Good afternoon everybody this is Ray Cebula from Cornell University’s 
Employment and Disability Institute and I want to welcome you to today's Work 
Incentives Seminar Event, Choose Work, Making Work Incentives Work for You.
We have a great lineup of speakers today from the Atlanta area, and we want 
to thank new additions, Jayme Pendergrass, from registering everybody and 
Gordon, from VAH to helping everybody register and Michael Ward from Cornell 
who is helping make this webinar function in the way it should.
We are going to tell you little bit about the technology you are using today.
You have been connected by default to your computers microphone and speakers.
If at any time during today's presentation, you have any problems hearing us 
and choose to use the telephone, simply click on the + next to the word audio 
in that webinar console appearing in the right-hand corner of your screen, it 
will open up information giving you today's dial in information, 
access code and audio PIN.
You will be able to use your telephone to listen.
I know there are storms all over the country 
and there may be interference with the Internet.
If you use your telephone you will be making a long-distance phone call.
We want to hear your questions.
We want you to participate today.
If you do have a question for us, we will be taking your questions and 
answering them at the end of everybody's presentation today.
But, in order to get that question to us, click on the + next to the word 
questions at it will open the box you see in front of you.
You will be typing your question in this open space that is highlighted here.
Click on the send and it will appear on my desktop and Jayme's desktop.
We will picking from those questions to him -- to answer some that pertain 
that will pertain to the presentation.
We have a large crowd today so it is unlikely 
we will get to all of your questions.
We will however, provide you with a toll-free line so you can get your 
questions answered if we do not get to them.
Now, we want our products to be accessible.
And webinar technology being what it is, involves computers, naturally.
And, we want everybody to be able to participate.
If you have any accessibility issues with today’s presentation, 
please let us know.
More importantly than letting us know that you have a problem, if you happen 
to have a solution or know of the system or some kind of program that can 
help us make this more accessible, please let us know, 
it is very important to us.
And, what I want to do at this point, you know who I am, and I don't have 
much to say other than asking some questions of all of these great speakers.
But, I am very pleased right now to introduced Sally Atwell of the Shepherd 
Center in Atlanta who will be talking to us about the WIPA program and then 
we will have to Marilou Harding talking to us about employment networks at 
Brigg’s and Associates and how they might be able to help you return to work.
Janice Lawrence from the Georgia rehabilitation agency is going to be here as 
well and from the protection advocacy, that provides legal services to folks 
who are attempting to return to work and run into barriers to work we have 
Crystal Beelner, from PABS state agency.
So, what can you expect?
From today's webinar?
We will provide you with information 
on the Ticket to Work program and Work Incentives.
A lot of very complex information.
However, we are not going to give you this information 
 and leave you hanging with it.
We are going to provide you with some answers to frequently asked questions 
and where you can find more information.
There is somebody in your neighborhood or greater area where you can sit down, 
at no cost, to find out what will happen to your benefits package should you 
decide to return to work.
Very important information and information you need to plan 
that return to work.
Now, why should you work?
There are tons of reasons for working.
Clearly, the first one is a pile of money you see right there.
And it is very, very difficult for me to imagine a beneficiary, who returns 
to work who will have less cash at the end of the month.
Of course, every situation is different, that is why everybody needs to meet 
with the benefits planner to determine what the outcome will be.
But, having more cash is always a good thing.
Gaining independence.
Independence is critical.
We all know that.
The fact that most people that receive SSI benefit are living in poverty 
inhibits that independence.
Work allows you to raise yourself out of poverty and gain independence.
It also takes away the need for you to make reports to every agency that you 
are dealing with when you go to work, when you get married, when you get 
divorced and when you move.
So, independence is a very, very good thing.
Learning new skills.
We will talk a lot about that when Marilou takes over in a few minutes and 
how we can gain those new skills.
You may need new skills or you may need to enhance the skills that you 
already have in order to return to work.
But there is a lot of educational and technical possibilities here.
Meeting new people.
People look at that and say yeah, so what.
Well, I was just downstairs, talking with a bunch of people at a training 
session and we talked about meeting new people.
Half of the room raised their hand when I said who met your spouse at work?
Meeting new people is a big deal, going out to the movies on Friday is a big 
deal, going to Christmas parties is a big deal and removes the isolation that 
people may be living in so it is an important thing.
What are the common concerns that people have?
Will I lose my benefits?
Well, the likelihood is at some point, if you are very, very successful in 
your return to work, you will.
But, as Sally will tell you, you will be better off.
How do I get the skills and experience I need?
Several options.
Social Security is supporting peoples’ return to work.
There is no question in my mind about that.
Mary Lou is going to talk to you about how to get those skills.
There are special savings plans, programs, that she might be able to you up 
with to get the education you need, to get you volunteer experience, some 
internships, and then ultimate question people have is 
what if it doesn't work?
What if I go through all of these steps, and for some reason either the 
economy goes bad or by disability stops me from working, what happens?
Well, we will not leave you hanging there either, there are ways to get back 
into the programs fairly quickly.
And I mean very quickly.
Which is real fast for most Social Security, the way they work.
So, what we will do now is turn it over to Sally Atwell who is a wonderful 
resource in the Atlanta area and one of the CWIC’s
 community working centers coordinators.
So take it away, Sally.
Thank you, Ray, thank you for that introduction
and thank you all for being here today.
We are very pleased to have the opportunity to speak to you about returning 
to work, work incentives, Ticket to Work, and the whole host of information 
Ray mentioned.
I will start I talking a little bit about the WIPA work incentives planning 
and assistance projects of which I represent one in Atlanta, Georgia.
Our project is Benefits Navigator, and we are based at the Shepherd Center.
What are WIPAs or Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Projects?
We are Social Security approved organizations that, if you have questions 
about how going to work for the first time or returning to work may affect 
your benefits, we can make sure you get accurate individualized information 
to answer those questions.
And, one of the very best things about our services 
is that they are completely free.
Whether all you need is a phone call or a sitdown meeting, with a work 
incentive planning and assistance project staff member,
those services are free.
We have all been through training so that again, we can provide you with 
accurate information about returning to work and your benefits.
And, we can stay with you throughout that progress and process.
