Blog

  • 9/20/2019

    The Maine Office of Child & Family Services (OCFS) is pleased to announce the publication of key data points in the areas of child welfare, children’s behavioral health, and early childhood education, marking an unprecedented step towards transparency of this kind in Maine.

  • 9/9/2019

    The Public Health Nursing Program played a significant role in supporting the health needs of asylum seekers who were temporarily housed at The Expo in Portland from June through August 2019. Soon after families and individuals seeking asylum began arriving at The Expo, public health nurses responded and provided services for nine consecutive days, from June 13 through June 21.

  • 8/31/2019

    The Lewiston listening session will be held Thursday, November 21 at 5:30pm in the Lewiston DHHS Office.

  • 8/16/2019

    Since Governor Mills signed her executive order on January 3 to expand Medicaid (MaineCare), more than 34,000 people have been enrolled. Early information about MaineCare expansion members is beginning to come in, and the Department has started to take a closer look at the health profile of this newly covered group.

  • 8/2/2019

    The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) offers a wide range of services and supports to promote health, safety, resiliency, and opportunity across the State.  We work with individuals, organizations, communities, and employers throughout Maine. We are the largest Department in State government, meaning our services touch virtually everyone in Maine at some point in their lives.

  • 7/17/2019

    The Office for Family Independence has implemented a new change designed to support recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) in pursuing and maintaining education and employment.

  • 7/3/2019

    The Office for Family Independence (OFI) helps eligible Maine people to meet their basic needs while supporting their path to independence and employment. OFI provides eligibility for three major public assistance programs: MaineCare, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

  • 7/1/2019

    Many MaineCare members receive personal care and other health services in their homes, based on their individual needs. MaineCare is now preparing to roll out a new system known as Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) to allow better tracking of these services.

  • 6/20/2019

    The Office of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services (SAMHS) has a long-standing program to help persons with mental illness and co-occurring substance use disorders re-integrate into the community following discharge from incarceration.

  • 6/18/2019

    In May, during our inaugural Convening on Aging and Long-Term Services and Supports, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced a new initiative aimed at improving care and services for older Mainers and adults

  • 5/30/2019

    The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) offers home- and community-based services to adults with intellectual disabilities and autism through two MaineCare-funded programs. These are often called waiver programs because they operate with special waivers from the federal government. In Maine, we refer to them as Section 21 and Section 29, which is where they can be found in the MaineCare rules.

  • 5/23/2019

    A view of those served by DHHS, at a glance

    The Department provides health care and social services to approximately a third of the state's population, including children, families, older Mainers, and individuals with disabilities, mental illness and substance use disorders.

  • 5/23/2019

    The Department provides health care and social services to approximately a third of the state's population, including children, families, older Mainers, and individuals with disabilities, mental illness and substance use disorders.

  • 5/17/2019

    The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has regularly provided updates on improvements and initiatives within our Offices over the past several months. Those updates can be found by visiting the "Department Updates" section of the DHHS homepage.

  • 5/9/2019

    The Office of Child and Family Services has engaged with partners, including the Public Consulting Group (PCG), to evaluate and pursue recommendations for improvements within the children’s behavioral health system (CBHS). Included in that work was the development of a report addressing internal CBHS operations at the Department, which is the result, in part, of the feedback from OCFS staff provided to PCG.

  • 5/9/2019

    The Office for Family Independence determines eligibility for three major public assistance programs: MaineCare, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

  • 5/2/2019

    Improving quality and affordability

    The Department partners with parents and child care providers to provide financial support to ensure that Maine families have access to high-quality child care.

  • 4/12/2019

    The Maine Department of Health and Human Services joins Governor Mills in celebrating the accomplishments of all Maine departments, their employees, and lawmakers during her first 100 days in office.

  • 4/11/2019

    The Office of Child and Family Services' (OCFS) is working to improve children's behavioral health services, guided by a framework that is the product of close collaboration among Department leadership, OCFS staff, families, providers, and other stakeholders, using Public Consulting Group's analysis and 

  • 3/26/2019

    The Maine Public Health Nursing Program continues to add staff who provide essential services in Maine communities. In October and early November, new hires in Augusta, Portland, Rockland, and Bangor increased the statewide number of Public Health Nurses to 31 and total program staff to 40.