>> Good afternoon, everybody. This is Ray Cebula from Cornell University's Employment and Disability Institute. And I'd like to welcome you to today's webinar. We are going to talk about some free services that folks with disabilities can access in order to help them get back to work, as well as some great work incentive programs. And we have a great group of people with us today who are going to take you through the next hour and a half. I want to take you through a couple of slides before I turn it over to our speakers. You have been connected automatically through the mike and speakers in your computer. If at any time during today's webinar you have any issues with that working for you or choose to use the telephone, please click on the plus sign next to the word audio in the console that should be in the upper right-hand corner of your screen. That will open up the audio box and provide you with today's dial-in information. As you can see, this is blurred out. The only way you're going to get that information and access code is to open that box. So if you do need to phone in to hear today's presentation a little bit better, please do so, but please be aware that it may be a toll call. We want to hear your questions and want to know what you think. And our webinar console is built so that you will be able to participate today. Because there are a lot of you out there, we're not going to be able to take your questions verbally, but we can take them through our question box. So if you click on the plus sign next to word "questions," it's going to open up this question box. Type in your question, hit send, and it's going to appear on Ashley's desktop. And Ashley will make sure I have all of the questions. We are going to hold questions until the end of today's session. We will not likely be able to get to all of your questions because there are several hundred of you out there, but we will provide you with information that you can use to make sure your questions do get answers. Now, we are hoping that our webinar is accessible for everybody. And we want it to be accessible for everybody. If you have any issues with accessibility, whether it's hearing us, whether it's accessing information on the slides, or any other issue, please let us know. And rather than simply letting us know what issues you're having, if you know of a solution or some type of program that might help make the future webinars better for everybody, let us know about that as well. Now, here's some toll free numbers for you. 1-877-739-5903. The access code is 264435500. There's the closed captioning link as well that you can use for today's session at www.captionedtext.com. And the access code for the closed captioning is 8444284. Now, the webinar presentation will be transcribed with an audio recording and will be posted to the website in a couple of weeks' time. It usually takes us that long to get it cleaned up and presentable for you. And that website is www.ilr.cornell.edu/edi/m-wise-webinars.cfm. And during the webinar you can submit your questions to the chat box, as we talked, to that question box, or you can send an e-mail to webinar at chooseworkttw.net. If you have questions after the webinar, you can e-mail those questions to support at chooseworkttw.net. Again, that's support at chooseworkttw.net. Now, as I said, we have a lot of folks here for today. Who we have is Kendra Berry, who's a community work incentive coordinator at the agency called Aspire and works for the Indiana Works Program. She's going to take us through the WIPA Benefits Planning Assistance program as well as the Ticket to Work program. You may have all received a ticket and may be curious what that program is all about. Well, Kendra is the person to let you know. We are going to be talking about employment networks. We have Tina Skeel, who is the director of employment services at Aspire Indiana. And she'll talk to you about what an employment network can do for you. Colleen Hart Katuin is the area 12 supervisor for the voc rehabilitation services for the state of Indiana. Voc rehab and employment networks can work closely together and provide you with a range of services. And Colleen will be talking about the services that the state can provide you through the VR agency. You Sue Beecher is the assistant director of the Indiana protection and advocacy services. And we'll be discussing the PABSS program, protection and advocacy services that are available for beneficiaries of social security. I'll come back at the end of the session and tell you about some additional resources that you can use to get personal information to those questions that you have, as well as present some of your questions that we get through today's webinar to the presentation team. That being said, what are we expecting from today? Today we are expecting to give you lots of information on the Ticket to Work program and the work incentives. As I said, Kendra is our expert today and will be able to provide you with more information than you ever wanted. We're going to give you some answers to some of the frequently asked questions that we hear. Lots of us have been doing this work for many, many years now. And the questions repeat over and over again. So what we're going to do is let you know what some of those answers are. Where can you find more information? We have a setup here where there is absolutely no wrong way to get started. You're able to contact any one of the agencies that we are going to talk about today in order to get started. But we're going to let you know who they are, and where you can get the information that's going to address your situation. We have some success stories to share with you from people who have used their ticket and have successfully returned to work. And we have a couple of those basic questions before we get into the presentation today. Why should you work. Why choose work? Clearly, income is important. Living on public benefits, whether it be SSI or SSDI is not always providing you with the lifestyle that you may choose to have. Work can bring you that additional income. And when Kendra is finished talk about work incentives, you will realize that there will always be more money at the end of the month if you choose to work. Gaining independence is a great thing. You'll be gaining independence not only because you'll have more money, but you'll be gaining independence from the benefits programs and those agencies that you've had to deal with while receiving benefits. Learning new skills. Both the EN and the VR agency are here to talk to you about what types of new skills you might want to learn or need to learn to get back to work. Meet new people. That's always a great thing. You know, some of the best things that come from working have nothing to do with the financial rewards of work, but the fact that you are out, you are meeting new people, and