iQualify

As an alternative to unclear and inaccessible government aide sites, iQualify helps find COVID relief in just a few questions and presents crowdsourced data to counteract COVID misinformation.

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Inspiration

We were inspired to create iQualify after witnessing the devastating impacts of COVID-19 on unemployment rates and realizing the inaccessibility and overwhelmingness of information on existing government aide sites. iQualify introduces a simple, straightforward, and interactive process that reduces the complexity of benefit eligibility and estimation.

What it does

iQualify determines whether individuals are eligible for state-sponsored benefits, estimates how much they are eligible for, and provides the path to claim said benefits — all in just four questions. It also aggregates crowdsourced data to be displayed via dashboards on the front page to inform and spread awareness of benefits. This data can also be used by governments who would like more data on unemployment compensations/demographics.

How we built it

We built iQualify using a variety of technologies. On the front-end, we utilized ReactJS, HTML/CSS, and JavaScript. On the back-end, we utilized CoackroachDB connected to a Python (Flask) backend. We hosted the front-end via Google Firebase and the backend via Google Cloud Platform. To calculate benefit amounts, we performed extensive research and utilized the state-specific formulas to give the most accurate estimations (varying by state).

Challenges we ran into

Integrating live updating data visualization reports into the app Combining cockroach DB with GCP and firebase Researching and condensing the calculations and processing done by government aid websites from multiple states Building a UI that would make the eligibility process seem a lot simpler and more rewarding

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are particularly proud of how we were able to create a beautiful UI that simplified the entire process of calculating someone's potential benefits. Also, we were proud of the integration of the two missions of counteracting misinformation and helping individuals in a financial crisis.

What we learned

Through this Hackathon, we learned about the significance of accessibility and the impact a beautiful, consistent, and easy to use website has on users. Before the Hackathon, we imagined it would be easy to find how to receive COVID benefits; after searching online for hours, however, we realized this information was often tucked into obscure corners of the internet and difficult to find quickly. After developing our website, we realized it was incredibly easy to receive information if it was presented in an easy to access format. As a whole, we’re excited about how iQualify can help users easily access financial benefits through the accessibility of our website.

What's next for iQualify

We hope to increase the depth of our data analytics and continue to provide even more information to people unemployed by COVID. After this Hackathon, we hope to market iQualify to the general public so that thousands of people will have easy access to money they never knew they were qualified for.

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