Helped more than 12,000 members of New Jersey’s disability community and their loved ones access critical information and services

To help New Jersey’s disability community make sense of a tangled web of benefits and confusing eligibility requirements to access services and programs, the Office of Innovation partnered with the NJ State Department of Human Services to launch the Disability Information Hub. The site consolidates critical information from dozens of agencies in a user-friendly and accessible format on a range of topics from health care to utility assistance, transportation to in-home support, and more.

Challenge

There are a multitude of State programs that support people with disabilities, however finding and accessing them can be a challenge as they are largely organized by the agency responsible for administering the program. As a result, residents often find themselves poring over dozens of different State websites to find information which decreases the likelihood of finding the information or help they need.

Innovation In Action

Expanding on the model pioneered by the COVID-19 Information Hub, OOI collaborated with the NJ State Department of Human Services, the Office of the Governor, program managers across State government, and community partners to build the Disability Information Hub around specific user needs rather than organizing information by government agency. In addition, to ensure users’ needs are fully met, OOI utilized an iterative, data-driven, and human-centered approach. In practice, that means OOI conducted a survey and worked with advocacy organizations to understand the most pressing needs and challenges of New Jerseyans with disabilities first. The development and design process also incorporated input from individuals with lived experience, state agencies and offices, external partners, and accessibility experts. With feedback options on every page, the Hub welcomes additional user feedback to continually evolve the Hub to better serve the disability community.

Impact

• With the launch of the Disability Information Hub, New Jerseyans with disabilities and their families and caregivers no longer have to navigate a maze of state agencies and instead have an easy to use, centralized portal for all their needs.
• Since the site’s launch in July 2024, the Hub has helped connect more than 12,000 people to critical benefits and information as of August 2024.
• Nearly 200 programs offered by the State of New Jersey can be found through the Hub and resources are organized by a person’s disability to make navigation easier.
• The Hub incorporated direct feedback from residents with disabilities and meets Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Section 508 accessibility requirements.

Partners

• Office of the Governor
• NJ State Department of Human Services
• NJ State Office of Information Technology

What New Jerseyans See

Read More

See the latest at the Disability Information Hub project page.