your life improves because of that. And I always like to tell people that I met my spouse at work. Had I not gone to work, I would not be married today. So lots of great things can happen because you work. And we do have a success story. And, Mike, I believe you're going to set us up for this one. [ Pause ] [ Music ] [ Silence ] [ Music ] >> I believe it was around January of 2008, I kind of got sick. And I took another position. And from that position I ended up getting fired. And I had a mental breakdown, so my disability is mental illness. And it took a lot of time for me to get everybody back together. I actually had to file bankruptcy. It was really great for me that I was introduced to the disability program. After so many months in the disability program, you can get a ticket to work, and that will help you actually get you back into working. But it also allows you to get medical assistance. [ Pause ] So it's not me. I'm 27. So I don't want to be at home my whole life and have a lot of things to do. So that really made me want to get back to work, because that's what I should be doing, that's what I want to be doing. The first thing I received in the mail was my ticket to work. And with that, it included some websites and pamphlets about what the program was and places you could go and people you could give your tickets to. And so I found actually Transcend [assumed spelling]. And I called them. [ Inaudible audio ] >> Meagan [assumed spelling] came to Transcend about a year ago. She was seeing a job in the IT DNA synthesis field. She new exactly what she wanted to do. And she worked with our employment counselor in developing her resume, fine tuning her interview skills identifying employers. And after only a few months, she was able to obtain employment -- actually as an temporary agent -- doing what she wanted to do. >> One of the big problems or concerns that I had was would I lose my disability benefit if I started working and then I couldn't continue to work and then I would have to start all over again. >> So at that point she connected with me for benefits counseling. And I was able to walk her through how her benefits would be effected by that work. She received is Social Security Disability insurance, so she was happy to learn that she had what are called trial work period months. And she was able, for nine months, to work at full-time position and not have any decrease in her benefits. She still received full benefits. After those nine months were over, she had an additional three months, called her grace period months. And after those months are over, she has an additional three years where she just -- her disability check will only be suspended based on her earnings. And if she's not able to keep the job, she can return to her Social Security benefits. >> It made me feel supported that I could do it, I could try, and if it didn't work, I could come back, but that I could keep trying. >> The job I do is a document control specialist. And the easiest way to explain that is it's part librarian. So people return things to me, and I check them out. It's part teacher, because when they return things to me, I check it to make sure it's correct. And if it's not, I ask for them to redo it. >> What has made success in her job search, first and foremost, was her willingness to go back to work. And our job after that, really, is how can we support her to make that happen. >> I would classify Meagan as a success story in that she was able to do what she wanted to do where she's continuing to work now. And she's earning enough that she's going to be working her way off of the disability benefits, she's happy in what she's doing. And as long as she's happy, we're very happy for her. >> The impact has been great. I have a year left to pay off my car and then it's mine forever. And kind of get my life back under control. I'm looking to move out on my own. And just making a lot of good choices that are good for me. And just moving forward. [ Music ] One of the biggest things I like to do is I like to competitive ballroom dance. And also when I got into my disability, I gained a lot of weight so that wasn't as fun for me as it could have been. Now it's getting more fun. I'm enjoying it. I like the costumes. So that's a big thing that I do. [ Music ] And now, I have a lot of focus. I'm not going to say that sometimes I don't fall back into the abyss, but now I know and I've received the tools from Transcend, for myself, and the people they put me contact with, to pull myself out and to keep going. I don't think that I will ever not fall back. But I don't believe that I will never keep moving forward. This is a program that can help anyone, no matter what your disability is, no matter who you are or where you live. This is something that can help you move forward and to continue to your life. [ Music ] [ Pause ] >> Okay. I understand that there may have been some issue for some of you listening to that video. We were able to hear it fine here. Just know that we had a great story from Meagan discussing her disability. And as you can see, it was a major depressive episode that began her disability condition. And the Ticket to Work helped her get back to work. And you saw her dancing in a competitive ballroom setting, letting you know that she was having a great time and out in the community because of her return to work. And just know that when you do access the webinar recording in a couple of weeks online, we'll make sure that that story is much louder for you. Now, some common concerns that people have when they return to work. And some of these concerns are already coming into the question box. Will I lose my benefits? Well, not necessarily right away. People can generally plan their return to work at their own comfort level and wean themselves from benefits so that as your income increases, the benefits decrease. The healthcare options that are available to folks today who are returning to work are very extensive. Now, it does very much depend upon the state that you're in, which is why you are going to make some followup calls when we're finished today, to get healthcare information that you need for your particular state. But just know that the options are very, very extensive. How do I get the skills and experience I need? Well, we have two experts here. We have an EN and we have a VR representative. Both employment networks and state VR can help you get the skills that you need or help you learn to use the skills that you already have. What if I have to stop working? Kendra is going to tell you all about that. If you have to stop working, Social Security now has work incentives that apply to people after they've been terminated from benefits. So it's not like you're starting from scratch. And Kendra will share those details with you. And here we are at her side. She's going to be discussing the work