We have been and WIPA project for 10 years now and I have some beneficiaries 
that are still checking in with me as their career paths change.
In addition, we can help you find the resources and services to establish a 
plan for employment and to move towards that plan.
We can connect you with other programs.
And, WIPA projects also host work incentive seminars, WISE events like you 
are sitting in on right now.
Every state has WIPA programs to serve the entire state so you might be 
sitting in on this webinar and you may have an opportunity to sit in on a 
face-to-face WISE event that the WIPA project in your state is putting on.
So, if you are thinking about returning to work, sometimes it is hard to 
corral all the ideas and information and figure out where do you go from here.
Representing a WIPA project, one of my personal opinions is one of the best 
ways to start is to learn more about all the work incentive that apply to you.
That is very important because everybody’s benefits picture and everybody’s 
work incentives pictures will be highly individualized and that is where the 
WIPA project and the staff that work in them can help you gather that 
information for yourself.
You will also want to think about building your employment team.
And, some of the other folks that are going to be speaking on this call as 
well as myself, the WIPA project, we will all be potential members of that 
employment team.
We will give you suggestions about how to put that together.
Of course, when you are looking for work, staying positive and looking for 
opportunities is always a good part of the plan.
A lot at times, peoples with disabilities are not sure 
what their benefits picture is.
Social Security administers two benefit programs for people with disabilities.
The first one I will mention briefly is Social Security disability insurance.
What I will do here is give a mini overview of the program and as we move 
through the presentation, we will talk more about the work incentive rules.
Social Security disability insurance or SSDI is a program that Social 
Security has for people who have worked 
and paid into the Social Security system..
That is why the check that you get, if you are a SSDI will vary because it is 
based on how much you have worked and paid in.
So, if I just worked a short period of time, the check will be smaller than 
if you have a long work history.
The health insurance that goes with SSDI is Medicare.
Supplemental Security Income or SSI is the other programs that Social 
Security administers for people with disabilities.
It is a needs-based program.
It is designed for people who have not worked and paid a lot into the system 
and don't have a lot of assets or resources in their name.
The health insurance that comes with SSI is Medicaid.
Generally, when you get SSI the base amount will be $674 per month, that is 
what is called the federal benefit rate.
There are some states where it may be higher because of the state supplement.
If you get SSDI and SSI you receive what Social Security refers to as 
concurrent benefits, meaning you are in both systems.
A lot of people with that, why would that happen?
That might happen because you haven't worked that much, you just paid a 
little bit into SSDI, and your SSDI check is below the $674 federal benefit rate.
So you would get a SSI check to bring you up to the federal benefit rate.
As Ray mentioned in the beginning, we hear a lot of common concerns and 
themes when we are talking to people with disabilities about returning to work.
Risks.
What risks am I taking by starting a new job training program  
or going back to school?
I am concerned about what if my SSI check goes down or what if I lose my SSDI 
check if I get a job, what happens if I get into it overpayment situation, 
how can I prevent that from happening?
These are all questions that when you sit down with a community work 
incentive coordinator, who is a staff member of the WIPA program, they can 
give you an overview of the benefits you receive and do what is called the 
benefits summary for you, to highlight the point when you would have to be 
concerned about a check stopping or starting, how long you can keep your 
health insurance, and most important, what are the steps you can take to 
report, in a timely manner, so you don't get into that overpayment.
They can also help you research training programs and job placement resources 
so that maybe you feel a little more secure  
about moving forward with your employment plan.
And, change is always a scary thing.
I am not a big fan of it myself, but I have had to learn  
to jump into it over the years.
I do agree, when you've got basic rules that you are familiar with, sometimes 
the change isn't quite as scary.
What we will talk about first, is the Ticket to Work program.
The ticket is one of a number of Social Security work incentives we will be 
talking about today.
It is the centerpiece of the work incentive that we will be discussing.
It is an innovative program designed for persons with disabilities who want 
to work and participate in planning their employment.
It is free and voluntary.
There is no penalty for not participating in the program and it is designed 
to assist Social Security beneficiaries with disabilities who want to work.
Most people with disabilities between the ages of 18 to 64 who are already 
receiving Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability Benefits 
can participate in the program.
So what does the Ticket to Work program actually do?
Let's think about that.
The first bullet says I am ready to make money.
The Ticket to Work and work incentives can help you  
improve your earnings potential.
That would possibly be with your ticket,  
you can assign it to an employment network.
That employment network might be able to help you get more training, might be 
able to help you gain additional educational skills that would enhance your 
employability and be a stepping stone to a better job.
I am in need of personal fulfillment 
and working will really boost my self-esteem.
The Ticket to Work and work incentives can give you a safety net of stability 
so that you will feel confident while pursuing your employment goals.
Discouraged.
No one wants to hire me?
It has been my experience over the years, working in this program, that a lot 
of times if you assign your ticket to an employment network that is a good 
fit for you or to the state vocational rehabilitation agency, they have 
relationships with employers who are wanting to recruit qualified applicants 
with disabilities.
Assigning your ticket can maybe broaden your work options
that you’re looking into.
I am afraid that I would lose by benefits and won't be able to get them back.
Once your ticket is assigned to an employment network, you are protected from 
a continuing disability review, as long as you're making progress in your 
employment program.
So, for that period of time, which is generally 5 to 6 years under the ticket 
program, you are not going to be subject to a medical review.
And, you won't lose your benefits until you are able to earn at the 
substantial , gainful activity level.
I would like to take a minute here and talk  
about the substantial, gainful activity.
That is the term SGA amount is the amount that Social Security looks at when 
they are determining if you are still eligible for your benefits or not if 
you are on Social Security disability.
The SGA amount for 2011 is $1000 a month in gross, earned-income.
For people with disabilities of blindness, that amount is $1640 a month in 
gross, earned-income.
I am afraid I won't be able to get back on benefits if my job doesn’t work out.
One of the work incentives that is available, both to the folks on the ticket 
and folks going to work on their own,  
is what is called expedited reinstatement.
Social Security has made it quicker and easier to get your benefits back if 
your job does not work out because of your disability.
I am feeling overwhelmed, who can help me get started and stay with me 
through the entire process?
