death match EFT/FTP Moderate OVS-->FL Office of Vital

Statistics (OVS) Death file weekly

Birth EFT/FTP Complex OVS-->FL OVS Enumeration

@birth file Monthly

Beneficiary data exchange

- response EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL

Social Security Administration

(SSA) BENDEX DATA

Twice Monthly


58 | P a g e

Interface Name




Beneficiary data exchange

- request EFT/FTP Moderate FL-->SSA SSA

BENDEX Requests to SSA

Monthly

Beneficiary Earnings

EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL-

IRS SSA/IRS BEER DATA

Twice Monthly

State data exchange

EFT/FTP Complex SSA-->FL SSA SDX DATA /

DAILY Daily

State data exchange -

LEADS EFT/FTP Complex SSA-->FL SSA

SDX DATA/ LEADS

Monthly

State data exchange -Treasury

EFT/FTP Complex SSA-->FL SSA SDX DATA/ TREASURY

Monthly


RECON EFT/FTP Complex SSA-->FL SSA

SDX DATA/ RECON

Yearly


Cost of Living adjustments

EFT/FTP Complex SSA-->FL SSA SDX DATA/COLA Yearly

State verification

exchange / 40 quarters

EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL SSA SVES (WTPY) SSI HIST/40 QRTRS

Daily

State Verification

exchange (Social

Security Number)

EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL SSA SVES (WTPY) Daily

Prisoner data exchange

EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL SSA PRISONER

MATCH DATA Daily

40 Quarters EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL SSA 40 QUARTERS

DATA Daily

SSA Death match

EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL SSA SSA DEATH FILE Monthly

State on-line query

EFT/ Real-time

(APPC)

Very Complex

FL<->SSA SSA SOLQ - SVES (WTPY) SSI

HISTORY DATA Real-time

SS5 file EFT/FTP Moderate SSA-->FL--

>OVS SSA/OVS

SS5 data file (pass through)

Daily

Veterans information

and duplicate participation across states

EFT/FTP Complex FL<->DOD Department of Defense (DOD)

Public Assistance Recipient

Information System (PARIS)

file

Quarterly


59 | P a g e

Interface Name




TOP (Treasury

Offset Program)/FN

S

EFT/CD Very

Complex FL-->FNS

Food and Nutritional

Services(FNS)

Benefit Recovery TOP - Weekly BRS Update

Weekly

TOP (Treasury

Offset Program)/FN

S

EFT/CD Very

Complex FNS-->FL


Services(FNS)

Benefit Recovery TOP - FNS

Collections File Bi-Weekly

TOP (Treasury

Offset Program)/FN

S

EFT/CD Very

Complex FL-->FNS


Services(FNS)

Benefit Recovery TOP - Annual Certification /

Pre-Offset process

3 times/year

DOC interface EFT/FTP Complex DOC<-->FL Department of

Correction(DOC) Offender data Monthly

Disqualification

EFT/CD Very

Complex FL<->FNS


Services(FNS)

Matched disqualified food

stamp file Monthly

Collection EFT/FTP Very

Complex FL<-->PCC Vendor

Private Collections

Contractor (PCC) Monthly

Lottery EFT/FTP Complex FL<--

>Lottery Department of

Lottery Recoup

payments Monthly

Payroll EFT/FTP Complex FL<-->DFS Department of

financial services State Payroll Monthly

State wages EFT/FTP Complex DEO->FL

Department of Economic

Opportunity (DEO)

State Employee data

Weekly

Un-employment

compensation EFT/FTP Complex DEO->FL DEO UC data Weekly

New hire EFT/FTP Complex DEO ->FL DEO New Hire Weekly

Driver’s license

EFT/ Real-time

(web services)

Complex FL<->DMV Department of Motor Vehicles

(DMV)

Driver’s license verification

On Request

Florida retirement

EFT/FTP Moderate DMS-->FL Department of Management

Services

Florida retirement

Weekly

Child Support Enforcement

(CAMS) EFT/FTP Complex FL<-->DOR

Department of Revenue (DOR)