incentive planning and the assistance program. She's a community work incentive coordinator from the state of Indiana. And Kendra Berry, please take it away. >> Thanks, Ray. As Ray said, my name is Kendra. And I'm a community work incentive coordinator with Indiana Works. I help people understand how working will effect their benefits. WIPA projects or work incentive planning and assistance projects are grant funded through Social Security to provide benefit counseling and help people understanding exactly how work will effect their benefits. Your local WIPA project can help you understand how working will effect not only your social security benefits but also things such as Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, HUD, or other benefits you may be receiving. The WIPA project staff, CWICs that you'll work with are trained to provide information about the Ticket to Work program and the work incentives available to you in your state. They can answer questions about how working will effect your benefits and they can help connect you with resources or services to achieve our work goal, like get you in touch with the local vocational rehabilitation or employment network in your area. Moving on to slide 13. So now that you're thinking about returning to work, where do you go from here? You started in the right place with this webinar. And the point of this webinar and what I'm going to speak about is to give you a brief overview of the work incentive that Social Security has created to help you along the way. You'll learn more about the work incentives that apply to you. You'll learn about your employment team and how to build that team. This will help you to stay positive and look for opportunities, as well as giving you some resources online and learning how to advocate for yourself. At the conclusion of this presentation, we will be having a question and answer session on Facebook, from 4:30 to 5:30, so you can join us there if you have questions you would like answered. So when it comes to social security disability programs there are two main programs. Social Security Disability Insurance, or SSI. It's for people who worked in the past, they paid their taxes, the FICA taxes, and then have become insured under their own work record. Or they became disabled before the age of 22 and are receiving benefits under their parents' record. The other program is supplemental security income, SSI. And this is for people who didn't work in the past or didn't work close enough to the time that they became disabled and are collecting against that because of the disability. Some of you may be receiving both SSDI and SSI. This is known as concurrent benefits. The reason that we go over the different types of benefit programs is because there are different work incentives associated with each program. We're going to talk about some SSDI work incentives, some SSI work incentives, and for those of you who are receiving both SSDI and SSI, all of the work incentives will apply. You can contact your local WIPA project, and they will be able to help you figure out which type of benefit you are receiving and help you understanding the work incentives available to you. Moving on to slide 17. Some of the most common concerns that people have when thinking about returning to work are what risks am I going to take by starting a new job training program and going back to school? Is there any assistance with going back to school and furthering my education? I'm concerned that by SSI checks are going to be reduced or that my SSDI check will stop if I start working. What happens if I end up with an overpayment? How do I get out of that situation? I know that change can be scarey, but it's a lot less scarey when you know some of the work incentives and rules that social security has created to go back to work and to help you along the way. Some of the most common myths -- and this is the biggest one that we hear -- is that if I go back to work, my Medicare and my Medicaid will automatically stop. This is on slide 18. This is not true. Medicare will continue for up to 93 months, and that's 7 years, 9 months after your trial work period ends. And Medicaid can continue, depending on what state you work in. For example, if you are and SSI recipient, there's a protection called 1619B that allows Medicaid to continue until your earnings reach over $32,000 per year. And in Indiana there is a program for SSDI receiving Medicaid called Med Works. Where you pay a premium and keep your medicaid just like if you had insurance through your employer. So going back to work will not cause you to lose your insurance. And I think that's a big fear for a lot of people because they worry without that insurance they wouldn't be able to work. The next most common myth is, if I use my ticket to work, Social Security will perform a medical review on me, and I'll lose my benefits. While your ticket is in use or assigned either to your state vocational rehabilitation or an employment network, you will not have any medical reviews, as long as you're making timely progress with your ticket to work. So going to work is not going to immediately cause a review, assuming that your ticket is being used. The next most common myth of the top three is that if I go to work and have to stop working, I'll have to reapply for Social Security all over again. I've heard some stories that people had to apply and appeal and wait years to receive their disability, and now they're afraid that if they go back to work, they'll have to go through that process again. There's a work incentive that protects you from that. So that if a couple of years down the line your disabilities worsens and you just can't work anymore, you will not have to reapply for Social Security. What you'll do is you'll just tell Social Security what's happened and request expedited restatement, which is one of the work incentives, and Social Security will start your benefits up immediately the following month. This is just an overview of the three most common myths out there and just to give you some information about how Social Security can help you. When it comes to the Ticket to Work program people have a lot of questions. How does it work; what was it created to do, and what if I don't have that paper ticket that was sent to me? The Ticket to Work program is free and voluntary to SSDI and SSI beneficiaries who have a disability, and it helps them to get back into the workforce or to increase their hours. Most people with disability aged 18 through 64 who are receiving SSDI or SSI can participate in the program. There will be some information throughout this presentation with telephone numbers and contacts online, giving you access to check whether or not your ticket is in use and what you have going on. You can join us on Facebook immediately after this webinar, and we will be able to provide you with