From the hardwood to the business sector, Shaquille O’Neal knows how to make an impact. An endeavor that deeply resonates with his ideals and philosophy is only what interests him. And that is what his next project for Missouri stands for. The gig economy is getting bigger than ever which poses a new problem for Missouri government agencies. To combat the issue, the agencies have turned to a technology initiative backed by none other than the 4x NBA champ.

Uber, DoorDash, TikTok shop, there are a lot of non-traditional jobs that popped up in the recent years. These freelancers or small business owners get their payments through online platforms, like Venmo. However, being a non-traditional means of income, these create a problem for government agencies in verifying the payments and a person’s income to determine whether they qualify for state benefits such as healthcare and more.

Since the traditional verification systems are not exactly equipped to process through these, they later cause more delays and struggles for caseworkers trying to provide help to those who really need it. Like many more government agencies, the Missouri Department of Social Services has been struggling with the same issue. So, it turned to new tech that can help them verify these non-traditional incomes.

So, the Missouri Department of Social Services has joined hands with a new income service named SteadyIQ for a better and easier income verification process. And one of the investors in SteadyIQ is NBA legend O’Neal.

He has been a part of the initiative for a long time. The basketball legend also visited Missouri for the same. Now, let’s see how O’Neal’s service helping the Missouri govt.

How is Steady IQ helping the Missouri Department of Social Services?

As seen, the problem arises when gig economy earners apply for state benefits. While income data is easily available for traditional earners using their Social Security number and other details, it isn’t the same for non-traditional earners. The agencies have to rely on self-reported data, which makes the process complicated, long, and, most importantly, vulnerable to fraud. And the list of issues is quite long. 

This is where SteadyIQ’s technology comes in to help. This technology directly links to where people earn money, which helps the agencies get income information straight from those sources, without needing to rely on third parties. What did it do? It saw an impressive 25% reduction in the rejection of applications as well as the eligible members getting the benefits 4 days early.

“When you’re trying to feed your family in need of food stamps or [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] SNAP benefits, four days is a big difference,” Melissa Wolf, deputy director at the Missouri Department of Social Services said in a conversation with Government Technology.

It has been a big help to Missouri government agencies, and, like the Los Angeles Lakers legend would have wanted, it does make a big difference.