CAMS

Payments and sanctions

Daily

Fraud cases EFT/FTP Complex FL-->FDLE

Florida Department of

Law Enforcement (FDLE)

Public Assistance Fraud cases;

benefit recovery

Daily Weekly


60 | P a g e

Interface Name




EBT EFT/FTP Very

Complex FL<--

>JPMorgan JPMorgan

Electronic benefits

transfer(EBT) Daily

Benefit issuance

EFT/FTP Very

Complex

FL<-->Comptrol

ler

Department of Financial Services

(DFS) Benefit Issuance Monthly

LEARNFARE EFT/FTP Moderate FL<--

>NWRC

Northwest regional data

center/Department of Education

Child school attendance

Monthly

Quality Control

EFT/FTP Moderate FL-->QC System

DCF Internal – QC System

SOLQ AUDIT/WAGES/

DE UNREVIEWED

Monthly Weekly

FSFN/FLORIDA

AMS framewor

k

Very Complex

FL <-> FSFN

DCF (internal with FSFN

System)

Data exchange for eligibility

calculation for child

Real Time / Daily

KIDCARE EFT/FTP Complex FHK-->FL Florida Healthy

KIDS Child Medicaid Daily

Electronic application

EFT/ Web

Service Complex

External vendors --

>FL External Vendors

ACCESS application

Real-time

Provider View/Gold

card

EFT/Real-time

Very Complex

ACCESS<->AHCA

AHCA

MyAccess Account - provide

view and Gold card request

Real-time

MIPPA application

EFT/FTP Complex SSA--

>ACCESS SSA

MIPPA applications

Daily

Public service commission

EFT/FTP Moderate ACCESS--

>PSC PSC Lifeline data Daily

Client Verification

EFT/ Web

Service Moderate

External vendors --

>FLODS

External Vendors (Tracfone)

Benefits data Daily


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7.0 Key Statistics The information below is intended to give some context to the size and capacity of the ACCESS

Florida environment. Some of the numbers and percentages have been rounded.

Counts of Individuals by Program:

Period Duplicated Unduplicated

TANF SNAP Medicaid Medically Needy Total Jan. 2012 94,274 3,326,576 2,672,156 1,175,292 7,268,298 4,643,732 Feb. 2012 94,217 3,354,352 2,687,702 1,182,443 7,318,714 4,676,312 Mar. 2012 94,099 3,383,156 2,697,796 1,192,474 7,367,525 4,701,511 Average 94,197 3,354,695 2,685,885 1,183,403 7,318,179 4,673,852

Counts of Households by Program:

Period Duplicated Unduplicated

TANF SNAP Medicaid Medically Needy Total Jan. 2012 45,255 1,809,303 1,434,985 767,825 4,057,368 2,514,466 Feb. 2012 45,156 1,826,564 1,444,687 772,437 4,088,844 2,534,529 Mar. 2012 45,372 1,840,928 1,449,825 778,330 4,114,455 2,549,047 Average 45,261 1,825,598 1,443,166 772,864 4,086,889 2,532,681

Applications and Reviews Processed by Program:

Period TANF SNAP Medicaid/Medically

Needy/Refugee Assistance Total

Jan. 2012 40,682 405,477 549,886 996,045 Feb. 2012 38,942 408,484 609,933 1,057,359 Mar. 2012 38,776 401,730 629,416 1,069,922

Average 39,467 405,230 596,412 1,041,109

Client Notice Generated *

Originated From:

Nightly Weekly Monthly

FLORIDA 70,000 20,000 500,000 AMS 25,000 IBRS 45,000 Totals 95,000 20,000 545,000 * Numbers have been rounded


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ACCESS Web Application and My ACCESS Account On-Line Application Submission

Period New

Applications Reviews/

Redeterminations Changes

Additional Benefits

Total

Jan. 2012 271,563 162,847 59,428 43,893 537,731 Feb. 2012 215,872 117,009 48,534 33,015 414,430 Mar. 2012 234,289 148,737 53,159 37,181 473,366

Average 240,575 142,864 53,707 38,030 475,176

New Applications – Count of applications received via the Web Application system. These applications may be applying for one or more benefit type. Reviews Redeterminations – Count of applications received to renew a client’s benefits. These

applications may be applying for one or more benefit type.