all of that information as well. So what does the Ticket to Work program do. Slide 23. The Ticket to Work program is going to help you in a lot of different ways. If you're ready to make money, your ticket is going to help you increase and approve your earning potential. You'll have access to training programs, access to job coaches and access to assistance with getting back out there. If you're in need of personal fulfillment in working, to increase your self esteem, the ticket is going to provide you assurance and stability you need to feel confident as you pursue your employment. If you are feeling discouraged that you have not been able to find a job and you're afraid to tell employers that you are disabled, this is going to help you build up your confidence and feel more confidence in interviews and when answering questions. You'll be working with a team that can help you navigate those scarey questions that happen during interviews. They'll be able to give you some tips and tricks on how to get through interviews and answer questions, like why have you been out of the workforce, or tell me about yourself. If you're feeling afraid that you'll lose your benefits and you won't be able to get them back, this should give you some piece of mind to know that there are work incentives out there to assist you with that and that Social Security has created these safety nets to help you along the way. If you feel afraid that you won't be able to get back on benefits and you'll have to reapply for everything, the expedited restatement that I told you about will put you on the fast track back to receiving your benefits so that you won't have to go through that whole reapplication process. And lastly, if you are feeling overwhelmed because this is a lot of information, know that everyone listening and speaking to you today understands that. And we have worked with people that have or been there ourself and can help you. We'll be able to get you connect with different agencies and resources, help you learn how to not only find the things that you need but advocate for yourself and become more confident in your abilities. Moving on to slide 24. So how does the Ticket to Work program work. If you're ready to explore work, then you can meet with your benefit's counselor, your CWICS about with WIPA projects, work incentive planning and assistance and discuss what type of Social Security you're receiving and how working will effect not only that but the other benefits we listed previously that you may have been receiving. You can also look for an employment network in your area and one that will provide you with the assistance you need in finding employment. Staying connected with these different resources will help you as you begin looking into working or getting back out there. If you feel you're ready to get started, you can call our Ticket to Work help line at 1-866-968-7842 or 1-866-833-2967. You can also visit www.socialsecurity.gov/work to find a WIPA near you. And again, we will be having that question and answer session on Facebook after this presentation is over. Now that you know about the Ticket to Work program, let's hear more about these work incentives that Social Security has created. The point of these work incentives is to provide you with a safety net to get back into the employment system. The goal is to help you gap -- create a bridge across the gap that may exist from not working to getting back out there. Yet this is completely up to you and you choose if you want to work full time, part time, if you would like assistance from a job coach. There are many advantages to the work incentive. The biggest is that they provide you with a safety net to allow you to receive training for you skills, improve the skills that you already have, pursue your education, try different jobs, start a career, and gain confidence. When it comes to getting back out there, we know that everyone's going to work at a different pace. Some people want to get started immediately, working full time. And other people want to ease into it. And the point of these work incentives is that it gives you a chance to work any way that you want. If you would like to go slowly or if you would like to go more quickly, the work incentives are going to allow you to do that. I want to go over just a few of the most common work incentives. And this is just to give you an idea of the way Social Security is helping you to get back out there. When it comes to SSDI recipients, the first work incentive available is the trial work period. This is a nine-month period where you can earn any amount of money at all and continue to receive your SSDI. If you earn more than 620 gross, before taxes in any month, then you will use one of your trial work period months. For people that are looking for work full time, this is an especially great work incentive. It would allow you to go back to work and see if you're able to handle the full time work. For those of you that only want to work part time and very minimally, you may not use your trial work period, and that's okay. These work incentives are there to help you if you need them, and they'll be there in the future as well. SSDI recipients you would only receive one trial work period per disability. So if you use all nine months of your trial, first period, then it will be of used. After the trial work period is complete, the work incentive is called the extended period of eligibility. Again, this is only for SSDI recipients. And what it is the three years after the trial work period Social Security will restart your benefits or stop them automatically depending on what your earnings are. Social Security created a threshold called substantial gainful amount, or SGA, if you're earning above, then you would not be able to receive your benefit. And you're earning below, you would. In 2012, the amount will be $1,010 gross, before taxes. So let's say you are working at a job and earning $900 a month. November and December roll around. You pick up extra hours, and you earn $1,200 for those two months. You would not be eligible to receive your SSDI check for November and December if you are in your extended period of eligibility. But if your earnings drop back down to $900 come January, you would be eligible to receive that check. And what this does is allow you, again, try out working, and test what you are able to do. After the extended period of eligibility and if you continue working and you're earning above that $1,010 a month, your SSDI check would stop, but if for any reason within the next 5 years you had to stop working because of your disability or your earnings went below the SGA level because of your disability, you would be able to request expedited restatement, which would allow you to get your benefits restarted automatically the next month. So you don't have to worry about that application and