Through Ticket to Work you can be connected with people, resources, and 
services help you develop your work plan  
and be the part of your employment team.
Again, that might be some of the folks on the call today.
The WIPA project, the PABS project, the employment network,  
and vocational rehabilitation services.
How does the Ticket to Work program actually work?
A paper ticket is mailed to you when you are determined to be eligible for 
SSI or SSDI benefits.
A lot of times we will get calls from people who want to use the ticket but 
they lost it, they don't know where to or all that kind of stuff.
You do not need the actual ticket to participate.
The agencies you might be working with can easily either look up the 
information for themselves or they can tell you how to find out whether or 
not you are eligible to use the ticket.
It is important to remember that participation in the ticket is free, 
voluntary and there are no penalties if you choose not to use your ticket.
In addition, another good thing, it does not have an expiration date.
But say you get the ticket that you are not in a place where you're ready to 
pursue employment.
If you put in your drawer at the bedside table and a year later you think man, 
I’m ready to go, pull it out, it is still good, assign it to an employment network.
Work incentives.
These are the whole gamut of what I like to think of as tools in the toolbox.
The ticket is one of those tools, among other work incentives, that you can 
pull out when you are ready to build that employment plan.
And, what I will do now is ask my colleague,Curtis Rogers who also works with 
me in the WIPA project, who used to work incentive project when he first came 
back to work to talk about his experience with those programs.
Curtis?
[Low volume – indiscernible]
I just want to take a moment and help you understand how using the work 
incentive program [Indiscernible--low volume] Can you hear Curtis?
No, we are having a difficult time hearing them.
-- Him.
Hold on, I do apologize.
Okay, I am very sorry we had a technical problem there.
I just want to tell you a little bit about my story and using the work 
incentives.
I was injured in 1981, and as a result, became eligible for Social Security 
benefits.
Prior to my injury I had been in the construction business for most of my 
life and after the injury, I was not able to go back to work in the 
construction industry.
As part of my rehabilitation, I was connected with vocational rehabilitation 
services.
They helped me go through some options and as a result, part of what I did 
was go back to school and enhance my education.
I was able then to come to Shepherd Center to do an internship.
Through the internship, I was able to establish employment at Shepherd Center, 
was fortunate enough to be hired and have been working at Shepherd Center now 
for the past 16 years.
When I started working, I was still getting Social Security benefits and I 
started working part-time.
Being able to know that I still had some of the work incentives that Sally is 
going to talk about more, in just a few moments, knowing that I still had 
those work incentives available to me, where I could try out working, to be 
sure that I was going to be able to do that both physically and handle that 
emotionally, was a great help to me.
Because I knew if I had to stop working, I would be able to get my Social 
Security benefits restarted it and without the new application  
for a period of time.
So, I used the work incentives that you will hear about later, called trial 
work period, extended period of eligibility, and also had available to me, 
expedited reinstatement.
You will hear much more about those work incentives  
when Sally comes back on the phone.
I just want to say that I am just one of a number of stories out there who 
have a happy ending, successful and I am sure that all of you, who are 
planning on going to work but thinking about going to work,  
will have your own success story.
The Social Security work incentives are designed to help people go back to 
work and to gain all of those things that you need in order to go back to 
work, including building a team, which will help you in that process.
And so, I hope that you all reach the same success that I have or at least 
reach that level of success that you define as successful to you.
So now I'm going to turn this back over to Sally, and she will give you more 
information about the work incentives.
Thank you very much, Curtis.
He is a great member of our team and I am glad  
that he is able to be with us today.
I wanted to tell one more story real quickly before we go into the incentives, 
because Curtis, was going through this before the ticket came along.
He has been around a little bit longer than the ticket.
There are other work incentives we will talk about, the one that Curtis used, 
but I also want to talk about a young lady that we have worked with more 
recently, who utilized the ticket.
This young lady came to us because she was a cancer survivor and she was 
ready to go to work, finished her college degree  
but was concerned about her health insurance.
For her, the ticket was a perfect work incentive to use because she could 
assign her ticket to an employment network and have protection from that 
medical review while she was looking for work.
And, her story had a really great ending because at the time she was looking 
for work, several years ago, Social Security had a hiring initiative.
They were recruiting qualified applicants with disabilities and we were able 
to connect her with the right people in our Social Security office here in Atlanta.
She now has actually now been working in a Social Security office, full-time, 
for about two years.
Now, she does training for her coworkers on returning to work  
and the ticket to work.
So she used some of the same incentives Curtis did, but her benefits picture 
was different.
She needed the protection of the ticket.
That is a good contrast there, and just to show that everybody's journey will 
be different and the work incentives they use we are going to make sure you 
know which ones are most applicable for you.
The work incentives are designed, as the slide shows, to be a bridge between 
you and success.
To give you that safe pathway so you can move forward.
Work incentives have many advantages.
They can provide you with a safety net, which I think is a common theme, I 
have said that several times, so you can receive training for new skills, 
that might make you more employable, improve the skills your already have, 
pursue education, try out different jobs, and start a career.
Throughout that process, a game, you can maintain cash benefits, maintain 
your health insurance and you can get those benefits back if there is a 
change for you.
This is just a handy dandy reminder that we do want to hear your questions so 
once again if you have a question to submit to us, check on the + next to the 
word questions, it will open that box for you, type in your question, hit 
send and we will receive those questions and get them answered for you.
Thank you, Ray.
First, we will talk about the work incentives for people who are on SSI, 
supplemental security income.
I know you will get sick of hearing me say this but the rules about working 
are completely different for SSI and SSDI.
It's really important when you start this journey  
to know which system you are in.
Again, there are a lot more work incentives then we are talking about because we 
have plenty of other information to cover.
We will just hit the high points today.
The first work incentive we will review is the earned income exclusion.
This is where SSI does not count your entire earned income when they're 
figuring out how it will affect your check.
This student earned income exclusion can be a powerful work incentive for 
young people in school and I say young people, because in order to qualify 
for the student earned income exclusion you have to be under age 22 and 
regularly attending school.
That could mean you might be in high school, tech school, college, training 
program anything like that can qualify you  
for the student earned income exclusion.