Changes – Count of the number of changes clients have submitted to existing application. These

changes may consist of an update to an applicant’s household, address, etc.

Additional Benefits – Count of the number of clients submitting applications for additional

benefits to those they are currently receiving. These applications may be applying for one or

more benefit type.

FLORIDA Mainframe:

The FLORIDA mainframe executes, on average, 216.28 transactions per second, where as a

transaction is defined as requiring an average of 2,284,642 machine instructions, 49.50 database

inquiries, and 3.36 database updates.

General Application Statistics:

Document Scanning:

53,000 documents (170,122 pages) are Indexed into the ADI each day

Of those, an average of 42,000 documents are scanned by DCF staff and 11,000 are faxed to

the department

My ACCESS Account:

79% of all open FLORIDA cases that currently have a registered My ACCESS Account

Approximately 95,000 clients sign-in to the system a day (M-F)

ACCESS Customer Call Centers

May 2012 Counts Action

3,073,981 Calls Received 3,048,623 Calls Connected to the ARU 1,608,421 Calls Transferred to an Agent

67% Received Busy Signal upon Transfer


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8.0 Application Hardware and Software The information below is an excerpt from the Department’s Application Inventory. Certain information has been modified or excluded from this document due to the nature of the information. The terms Supported and Unsupported in the tables below corresponds to whether the software remains covered by the vendor’s mainstream support. The Department may have software support contracts in addition to a vendors standard support agreements.

ACCESS Prescreening Tool

Application Description A quick and effective way for customers to find out if their household might be eligible for help buying food, cash assistance, low or no cost health care, or help paying Medicare premiums.

Business Impact

Number of Users Unknown

User Base Citizens of Florida and Community Partners

Age of Application 4 - 6 years

Application Nature Agency Developed / Agency Maintained

Platform Software Version Status

Application Layer

Eclipse 3.3 My Eclipse 6.0 Java

3.3 6.0 1.5

Supported Supported Supported

Database Layer Oracle 11g Supported

Hardware Server Type Server Name Hosted Operating System

Production Web and Application Server

SCFLZAF1 SCFLZAF2

NSRC Linux Redhat 5 (Supported)

Database server RACP1, RACP2, RACP3, RACP4

NSRC

Linux Redhat 5 (Supported)

Test Web and Application Server

ESS3 NSRC Linux Redhat 5 (Supported)

Database server RACD1 RACD2


Development Web and Application Server

ESS3 NSRC Linux Redhat 5 (Supported)



ACCESS Florida Web Application

Application Description An intranet/internet application that allows recipients and applicants to complete an electronic application for Food Stamps, Cash Assistance, Medicaid and Nursing home and Medicaid Coverage.

Business Impact

Number of Users 1,500 >


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ACCESS Florida Web Application

User Base Citizens of Florida, Community Partners


Application Nature Agency Development / Agency Maintenance


Application Layer

Eclipse 3.3 MyEclipse 6.0 Java

3.3 6.0 1.5





SCFLZAF1 SCFLZAF2

NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)


NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported)


ESS3 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)




ESS3 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)



My ACCESS Account

Application Description Used by Department of Children and Families (DCF) clients to access their own personal data. My Account application shows the status of the account, pending verification list, appointment information, detailed information about the status of the benefit, and benefit history information.