reapplying and that waiting. For SSI recipients there's an earned income exclusion. What this means is that Social Security is going to count less than half of your earnings. The way that it works is that next year the federal benefit rate will be $698. So if you went back to work and you were earning $885, Social Security would only count $400 of that, so less than half. Instead of receiving the full SSI tax of $698, your SSI check would lower to 298. And that's scares a lot of people because all they think is, wow, my check lowered down to $298. But in reality, you earned 885, plus the 298. So you end up with over $1,100 at the end of the month. As a opposed to having just 698 before you went back to work. So working is beneficial for SSI recipients. The other big incentive for SSI recipients is that by working you're credits toward becoming qualified for SSDI or retirement in the future. Which as you have seen, has some different work incentives that could be helpful to you. The expedited restatement that I've explained allows you to not have to worry about the reapplication process and to know if you're unable to work or unable to work above SGA because of your disability, you can request that and have your benefit restarted. The protection from medical continuing disability reviews is available to most SSDI and SSI recipients. And as long as your ticket is assigned and you are meeting milestones through the Ticket to Work program, you will not have that medical review. When it comes using your Ticket to Work, there is a large employment team. Slide 29. Your employment team can be made up of a lot of different agencies, starting with WIPA project, such as myself. And what you can do is you can contact your local WIPA project. And they will be able to sit down with you and talk you through things on the phone and help you understand exactly which work incentive will apply to you. The ones that we went over today is only a brief representation. And there are many other out there that can help you. So I would encourage you, whether you're SSI, SSDI, or both, to contact your local WIPA project. The employment networks and state vocational rehabilitation agencies are going to be instrumental in helping a lot of you find work. What they'll be able to do is get you hooked up with job coaches and provide assistance in finding a job. The protection advocacy for beneficiaries of Social Security or PABSS program will help you with any conflict resolution you may have, and they will also help you learn to advocate for yourself. I hope all of this has been helpful, and I hope that some of you will join us after this presentation is over. The website address is www.facebook.com/choosework. And at that website you'll be able to enter in your questions and get pretty quick responses to them as we will be taking questions and answering them until 5:30. So, thank you, guys, for participating. And I hope this has been helpful for you. Ray? >> Okay. Thank you very much Kendra. That was great information. We now have Tina Skeel who's the director of employment services at Aspire Indiana, who's going to talk to us about her role as an employment network and how she can help as a member of your employment team. So take it away, Tina. [ Pause ] >> Tina, if you haven't un-muted yourself, you're going to have to hit pound 6. [ Pause ] >> And Tina, if that doesn't work, try star 6. [ Pause ] >> Hi, Ray, this is Tina Skeel. >> Hi, Tina. >> Sorry for technical difficulties. All righty. Again, my name is Tina Skeel. We are an employment network at Aspire Indiana. We are 1 of over 4,840 current ENs across the United States. We are also 1 of other 100 ENs that provides services here in Indiana. So let's begin by discussing how to build your employment team. On slide 31, we begin with the first step which is contacting your employment network such as Aspire. When you're ready to use your ticket, the first thing is to call the Ticket to Work help line at 1-866-968-7842 or 1-866-833-2967 for TTY users, to speak with a benefits counselor and request a list of employment networks that serve you. You may also want to visit the website www.choosework.net to access a list of employment networks. If you go to that website, you can to explore resources, then type in your name or state or zip code in your area, and that will provide you a list of ENs in your area. Another thing that you would need to do is visit www.socialsecurity.gov/work. What this website will do is provide you with a list of work incentive planning and assistant projects in your area or WIPAs. The WIPA projects listed will provide you with services, the services that Kendra talked about earlier on slides 11 and 12. And all those WIPA projects have the same extensive training to be able to fully answer questions about how work will effect your benefits and how to utilize those wonderful work incentives that are available to you. As Ray said earlier, so that there's more money at the end of the month. Another thing about the www.socialsecurity.gov website is when you're looking for a work incentive planning and assistance, what you will need to do is scroll down. There are four basic categories. And if you look in the middle, you will find a category that says work incentive planning assistance. Click on that site, and it will take you directly to a map that will assist you in finding a WIPA close to you. On slide 32, we begin selecting an employment network, sometimes referred to as ENs, to work with you. So not only do you want to make sure that your EN provides you services in your area, but you also want to make sure that they're a good match for you. You want to make sure that they provide the services that you want and need. Some of the questions that you may want to ask include, for example, how many people have you helped through the Ticket to Work program; what kind of companies do you work with for job placement; is there a good diversity in the types of jobs. So you're looking to see if that employment network is working with a number of different businesses. The more diversity, the higher the likelihood that they will work to better find you a job that specifically meets your needs. What kinds of jobs might be available to me, is another question you might ask. You might also want to ask how often will we communicate and meet. For example, how do you typical meet with individuals? Do you meet face to face, in an office, or do you meet by phone typically. We would highly encourage you to check out their websites as well. When you call the EN, there are some helpful tips to remember. If you look at slide 33, you will see some of these tips. Most importantly, the EN should explain how the ticket program works and the services it provides. So they need to have a clear understanding of how the ticket works and will benefit you. Another tip is the EN should discuss your work