And, when you are qualified for the student earned income exclusion, SSI will 
not count $6600 of gross earnings in the calendar year, 2011.
But again, you have to be under age 22 and regularly attending school.
Another very powerful work incentive is the plan to achieve self support or 
the PASS plan this can allow you to save money for something you need to help 
you reach a work goal.
We will talk of little bit more in depth about a couple if these work 
incentives that I have mentioned.
Here is an SSI example.
We have got Mandy, who wants to work.
Her only income is her monthly SSI payment of $674.
She is considering a job that will pay her gross wages of $985 a month.
But, this is a good time for me to issue a reminder, some of you probably 
know, the when you are going to work in Social Security is looking at your 
wages, there are always going to look at your gross wages, that is what you 
get paid before all of this stuff comes out of it.
So, Mandy's gross monthly wages would be $985 a month but she is worried 
about what effect her wages will have on her SSI.
What kind of information can we give Mandy to help her feel more comfortable 
about considering this step?
Well, we can tell her about the Ticket to Work program.
She might want to be referred to an employment network or vocational rehab 
because of additional training or skills she could acquire might help her 
feel more comfortable moving into this new job.
We can tell her about the work incentives for SSI beneficiaries.
We need to let her know, that as earnings increase, her SSI will decrease.
The way that works is, after the first $85 of earnings, for every two dollars 
that Mandy earned, her SSI check will be reduced by one dollar.
What that means is, if her gross wages are $985 a month, the $85 is 
disregarded, the remainder is divided in half, Social Security will count 
$450 as her countable earnings and that is the amount by which they will 
reduce her SSI check.
So she still gets $224 from SSI and she has her gross wages of $985.
So instead of $674, she has gross monthly income of $1209.
In general, when you go to work and you are on SSI, yes the check will go 
down, but it is a rare situation where you don't end up having more money to 
live on and do things that you want to do.
A very common concern with SSI is what happens if my earnings are so high 
that my SSI stops?
That is a big concern.
The good news here is, if you're earning enough that your check stops, your 
benefits can be started again without having to do any new application or 
disability determination if your job ends or if your earnings start to decrease.
Probably the biggest concern is Medicaid.
Many, many people are able to earn enough money to replace SSI but they may 
not be able to replace the services that Medicaid covers for them.
If your earnings are so high that your SSI payment stops, in most cases, 
Medicaid will continue until you earn above a certain amount.
That amount is called the income threshold, and it varies from state to state.
For example, here in Georgia, the SSI -- I'm sorry the Medicaid income 
threshold is $27,509.
So, this year in the state of Georgia, you can have gross, yearly income at 
that amount, and still be eligible for Medicaid.
The PASS plan this is a very powerful work incentive that can be very useful 
to folks on SSI because those of you in the SSI system know that SSI is 
restricted about how much money you can have in your name.
The PASS or Plan to Achieve Self Support allows SSI eligible individuals to 
set aside income or resources to purchase items or services that will allow 
them to achieve a work goal and become self-sufficient.
There are a couple of keys here about the plan.
One, what you are saving for has to be work related, the other is that you 
have to have income other than your SSI, that might be your SSDI benefits or 
income from work. Things you can write a PASS plan to save for might be a car, 
might be assistive technology, might be education or training, it could even 
be to start a business.
We have helped a couple of folks over the years write PASS plans for the goal 
of self-employment.
The PASS plan is pretty flexible, a user-friendly work incentive 
for folks on SSI.
Folks are SSDI can use it, too.
That would be something, if you have questions about it would be good to talk 
to your local WIPA project about that.
The PASS plan does take some work on the individual’s part.
You must come up with the job goal and work on that PASS application.
But the WIPA project or other community resources can help you with that.
Work incentives for Social Security Disability Insurance beneficiaries or 
SSDI. Again, this is a program for folks who have worked 
and paid into the system.
The work incentives for Social Security Disability Insurance beneficiaries. 
Again, we will just touch on the high points. There are three of them that 
are really, really important.
The trial work period, the extended period of eligibility, and expedited reinstatement.
You will see, when we go to the next slide, these work incentives provide you 
with a continuum of protection that you can use to test your ability to work 
and either still continue to receive your check or get your check started 
back while you are seeing whether or not the work you are doing 
is what you want to do.
So, let's start with the trial work period.
Is a nine-month period of time, during which you can test your ability to 
work and continue to receive your full SSDI check regardless  
of how much you are earning.
Following the nine-month trial work period, 
you have 36 months extended period of eligibility.
During this time Social Security can restart your SSDI check benefit without 
a new application, the disability determination, or a waiting period.
What does that mean?
Well, let's do an example here.
Let’s say you have a great job, you are working full-time, you use up your 
trial work period and you're earning enough so your cash benefit has stopped.
However, a year later, the company that you're working for goes out of business.
You go to Social Security, show them that you are no longer working, and 
because you're in a 36 extended period of eligibility, your check can be 
restarted without a new application or disability determination.
Following the 36 month extended period of eligibility, you have the five-year 
expedited reinstatement period.
Or, as we like to call it EXR.
What that means you have additionally five years where if work stops and you 
don't show any medical improvement, you still have the disability record, 
Social Security has made it quicker and easier to get your check started back.
So, you have these three levels of protection here that encompassed almost a 
nine-year period where you can test your ability to work in either continue 
to draw your check or get your checks started back quickly and easily.
What happens to Medicare if SSDI benefit stop?
Medicare will continue for at least 93 months 
after the nine-month trial work period.
That is a total of eight and a half years, which is a pretty good time period.
If you are working full-time, there is always the hope that you would have 
health insurance through your employer.
However, let's say you are self-employed and Medicare is your insurance of choice.
After that 93 month period, you may be able to purchase Medicare coverage and 
keep that as your primary health insurance.
So essentially, if you want to purchase Medicare, you can do that and you 
don't have to give up the Medicare coverage.
But if you are in both systems?
You are concurrent beneficiary, you receive SSI and SSDI.
What happens then?
If you receive both, you get all of the work incentives because they all 
apply to you.
And, that is when it is a really good idea to talk to work incentive 
specialist to get all the details you can sort out what will happen when with 
which check and when you need to be concerned about reporting to Social 
Security.