Business Impact

Number of Users

> 1,500

User Base Citizens of Florida, ACCESS Management System (AMS) Users, Community Partners, Providers





65 | P a g e

My ACCESS Account

Application Layer

Eclipse My Eclipse Java

3.3 6.0 1.6




Production Application Server

SCFLZMYACCT1 SCFLZMYACCT2 SCFLZMADPS1


Database Server ORADB1 NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (Supported)

Test Application Server

SCFLZMYAMS7 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.3 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)

Database Server DB-DB1 NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (Supported)

Development Application Server

SCFLZMYAMS7 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.3 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)

Database Server DB-DB1 NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (Supported)

My ACCESS Account Authentication & User Administration

Application Description Authenication and user administration modules for My Account users.

Business Impact

Number of Users

1,500 >

User Base Department of Children and Families (DCF) Clients & Staff




Application Layer

Visual Studio .Net Framework

2008 2.0

Supported Supported

Database Layer SQL Server 2005 Unsupported


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My ACCESS Account Authentication & User Administration



SCFMZZ100 SCFMZZ116 SCFMZZ117

NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)

Database Server SCFMZP303 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)


SCFMZDND1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)

Database Server SCFMZRSQLDEV NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)


SCFMZDND1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)

Database Server SCFMZRSQLDEV NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)

Telephonic Interactive Voice Resonse (IVR)

Application Description The Telephonic IVR is part of the Economic Self Sufficiency (IVR) modernization initiative to improve service delivery and to allow ESS to function effectively and efficiently. The IVR is available to customers 24 hours per day; 7 days per week. Customers are able to receive information about their benefits, scheduled appointments and required pending information.

Business Impact


User Base General Public/Citizens of Florida

Age of Application 4 – 6 years

Application Nature

Vendor developed and maintained. The Department supplies the data through secure database connections.


Application Layer PL/SQL 10 Supported



Production Database Server ESSDW NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (supported)

Test Database Server DB-DEV1 NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (supported)

Development Database Server DB-DEV1 NSRC Linux Red Hat 5 (supported)


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Florida On-line Recipient Integrated Data Access System (FLORIDA)

Application Description Provides public assistance eligibility determination.

Business Impact


User Base FLORIDA system employees, Partnering Agencies, Integrated Benefit Recovery System (IBRS) Users

Age of Application 15 > years



Application Layer

Common Business-Oriented Language (Cobol) for z/OS JCL C-list Eztrieve Telon Endevor (not a complete list)

4.2.0 R9V6 z/OS 01.12.00 5.1 5.1 15.0

Supported Supported Supported Supported Supported Supported

Database Layer Integrated Management System (IMS)

11 Supported


Production Mainframe IBM Z10 NSRC IBM z/OS 1.12 (Supported)

Test Mainframe IBM Z890 NSRC IBM z/OS 1.12 (Supported)

Development Mainframe IBM Z890 NSRC IBM z/OS 1.12 (Supported)

ACCESS Management System (AMS)

Application Description Provides a web based interface for the Client Registration, Work Flow Management and Application Entry portion of the FLORIDA mainframe. Employees are able to initiate the transfer of the data into the FLORIDA system.

Business Impact


User Base ACCESS employees





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ACCESS Management System (AMS)

Application Layer

Eclipse 3.3 My Eclipse 6.0 Java

3.3 6.0 1.5





SCFLZAMS1 SCFLZAMS2 SCFLZAMS3 SCFLZAMS4





SCFLAMS-ACC NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)




SCFLAMS-DEV NSRC Linux Redhat 5.5 (Supported) Weblogic 9.2 (Unsupported)



ACCESS Document Imaging

Application Description

Allows users to scan documents, create thumbnails, and store the records and user demographics for later retrieval. System includes a web-enabled viewing application for retrieving documents for on-line viewing.