goals and the intention about work. They should be listening and be getting to know you individually. The EN should talk to you about the fears you may have. Sometimes the biggest step is the first step. And that is what an EN is there for, to help you make that first step. You and the EN will also develop an individual work plan that includes your employment goals and the services the EN will provide to help you get there. This plan will include both long and short term goals. On slide 34 are some things to remember when you're making your visit with the EN. First of all, your signature on the individual work plan that we just previously discussed will assign your ticket to the EN. The EN may have some routine paperwork for you to sign as well. This paperwork allows them to work with you on your case with Social Security and possibly other providers on your behalf. We hope that you will be satisfied with the services provided by the EN and that your EN will help and encourage you in continuing to pursue or maintain your employment. However, you can un-assign your ticket at any time if you change your mind or decide that the EN just isn't a good match for you. Lastly, as Kendra mentioned earlier, remember, once your ticket has been assigned, your continuing disability review, or CDR, are deferred as long as you are making timely progress towards your employment. Again, each EN will provide a variety of services. We encourage you to do your homework to make sure the EN provides the services that you would like to receive. On slide 35 you will find some examples of EN services. And EN may assist you in, for example, writing a resume, advising you on how to fill out good applications, they may help you with interviewing skills and tips on how to explain many long absences from work without disclosing your disability. They will also assist you with job accommodation information and resources. And most ENs are very familiar with the tax incentives that are available out there to area employers. This can provide an extra incentive for employers to hire you. The EN may also assist with referrals to other resources in your area. For example, if you're in need of mental health services, housing, additional counselling, they may be able to make that linkage for you. Other examples of EN services are included on slide 36. An EN can assist with job leads and information on employers who are hiring, job fairs that may be out there, and recruiting events. They may have access to other resources such as computers, Internet, e-mail, phones and fax. They may also assist with job development on your behalf. This means that the EN will either go on your behalf or with you to contact area employers. They may also assist with referrals to agency partners and continuing your ticket assignment with state vocational rehabilitation. Again, we thank you. And we hope that you enjoyed this portion of the presentation. >> Okay. Thank you very much, Tina. With that said, we're going to move into the vocational rehabilitation area. And Colleen Hart Katuin is with us today from Indiana vocational rehabilitation services. So Colleen if you could share with us the services that you could provide and how you might work with Tina's groups, that would be wonderful. >> Sure, Ray. Thanks very much. We are starting on slide 37, which is our transition slide. And one thing I want to clarify before I begin talking about VR is that VR and employment networks work differently in the different states. In Indiana we're considered a partnership plus state. And that's not true of all states. In Indiana vocational rehabilitation works in partnership with employment networks so that we can both provide services to a beneficiary, but we just can't do them at the same time. So, for example, if somebody wanted to work with voc rehab, voc rehab might take their ticket and then contract with an agency, such as Aspire, which is an employment network, to provide some intermediary services. But then when the VR case is closed, the employment network can resume services and continue from there. In other states, there is not that relationship. It's one or the other. It's the VR takes the ticket or the employment network takes the ticket. So I just want to clarify that there are those differences in the states. And when you go looking into whether to assign your ticket -- or who to assign your ticket to, you might want to clarify how voc rehab works with the employment networks in your state. So moving to slide 38, if you choose to use our ticket with VR, in most cases voc rehab will presume that someone who's a Social Security beneficiary is eligible for voc rehab services. Because they assume that if someone at a federal level determined that somebody has a disability that's significant enough that they can't work, that they must also be disabled enough to receive VR services. However, it doesn't mean that someone is automatically eligible for all services. Voc rehab will continue to do some assessments to determine the level of severity of the disability and they will use that information to be able to determine what services might be appropriate for that person. So there might be some additional assisted technologically evaluations, there may be some functional capacity, like how well can you physically work. They may do psychological evaluations. And all that information goes into development of an employment plan. And that employment plan, if your ticket is assigned with voc rehab is the plan that you have with voc rehab. It's not the separate EN plan that employment networks set up. So there is an official plan that is basically a contract for is services. And based on the information determined in the eligibility process and in that initial assessment process, the vocational rehabilitation counselor will determine services that will be necessary to help rehabilitate or assist someone in becoming employed and staying employed. And in the course of that, some of that may be some benefits discussions and there may be a referral to a CWIC. In Indiana we have additional resources for benefits counseling. And there may be something similar in other states, but we do have the CWICS available here obviously to do those benefit plans. Just like in the EN, if your ticket is in use with voc rehab, continuing disability reviews also deferred as long as you're making timely progress. And that's evaluated by the vocational rehabilitation counselor on an annual basis. One thing that is not on the slide that I do want to mention, because I get a lot of questions about this typically, is what kind of services does vocational rehabilitation provide. It depends on what is determined to be necessary in the course of the initial assessment. Again, not all services are provided to everyone. It's based on that initial process. Everyone will, however, receive vocational guidance and