NYT-1201: STATE OF THE ART A Thermostat That's Clever, Not ...

Ms. Grimmer had first applied for food stamps at t
he Laredo social services office on July 7. She di
d not meet the criteria to receive benefits within
24 hours because she was receiving child support.
But an employee scheduled a time with Ms. Grimmer
for someone to call her the next day to review he
r case, a spokeswoman for the Texas Health and Hum
an Services Commission said. A caseworker called t
wice but was unable to reach her, the spokeswoman
said.
A letter was sent to Ms. Grimmer asking her to res
chedule, and the appointment was set for July 22.
On that day, a caseworker interviewed Ms. Grimmer
by phone and explained what information was needed
, said the spokeswoman, Stephanie Goodman. Though
Ms. Grimmer turned in some of the paperwork, she d
id not supply materials verifying the amount of ch
ild support she had been receiving monthly, Ms. Go
odman said.
On Aug. 8, the case was closed, and Ms. Grimmer wa
s sent a letter informing her that she had been de
nied food stamp benefits because of the missing in
formation, Ms. Goodman said.
In Texas, benefits applications are approved more
often than they are denied: in the past six months
, 85 percent of cases statewide were approved, and
the median number of days to process an applicati
on was 12, the agency said.
In mid-November, Ms. Grimmer called the agency’s o
mbudsman office, saying that she disagreed with th
e reason she was denied benefits. A supervisor cal
led her on Dec. 1 but could not reach her. No one
in the Laredo office heard from her until she walk
ed in on Monday.
The agency is reviewing its handling of Ms. Grimme
r’s case. “I think we did everything we could,” sa
id Thomas M. Suehs, the commissioner of health and