Business Impact

Number of Users

1,500 >

User Base ACCESS employees, Citizens of Florida




Application Layer

Visual Studio .Net Framework LEAD Tools ATLASOFT

2008 2.0 14.5 9.0

Supported Supported Supported Supported

Database Layer

Oracle 11g Supported


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Production Web Server SCFMZIMG9, SCFMZIMG10, SCFMZIMG11

NSRC Windows Server 2003 Standard SP2 (Unsupported)

Application Server

SCFMZAP002

NSRC Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard SP2 (Unsupported)

Application Server

SCFMZIFS2 SCFMZIFS3 SCFMZIFS5 SCFMZIFS6 SCFMZIFS7 SCFMZIFS9


File Server (PolyServe Cluster)

SCFMZPS001 SCFMZPS002 SCFMZPS003 SCFMZPS004


Database Server RACp1 RACp2 RACp3 RACp4

NSRC Redhat Enterprise Linux 5 (64-bit) (Supported)

Test Web Server SCFMZIMG1, SCFMZIMG2


Application Server

SCFMZIFS11 SCFMZIFS12 SCFMZIFS13





Database Server RACD1 RACD2

NSRC Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 (64-bit) (Supported)

Development Web Server SCFMZIMG1, SCFMZIMG2


Application Server

SCFMZIFS11 SCFMZIFS12






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Development, User Acceptance, Production

Database Server RACD1 RACD2

NSRC Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 (64-bit) (Supported)

Integrated Benefit Recovery System (IBRS)

Application Description Facilitates and aids in the recovery of over-issuance of public assistance benefits.

Business Impact

Number of Users

250 - 499

User Base Florida On-line Recipient Integrated Data Access (FLORIDA) system – IBRS Users




Application Layer


3.3 6.0 1.6





IBRSAPP1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported) Weblogic 8.0 (Unsupported)

Database Server

IBRSDB1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)


IBRSDEV1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported) Weblogic 8.0 (Unsupported)

Database Server



IBRSDEV1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported) Weblogic 8.0 (Unsupported)

Database Server


HP ExStream Software

Application Description Used to format user friendly client notices from the FLORIDA mainframe.


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HP ExStream Software

Business Impact


User Base My Account users, ACCESS Management System (AMS) users, FLROIDA and AMS batch process


Application Nature Vendor Software/ Agency Configured and Maintained


Application Layer

ExStream Studio 7.0.613 Supported




SCFMZP501 NSRC Windows Server 2003 SE (Unsupported)





Development, User Acceptance, Production

Application Server


Power Tools

Application Description The Power Tools are a set of screen scraping or data transfer tools, which collect data from both mainframe, and midrange system screens and place the values collected in either the Florida Online Recipient Integrated Data Access (FLORIDA) system or various midrange systems.

Business Impact


User Base Agency staff




Application Layer Visual Basic 6.0 Supported


Production Client’s PC User’s PC All over the Florida State

Windows XP (Unsupported)

Test Client’s PC Tester’s PC NSRC Windows XP (Unsupported)


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Power Tools

Development Client’s PC Developer’s PC NSRC Windows XP (Unsupported)

ACCESS Florida KidCare

Application Description Intranet application for processing Florida KidCare Applications. This program provides children with medical coverage.

Business Impact

Number of Users 250 - 499

User Base Florida KidCare employees




Application Layer Java Eclipse

1.4.2_12 3.3

Supported Supported

Database Layer Oracle 10g Unsupported


Production Application server

ESSDW NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported) Tomcat 5.5.9 (Unsupported)

Database Server

ESSDW NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported)

Test Application server

ESSDW NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported) Tomcat 5.5.9 (Unsupported)

Database Server

ESSDW NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported)

Development Application server

Db-dev1 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported) Tomcat 5.5.9 (Unsupported)

Database Server

Db-dev1 NSRC Linux Redhat 5.1 (Supported)

ACCESS Integrity Online (AIO) System

Application Description Also known as Front Fraud Protection (FFP). It is a statewide data collection system for all ACCESS integrity referrals. Users include ACCESS Integrity Program (AlP) staff, supervisors, Quality Assurance (QA), Operational Program Administrators (OPA's), and whoever may need access to the data. Users can retrieve pending records, update them as they complete the fraud referral investigation, and run reports, etc.