counselling. And that might include some kind of career assessment or helping to determine what you can do with the different disabling situations that you have or perhaps there's a criminal history involved. You know, they take all those factors into consideration when they do that guidance and counselling. In some cases someone might need some rehabilitation technology services. It could be some kind of physical appliance such as a prosthetic limb or it could be something like a home modification, a vehicle modification, computer technology that assists somebody in being able to hear or see better because of their hearing or their vision being impaired. It could include training services such as a certification program or post secondary education. You know, an associate's degree might be necessary or a college degree if someone has become disabled and can no longer do the job that they used to be able to do, it may require some retraining to allow that person to work in a condition that their body physically can do now. There might be some physical or mental restoration services. For example, we might be able to provide some short-term counselling. We might be able to provide some medical services. You know, bifocals or -- and when I say bifocals, I'm thinking like heavy-duty bifocals or bi-optic glasses for someone who needs to be able to drive. Something that is above and beyond your general medical, you know, regular care. It may include job related services such as job placement, job training or on the job training so that somebody's physically out there with you, either helping to prepare to go to a job, such as helping with resume, job applications, interviews. It may require some assistance in job coaching, assistance on the job or helping to negotiate some of the social skills associated with employment. Or it may be even more supportive in the fact of doing supported employment where there's long-term follow along or long term assistance provided so that somebody who had difficulty maintaining employment for long periods because of the disability gets that long-term assistance that they need to be able to stay employed. So those are some of the basic services that voc rehab can provide over time, over the life of the case. Next slide, please. At the point in which someone becomes employed through voc rehab or through the services contracted with voc rehab, that's the point in time which the counselor will discuss what's the next step. You know, voc rehab is a temporary situation. They are there to help with the rehabilitation and the retraining to get someone to work. So they're going eventually going to close the case because -- especially is Indiana with having the partnership plus, we can change over to where when our voc rehab case closes, those services can be transitioned over to an employment network, and the employment network can continue to provide services long term, beyond the life of the case with voc rehab. So the counselor is going to have a discussion with the ticket holder to help them figure out who is the local employment network that's going to best fit their needs. The one thing that I would like to clarify, and I think this is true of all states, but I know for sure it's true in Indiana, that services for a ticket cannot be concurrently provided by an employment network and a voc rehab agency. And the exception would be if the voc rehab agency is contracting with the employment network through this partnership plus. So if, say, you were working with voc rehab and decided that you didn't want to go the route that you were going and you wanted to assign your ticket to this online college course, you would have to un-assign your ticket from voc rehab to be able to do that. And some schools and some training entities will do that. They'll require that you assign your ticket to them and un- assign it with voc rehab. And in those instances, your VR case would have to be closed, because they cannot be provided at the same time. So with that, I will turn it back over to Ray. >> Okay. Thank you very much, Colleen. Up next we have another member of your employment team. And we're going to be talking about the protection in advocacy program for beneficiaries of Social Security and we have Sue Beecher who's the assistant director of the Indiana Protection in Advocacy Services to tell us about the program's offerings. Take it away, Sue. >> Good afternoon, everyone. Ray, am I un-muted? >> Yes, you are. >> Great. Again, thank you for participating in this very important conference call today. I'm sure all of you had other things this time of year that may have seemed more important, but I want to reassure you about how you can return to work with all of these supports is probably one of the most important things that you will do this season, so thank you again. The protection in advocacy -- and I'm on slide 41 for those of you who are following long -- protection and advocacy for beneficiaries of Social Security is a service that is located in every state in the union as well as the United States territories. And our mandate is to assist those individuals receiving SSDI and SSI to go back to work and to assist with -- hopefully -- removing some of the barriers, that get in the way when you're trying to communicate with an employment network or when you're trying to understand the process. All of our services are absolutely, completely free to anyone who calls. There are a range of services that we can provide, everything from information and referral where we answer some basic questions and send you on your way, to assisting you by advocating for an employment network to work more effectively with you, or for your voice to be heard in the process of developing a vocational goal. And lastly, if needed, we do have legal services that we can utilize in assisting you in utilizing you with your ticket. And we have services-- are available, even if you don't have a ticket, assigned at this point or if you haven't been offered a ticket at this time. We have helped a few individuals who should have had a ticket and for some reason -- just an oversight -- had not been assigned a ticket. So we're there for you if you receive Social Security benefits in any manner, shape, or form. And with an array of services that are tailor-made to suit your stated needs. I'm going on to slide 42. Some of the specific things that PABSS can assist you with is advocating for workplace accommodations. It's never a good thing when you've worked with an employment network and received placement services and now you're working, hopefully, with benefits and a good salary that you can live off of, and then you're employer determines that they are not going to accommodate you. We can assist with educating that employer, assuring them that most accommodations cost less than $50, that they're very cost effective and that you, as