Because I think it is really important to emphasize here, that this -- all of 
these resources and incentives are there to help you, the beneficiary, the 
consumer, and our role is to help you utilize the work incentives that you 
need to move towards your employment goals.
That you are the main focus here and it is always good to be proactive, as I 
am sure you know.
To ask those questions, take the initiative and to make sure you feel 
comfortable with the information you have.
When you are ready to use your Ticket to Work, we are getting around to that 
employment team.
The folks that are going to be working with you, to help you establish and 
accomplish your employment goals.
By getting the skills and experience you need, who might be part of that 
employment team?
We will hear from some of these folks later, but I am just going to go 
through this briefly so you can get an overview.
The employment network, this is the employment provider to whom you might 
assign your ticket, they could be helping you find a job, work on your resume, 
there is a whole menu of services that they might be able to offer.
The state vocational rehabilitation agency, you can also assign your ticket 
to vocational rehab and they, too, provide services like the employment 
network and additional services that these state vocational rehabilitation 
agencies can provide.
The work incentive planning and assistance for WIPA project.
That is us, and as you probably have figured out by now, our role is to make 
sure you have a good handle on what work incentives applied to your 
particular benefits picture and how to use those incentives to your advantage.
The State Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security or 
PABSS. There are the folks that can help you advocate to barriers in 
employment keeping you from what you want to do.
If you feel like you're being discriminated against in the workplace or if 
there is an overpayment on your record that is related to employment.
And, Crystal will talk more about protection and advocacy in just a minute.
The last two members I want to mention here, 
actually work for Social Security.
The Area Work Incentive Coordinator or AWIC.
Every state has one of these, and they are the liaison between the whole 
Social Security team and the folks I just mention.
They might come to WISE events and do presentations about Social Security, 
they might make sure you know who to talk to in a field office, and may just 
stay in touch with the folks who are on the ground floor to make sure that 
the word is getting out about the work incentives.
So the Area Work Incentive Coordinator  
can be a very good resource in yourstate.
Finally there is the work incentives liaison.
Every Social Security field office has a work incentives liaison whose role 
is to be the expert, the in-house expert on the Social Security work 
incentive and to help folks who may have complicated return to work 
situations and need an expert hand in the Social Security field office.
So, those are some members that are potential members of your employment team.
I am getting ready to wrap up my section of the presentation.
I hope you found some information you can use to make some good decisions for 
yourself about setting up and achieving your employment goals.
I am going to turn it back over to Ray now.
Thank you very much, Sally.
That was great and you provided a lot wonderful information.
With Sally closing, we will now turn to Mary Lou Harding who is an employment 
network agent who will tell you about her role and the role of employment 
networks in the return to work process.
Hello, everyone. This is Mary Lou Harding, I am located in Roswell, Georgia, 
and I am so excited to be here.
To talk to you about the ticket.
It is really great.
There are so many opportunities within the ticket, and I just want to 
encourage all of you beneficiaries to really look into it, do as much inquiry 
as you can.
There are so many great things within the ticket for you.
I will be talking about the employment network piece of it and, the first 
slide is about building your employment team.
Contacting the employment network.
The process for doing that, there are two ways you can do it.
You can call the Ticket to Work helpline, the number is listed here at 866-
968-7842 or the TDD line is 866-833-2967 and speak to a certified work 
incentive coordinator, and they will help you  
with the employment network in your area.
Another really simple way to do it is to go on to www.yourtickettowork.com 
and there is a list on the left hand side under directories you will see the 
directory of employment networks, and you can search by ZIP code. You can 
search by city or state, county and state you can search by state.
You will see a list of employment networks there that have contact 
information and what kind of services they provide.
Sometimes it is broken out by disability, that they serve which is the case 
for my company.
But all your resources are there within that website.
Next slide please.
The next part is selecting an employment network to work with you.
It is important to ask a lot of questions.
I would really encourage you, when you get that list to call several of those 
employment networks that are in your area that look interesting to you.
The questions, you just want to have a list of questions.
There are some here that I think would be helpful for you to know, you may 
have some of your own.
How many people have the employment network help through the ticket program?
That is a very good question to ask.
What kind of companies does the employment network work with for placement?
What kind of jobs might be available to that company?
Or to you, through the employment network?
The last one is very important, I think, because certain employment networks 
work remotely, or have a larger territory, how often will you communicate 
with the employment network?
If you want that real, intimate relationship with your employment network 
where you meet with them on a regular basis, you really need to find out how 
that works with that employment network.
If they are in South Carolina and you are in Georgia, it might not be the 
best employment network for you is that is important to you.
When you call the employment network office, remember these tips.
We, as an employment network, need to explain to you how the ticket works, 
and the services that we as an employment network provide.
When you are calling these networks, they need to let you know what it is 
they do to make sure they would provide the service you are looking for.
The employment networks should discussed your particular work goals, or what 
is important to you.
They really -- it is really helpful for them to talk to you about what you're 
concerns are, what your fears are, sometimes benefits are a big concern for 
people, we will connect you with Sally from the WIPA office and we work very 
closely with that team to make sure people are moving in the direction they 
want to go.
Sally and I laugh all the time about how many people we take over there.
We work very, very closely together and that should happen for you.
You and the employment network will develop an individualized work plan that 
includes your employment goals and the services the employment network will 
provide to help you get where you need to go.
Once you've actually chosen an employment network, you and the network will 
sit down together and fill out a work plan which will have your contact 
information and your specific goals, the things you want to accomplish.
When you visit the EN office, remember these tips.
Your signature on the IWP, individualized work plan, assigned your ticket to 
the EN agency so we have to have your signature on the individualized work 
plan or it will not be valid.
The EN may have some other forms for you to sign, allowing it to work with 
you and on your case for Social Security and possibly other service providers 
on your behalf.
And my particular company, for example, we have an intake packet that 
everyone has to fill out in addition to the IWP.
That is something most companies will have as well.
You can un-assign your ticket at any time.
If you change your mind or decide the employment network is not a good match, 
there is an un-assignment process so you are not locked  
to the first provider you choose.
