Subcontractor On Troubled Texas Welfare Contract Files Claim Against Accenture

[OhioChick]

December 22, 2006 (11:00 AM EST)

Government systems integrator Maximus Inc. said Thursday that it has initiated an arbitration process to resolve disputes arising under a subcontract with outsourcer Accenture for work on a Texas Health and Human Services Commission program that has come under fire from state lawmakers.

Maximus claims that Accenture unilaterally redefined the scope of the work on a contract to automate welfare eligibility assessment and enrollment services in the state, and that it's no longer profitable for Maximus to continue working on the deal.

Texas and Accenture recently agreed to scale back the contract from $899 million to $546 million and terminate the deal in 2008 -- two years earlier than the original term -- after receiving numerous complaints about inaccuracies and citizens being improperly denied benefits.
http://www.techweb.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196701681