Business Impact


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ACCESS Integrity Online (AIO) System

Number of Users

500 - 749

User Base ACCESS Integrity staff




Application Layer

Visual Basic 6.0 Supported

Database Layer SQL Server 2000 Supported



scfmz046 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)

Database Server

Scfmzsql3 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)


Scfmzdnd1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)

Database Server




Database Server


ACCESS Knowledge Bank

Application Description

This application provides a unique platform for ACCESS staff to review the policy manual, get access to transmittals, clearances and questions and answers. It offers a daily new tip to the users about how to optimize or improve case processing.

Business Impact

Number of Users

1500 >

Annual Support Budget

< $50,000


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ACCESS Knowledge Bank

User Base Agency staff and Department of Children and Families (DCF) Management users




Application Layer

.Net Visual Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported

Database Layer

SQL Server 2000 Supported




Database server




Database server




Database server


Community Partners Tracking System (CPTS)

Application Description Used by the ACCESS program community partner liaisons to report and track community partners.

Business Impact

Number of Users

500 - 749

User Base Agency Staff Users




Application Layer

.Net Visual Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported



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Community Partners Tracking System (CPTS)




Database server




Database server




Database server


Data & Reports System

Application Description Used to report ACCESS program data by state, region, circuit, county, admin, units, workers and caseloads. Produces daily, weekly, monthly, and statistical reports. Produces multiple reports for workload generated in other applications or program areas.

Business Impact

Number of Users

1,500 >

User Base Florida On-line Recipient Integrated Data Access (FLORIDA) Users, ACCESS Management System (AMS) Users, Management Users




Application Layer

.Net MS Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported





Database Server Scfmzsql9 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)








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Exceptions Management System (EMS)

Application Description This application provides a platform to notify ACCESS eligibility users of required actions in the Florida On-line Recipient Integrated Data Access (FLORIDA) system on cases that failed to auto-complete. It allows worker to retrieve, track and process the list of individuals that require immediate eligibility determination for certain benefits due to information received from other agencies like Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), Social Security Administration (SSA), etc.

Business Impact

Number of Users

750 – 1,249

User Base FLORIDA Users




Application Layer

.Net MS Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported












Quality Management System (QMS)

Application Description QMS tracks Tier 1 case reviews and Tier 2 validations of eligibility determination actions completed by ACCESS staff. The system allows identifying error trends in eligibility determination, determining error payment accuracy and run performance, validations and corrections due reports.


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Quality Management System (QMS)

Business Impact


User Base Agency Staff and Management Users




Application Layer .Net Visual Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported





Database server




Database server




Database server


Food for Florida (FFF)

Application Description Provides food stamps benefits to Florida's residents who have experienced a natural disaster whenever the emergency food stamp program is authorized following a disaster.

Business Impact

Number of Users 100 - 249

User Base Citizens of Florida, ACCESS Employees




Application Layer


3.3 6.0 1.6



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Food for Florida (FFF)



Production Web & App Server

FFF-APP1 FFF-APP2 FFF-APP3 FFF-APP4 FFF-APP6

NSRC Linux Redhat 5.3 (Supported) Tomcat 5.5.9 (Unsupported)

Database server ESSDW NSRC Linux Redhat 5.3 (Supported)

Test Web & App Server

FFF-APP5



Development Web & App Server

FFF-APP5



Food for Florida Volunteer (FFFV) and DHL Tracking

Application Description This system allows the department to enroll and track persons who volunteer to assist with the delivery of services during a natural disaster. This system will be available 24-hours a day once a disaster is declared.

Business Impact

Number of Users

100 - 249

User Base Disaster Volunteer Workers




Application Layer

.Net MS Studio

2.0 2005

Supported Supported





Database Server SCFMZSQL3 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)


scfmzrad1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)


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Food for Florida Volunteer (FFFV) and DHL Tracking

Database Server SCFMZRAD2 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)


scfmzrad1 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)

Database Server SCFMZRAD2 NSRC Windows Server 2003 (Unsupported)

ACCESS FLORIDA SYSTEM TECHNICAL ARCHITECTURE OVERVIEW · ACCESS FLORIDA SYSTEM TECHNICAL...

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