Your CDRs, continuing disability reviews are exempted as long as you're 
making timely progress to your employment.
This is just a huge advantage in utilizing the ticket.
Not to mention the money you make while you're working.
Examples of EN services, this is what we do and I would imagine most do, we 
develop resumes, provide advice on how to fill out a good application, 
interviewing skills and tips on how to explain long absences from work 
without disclosing the disability, or how to disclose the disability if that 
is what you choose.
And, the benefits of doing so or not doing so.
We did a lot of that with our clients.
Job accommodation information and resources, tax incentives, the WOT work 
opportunity tax credit for employers, it's good for you to know that that so 
when you're applying for the job you can make sure that form is filled out 
because it is a benefit for the employer.
A tax incentive for the employer.
Referrals to other resources in the area and -- that is it for that slide.
The next slide is a continuation of the same.
Job leads and information on employers who are hiring, job fairs, recruiting 
events, et cetera.
Access to resource centers to make sure you have use of a computer, Internet, 
e-mail, phones and Department of Labor centers are really good for this so we 
connect people to that.
Job development on your behalf that is something that is a service that is a 
strong thing we do.
We encourage our folks, our ticket holders to do that as well but we work 
very closely with folks to do that that is something you need to look at as a 
resource for you and what is important for you when you were talking to an 
employment network.
Also referrals to agency partners like vocational rehab, which we will be 
hearing from a little bit more today.
After you start work, you will be expected to provide pay stubs to the 
employment network every month until you go off of cash benefits.
It is very, very important.
We need your help with this.
So, that is what you need to do when you start working.
As always, you need to report the earnings to SSA as you normally would.
Some Employment Networks offer to do this for you or with you as well as 
making progress to your ticket to work program.
Finally, meet regularly with your employment network to track your progress.
And, I hope that is helpful and I am sure I will be answering questions later 
on in the seminar.
Thank you very much, Mary Lou.
Now, we have had some great information from an employment network, I want to 
turn the discussion over to Janice Lawrence, with the Georgia Rehabilitation 
Services.
Thank you, Ray.
I will be talking about vocational rehab services.
This is a federal as well as a state-funded program 
that is available in all states.
When you use your ticket for VR services, there is a presumptive eligibility 
for you as a Social Security beneficiary.
What that means is that vocational rehab is an eligibility program.
However, because you are receiving Social Security benefits, that will make 
you eligible for our program as well.
After eligibility is determined, you and your VR counselor will get together 
to develop an employment plan.
That plan is individualized and customized just for you.
You identify the employment goal and those services that are needed to reach 
that employment goal.
And in different types of services that VR agencies provide is counseling, 
post secondary education support, supported employment, work readiness 
training, work adjustment training, vocational and technical training, job 
placement services and assisted work technology services.
As long as your ticket is considered in the use of with VR, and you are 
assigned an employment plan, your ticket is now in use with our agency.
What that means for you is that you're continuing disability reviews are 
exempt as long as you make timely progress toward employment.
You would not have to go through a medical review while your ticket 
is in use with agency.
And one of the other benefit is that we will make referrals to the community 
work incentives coordinator on your behalf.
So that they can talk to you about how working will affect your benefits.
You and your counselor, after you sign your plan, will discuss the 
opportunities to have an EN provide additional support services after the VR 
services end.
Once we closer case with VR and provide all those services to help you secure 
employment, at that point you may then assign your ticket to an employment 
network to continue to receive job retention and ongoing support.
That will be determined to be partnership.
So when VR close your case you can still use your ticket with the employment 
network to achieve additional services to help you to retain your job.
So, that ends my discussion about vocational rehabilitation services.
Thank you very much.
Thank you, just that was very helpful as well.
Now, we are going to turn the discussion over to Crystal who is with the 
Georgia PABSS agency.
Good afternoon. My name is Crystal and I work at the Georgia Advocacy Office 
which is the protection and advocacy office for the state of Georgia.
Each state does have an office like mine, which contains protection and 
advocacy programs on variety of topics specific to today's webinar; I worked 
with beneficiaries of Social Security.
As I said, PABSS stands for the Protection and Advocacy  
for Beneficiaries of Social Security.
Our offices are located in each state as well as all US territories.
Some of these states have more than one office, but you can call any office 
to get referred to the appropriate place. The PABSS programs are designed to 
help SSI and SSDI beneficiaries with disabilities go to work and our services 
are free to anyone that receives Social Security benefit or Medicare based on 
his or her own disability.
They are also free to anyone that receives SSI  
or SSI Medicaid based on his or her disability.
Even if you do not have a ticket or your ticket is not assigned, the PABSS 
program can provide you with information about the ticket to work as well as 
assist with removing barriers to employment.
All PABSS programs throughout the country advocate  
for workplace accommodations.
We advocate for vocational services from an employment network or state 
vocational rehabilitation, we provide information, referral and advocacy 
about benefits.
If it is something specific about your benefits, we oftentimes will refer the 
individual to the WIPA.
We also assist beneficiaries in removing barriers to work and address  over 
payment issues.
We advocate workplace accommodations in addition 
to hiring and termination issues.
We assist individuals with employment networks and vocational rehabilitation 
in states such as ours, there are not many employment networks.
Most of our work is with vocational rehabilitation.
And, our advocacy services can range anywhere from information and referral 
all the way to legal representation.
All protection and advocacy offices provide assistance at the lowest level 
possible first, which means that we may provide you with information to 
advocate on behalf of oneself, and if that is not successful, maybe we will 
attend meetings, make phone calls or write letters on one's behalf until we 
resolve the issue.
I want to make one comment about the over payment issues.
The over payment, if a protection and advocacy office is going to look into 
the over payment, it must be related to work  
and it must create a barrier to employment.
If it is not related to work, for instance if someone experienced an over 
payment that does not have anything to do with work or the individual is not 
interested in returning to work that is not an over payment the protection 
and advocacy office would address.
 Other resources.
[Long Pause]
Okay, I will pick it up from here, Crystal.
Thank you very much.
Where can you get more information about what you have heard?
You have heard a lot of information and a lot about employment teams that can 
be created in order to help you get back to work.
There are a couple of sites and phone numbers I want to give you now, they 
are on the screen.
 www.ssa.gov/work is the place where you will be able to find your local WIPA 
agency, the employment networks that serve your area, the PABSS network that 
serves your state, and other information  
on the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives.
If we are not able to get your question, or you think of a question once the 
webinar is over, you can call the Ticket to Work help line.
This is a toll-free number, for voice is 866-968-7842 and the TDD number is 
866-833-2967.
And actually, we don't have a lot of time for questions but we have questions.
What we want to do is ask our panelists some  
of the questions you have submitted.
Also I think I'm going to ask this one of Mary Lou since she is the EN.
I received my ticket and it is dated July of 2010, is there an expiration 
date on the ticket?
No, there is not an expiration date to the ticket.
What you need to do with that is look under the website, the resources you 
were given here and see if you can find an employment network and call them.
Or call whatever network you're interested in working with and start the 
process from that point forward.
And we do have someone who's little puppy ate their ticket  
do they need a paper ticket?
They absolutely do not need the physical ticket.
You are a ticket holder by virtue of being a beneficiary of a check from 
Social Security.
Thank you very much.
And, we talked a lot, Sally, about this long process of going back to work.
Is that process any different if the disability happens to be blindness?
That is a good question.
And, people whose disability is blindness have access to all the resources we 
have talked about and there are a couple of work incentives that are 
different for people with blindness.
Talk to your WIPA project, but for people who get SSDI whose disability is 
blindness, they have a higher earnings limit and that earnings limit is $1640 
in gross, monthly earnings, they can earn up to that amount after the trial 
work period and still keep their check.
For people whose a disability is blindness and who get SSI, they have access 
to what is called blind work expenses, this allows Social Security to exclude 
a lot of expenses that might not be necessarily disability related. So the 
short answer is yes, there are work incentives 
for people whose disability is blindness.
We have the same question for somebody with mental illness.
Does this process differ in any way for people with mental illness?
No, it does not.
The only disability for whom there are more individualized work incentives 
are for people whose disability is blindness.
Okay I have one for everybody I think, everybody can put their two cents in 
here and I may put my two cents in here.
We have somebody who wants to work but is not physically able to work full-
time but knows he can work part-time.
Is part-time work an acceptable goal under this program and according to 
Social Security?
I would say, this is Sally, a resounding yes.
Part-time work, you can assign your ticket and start out with part-time work.
But, you can also go to work, let's say you find a job on your own, let's say 
your brother wants to hire you.
The work incentives we talked about today will apply, whether you use the 
ticket to find that job or whether you find the job on your own.
So, if your goal is to work part-time, from my perspective and from Social 
Security's perspective that is totally fine.
Absolutely.
I have to second that, Sally.
I think we are all in favor of part-time work.
We are all in favor of any amount of work at all.
Sally, does Social Security count the money in a PASS plan when they are 
considering eligibility for benefits?
If you are talking about eligibility for SSI, the answer is no.
That money is excluded when they are determining how much your SSI check iss.
So basically, if you are setting aside a Social Security Disability check or 
earned income in a PASS plan, it is excluded and you are eligible for the 
full SSI benefit.
And here is another one, for Mary Lou.
What if I am not quite ready to go back to work 
but I am ready to go to school.
What can you do for me?
Honestly, I will tell you, we don't do a lot  
with that at my employment network.
I do know there are some provisions within the ticket so you can go ahead and 
get your ticket assigned and be making timely progress towards whatever 
education program you are interested in.
I just don't have a lot of experience, myself, with that.
Janice, can we turn to Georgia VR services for educational assistance?
Yes, educational support is a service that Georgia vocational rehab provides 
with the outcome of working.
Our mission is to provide services to beneficiaries, or clients, with the 
outcome of work.
Great.
Thank you very much.
I am looking to see which ones we haven't hit yet, here is an interesting 
question, how do I know if I need the protection of that ticket?
That is a really good question, and I think it is most relevant that the 
protection from the medical review is most relevant if you have the type of 
disability where Social Security might do a medical review and say you are in 
fact medically recovered.
Some examples that come to my mind would be for example, in some cases, 
someone who maybe has a kidney transplant could be considered after a period 
of time to be medically recovered and no longer eligible.
That might be someone for whom the ticket would be very helpful.
Someone had a diagnosis of cancer, is in remission and they're getting a 
clean bill of health from their position, that might be someone who the 
ticket would be very help up.
-- [Indiscernible--multiple speakers] 
This is Mary Lou, we found that certain disabilities there are more reviews 
for certain disabilities more frequently depending  
on the nature of the disability.
For instance, developmental disabilities might get reviews less frequently 
and others might be more frequent in any case it might be helpful not to have 
those reviews because any time something comes in the mail from Social 
Security, it is nice to not to have to deal with that.
Yes, it is very important because whether or not somebody ends up being 
terminated or impacted is very, very stressful.
And now that we are putting the stress of returning to work on somebody, 
having that stress removed is just incredibly helpful.
Sally, you said there are nine trial work months,  
do they all have to be in a row?
No, they don't.
You can actually spread your nine-month trial work period over five years.
And the way Social Security knows if you are using a trial month or not, is 
that they have a trigger amount of earnings that they use to consider your 
month a trial month.
For example, this year, in order to use a trial work period month, you have 
to have gross monthly earnings of $720 or more.
So, if you have a job where you're earnings fluctuate, you could go through a 
year and only use two or three months and you would still have six or seven 
months left to spread out over the remaining five years.
Okay.
I am concerned about my Medicaid.
What happens to my Medicaid if I return to work?
Again, that is probably one of the most powerful SSI work incentives, in that, 
if you go to work and your SSI cash benefits stop because of money you are 
earning on the job, your Medicaid is protected.
You do not lose your Medicaid and you can earn up to the income threshold 
amount for the state we live.
Great.
Let me just add to that.
There are about 43 states now that have Medicaid buy-in program so that even 
if Medicaid that is connected to your Social Security benefits were 
terminated, it may be possible, in your state, to buy Medicaid, and it would 
simply mean applying and paying a very modest premium.
They are a great deal.
They are.
The Medicaid buy-in can be a really, really good backup plan.
I think I am going back to Mary Lou and Janice for this one.
If I am currently working part-time and not using my ticket, it is possible 
to start using that ticket now?
Absolutely you can.
From the employment network standpoint, we just sort of look at where you are 
within the process, but it is definitely something you can work with an 
employment network and probably, depending on where you are in you part-time 
employment, whether your goal would be to go full-time or not you would just 
need to discuss that with the employment network.
But, you can absolutely use your ticket even if you are working part-time.
Is that what you're going to say, Janice?
Yes, I would agree with that.
You could also take your ticket in use with a vocational rehab program to 
improve your employment outcomes.
Great.
Thank you.
And, what about this one.
This is an interesting one as well.
Is it possible to use my ticket to eventually work from home or to start my 
own business out of my home?
This is Janice Brown the Georgia VR. Yes, working at home is an 
employment goal that can be supported by a VR program.
We just need to discuss that in depth with your counselor and develop an 
individualized work plan to work from home.
Are there any transportation benefits available under the ticket?
This is Mary Lou.
I'm not aware of them.
I am not aware of any, Sally?
There was an employment network, I'm not sure where it was located, that was 
actually giving folks a transportation stipend, but I do not know if they are 
still in existence or not.
The ticket itself does not provide specific funding for transportation.
I think maybe some employment networks may be able to help with 
transportation in a very limited way, but that -- I don't know, Ray, do you 
have anything to add on that?
I have a thought and I'm just going to put something into your mind to see if 
you have anything.
How about the other work incentives, Sally?
Can they use any of those to secure something?
Yes, that is a good point.
The impairment related work expenses, which is a work incentive that we did 
not get into today, which applies to both SSI and SSDI.
It doesn't actually pay for transportation but it does allow you to get a 
credit for your out-of-pocket, disability related transportation expenses.
For example, if you are mobility impaired and you drive can control and a 
lift equipped van, your mileage, back and forth to work, Social Security 
would assign a value to that mileage and they will give you a credit when 
they are calculating how much of your earnings should benefit eligibility.
Or if your disability is blindness, and you have to take a taxi or pay for a 
driver, that is about the closest thing to Social Security paying for 
transportation.
I am scared to tell employers of by disability because I may not get hired.
I am unsure how to tell them I need the an accommodation without being 
denied a job.
Do we have any advice?
I would like to turn that one over two Mary Lou and Crystal.
 We actually work with people, a lot of folks with mental health issues and 
not as many with physical disabilities, in the mental health arena and 
developmental disabilities that we serve we do things with accommodating in 
terms of work schedules around medication, around doctor appointments, and 
that kind of thing.
Honestly, we do it on a case-by-case basis.
And, just look at what the person is comfortable with.
Because, sometimes disclosing is a benefit and if we have a relationship with 
the employer, and know them, we can share the disability, they know us, they 
know the work we provide, and we make good matches with the people we serve.
That is the way we can disclose for the person that is the ticket holder.
There are other times that it really may not be  
in their best interest to do that.
But, and Crystal, you can speak to this, when asking for an accommodation, 
you are basically disclosing that you have a disability.
And in terms of that, they don't have to know what the disability is, they 
don't need to know what the diagnosis is, per se, but they will ask you, as 
an employer, they will ask you whether you will need -- whether you ne able 
to perform the essential duties of the job and if you feel like you can do 
that, then that is all they need to know.
Crystal, do you have anything to add to that?
Yes, I would second that it is on a case-by-case basis.
That is a perfect question that you can call  
your protection and advocacy office about.
We recommend that you do that before you make any requests for accommodations 
as well as before disclosing.
We like to know what the reasons or the accommodations are and we provide 
quite a bit of information about what type of accommodations are appropriate 
to request as well as the manner in which to do it.
And, it is a great idea to make that phone call beforehand.
I know I said that a couple of times, but it is much easier to provide 
information and provide helpful information, before talking to the employer.
And, there are several resources out there that we can provide to individuals, 
specific to the making requests for accommodations and specific to the type 
of disability that the individual has.
Great, thank you, Crystal.
Sally, my SSDI benefits were terminated 
because of substantial, gainful activity..
Can I still receive my Medicare or is that gone?
That is a good question and the answer is yes, your Medicare will continue 
for at least 93 months after your trial work period.
So, you should still be, depending on how long it's been since the benefits 
stopped, most likely though, you should still be eligible for Medicare.
And the way that works is, Social Security will pay your part A premium and 
your part B and Part D which came out of your check before, you will be 
billed for that on a quarterly basis.
At the end of that 93 months, if you still need Medicare, you can choose to 
purchase the whole Medicare package.
All right.
Thank you all very much.
We have one question to finish this session.
And it is a doozy so I'm going to ask Sally since she was the first presenter.
How do I get started?
I think that depends. I would go back to what Mary Lou and Crystal were 
saying .
That is an individualized question.
It will depend on what you want to do and where you want to go.
Your first step could very well be calling the Ticket to Work help line and 
getting a referral to a WIPA project in the state where you live.
They can talk to you about your benefits and make sure you have current 
contact information for employment networks that might be a good fit for you.
So, that would be one thing that I would suggest.
Anybody else want to chime in?
I think that is a great way to start.
Again, that Social Security.gov website is available to you.
By contacting the PABSS agency, there is always the option for referral and 
even by contacting an EN or your state VR agency.
All of those places every player on this employment team can get you to the 
right place to start.
So, we have pretty much put together a system 
where there is no wrong door for entry.
You will get what you need and, as everybody has had to this presentation, 
everybody's situation is different.
They will all play out differently, the needs, the supports, and the worries 
will all be individual and you really need to sit down with somebody and get 
started and talk to work with this team.
That being said, I want to thank our presenters for a great session.
And, just remind you all, if we did not get to your question, please call the 
helpline at 866-968-7842 for voice or 866-833-2967 for TDD.
They are both toll-free.
This webinar will be archived in a couple of weeks so you will be able to 
listen to it again.
And, as you can see on this final spot here, we have Facebook and we Tweet.
So you can get in touch with us that way as well.
[Laughter] Thank you, Jayme and Ann.
Everybody have a great day.
 Thank you.
 [Event Concluded]