a worker, is more valuable to them than any amount of money that they would have to put into an accommodation. We also advocate for vocational services from the employment networks as well as the vocational rehabilitation agencies. I tell folks we are somewhat of the complaint department if you are experiencing difficult or confusion with an employment network or your vocational rehabilitation agency. We're familiar with their policies, with there grievance processes, and we can answer questions, and again, advocate for you to receive those services that you need to become employed. We're all in this together. We all want to see you become employed if that is your wish as well. We can provide information. We can refer you to appropriate agencies. And we can advocate in regards to your benefit. A success story there is that we assisted an individual who had assigned their ticket in another state and then came to Indiana, assigned it to a different employment network. It was initially assigned to a vocational rehabilitation agency. Then it was assigned to an employment network in a different state. And when it came time for him to be reimbursed, because that was how the employment network had set up their program, the ticket -- that reimbursement amount was being held up because of the assignment out in another state. And it wasn't that the VR agency in that state wanted the reimbursement. It simply was a matter of getting records changed and getting the system to recognize that the beneficiary was deserving of that reimbursement. And he was reimbursed as well as had a job. So life was really good for him. And we were pleased to be able to assist him. We look at helping you to remove barriers from work. If your employment network says, well, we can't provide transportation, you may want to call your PABSS agency. Is that really true? It might be that, yes, they don't buy you a car, but they may be obligated and may be able to assist you with purchasing bus passes, taxi reimbursement, that sort of thing. So anything that's identified as a barrier, you can call your PABSS agency and receive information just to make sure that the denial was appropriate or if that denial really needs to be looked at a second time. We can also address overpayment issues. Sometimes overpayment issues become a huge barrier to employment in that you're trying to work and then Social Security sends you a letter and states that you owe usually several thousand dollar. And those letters are scarey. They are very frightening and the last thing that anyone wants you to do is to stop the work that your pursuing or your career to try to figure out the overpayment mess that has occurred. So any PABSS agency can assist you with that as well. So as you can see PABSS has a big role in all of this not only by being the complaint department but providing updated, accurate information to you and answering any questions that you might have. So thank you, again, for participating. I'm going to turn this back over to Ray. >> Okay. Thank you very much, Sue. We have some other resources for you today. Throughout the session you have been hearing about socialsecurity.gov. That full website is www.socialsecurity.gov/work. And you'll be able to find all of the local agencies that just spoke to you. You'll be able to find out who your local WIPA, who your work incentive planning and assistance agency is, what ENs, what employment networks, provide services to your area. You can find out how to contact your state VR agency, as well as locating your PABSS agency in your state. You can also call the Ticket to Work help line. And that help line is 1-866-968- 7842 and for TTY it is 1-866-833-2967. And as I indicated earlier, there's really no wrong door to enter when you want to become involved with these programs, because the first one that you get to will make sure you're in contact with all of the others, because they are all part of your employment team. Today we have a Facebook session, a Q and A session after today's webinar. It will be running from 4:30 to 5:30 eastern time. To view the Facebook Q and A session, please visit www.facebook.com/choosework. To participant and ask questions during that session, log in with your Facebook account -- and I know you all have one -- or create a Facebook account. You can create a Facebook account by contacting www.facebook.com/help/createaccount. And for Facebook accessibility and assisted technology, you can contact www.facebook.com/help/accessibility. Now, I'm going to encourage all of you to participant in today's session. And if you need to use an HTML version that is going to be at http://m.facebook.com/choosework! /choosework?v=feed&_user=0. If you cannot access Facebook, send your questions to choosework@gmail.com. And you might want to visit the choose work blog after you have finished with today's session or if you want to look at the transcript of the Q and A session. Lots of people have lots of questions about these programs. And some of those question that other people ask may prove of interest to you as well. With that being said, I want to get to some of the questions that have been asked by today's participants. And we have a couple of people who want to know -- and I think this one is going to go to Kendra -- do I need to have my doctor release me to work if I've had restrictions placed upon me before I can assign my ticket? >> No. It's completely up to you. It's worth talking to your doctors and finding out if you will be able to handle work. That's what we always suggest. Whoever you're working with, be it case managers, doctors, therapists, let them know about your decision, find out what they think. It will also depend on the type of work that you're doing. This is something that you could discuss with your employment network and your vocational rehabilitation as well and they would be able to give you their input. >> Okay. Thank you, Kendra. And I think I have one here for Colleen and Tina. I don't drive. Are there any home based work options available through this program. [ Pause ] >> If you haven't un-muted yourself, please do so. [ Pause ]. >> This is Kendra again. I'll jump in and take this. >> Okay. >> I know that in Indiana we just had an employment network come out and say they are actually recruiting for at-home jobs and only at-home jobs. So there are at-home positions out there. It's worth talking to both employment networks and voc rehab, though, because there are also scams out there. So you should definitely look into any options that you come cross or jobs that you seek. >> Thanks, Kendra. >> This is Colleen. We were having problems. I wanted to actually back up to the question prior. There was a question about medical release to work. >> Sure. >> From vocational rehabilitation stand point, if someone is not medically released to work, they may not be found eligible to work for vocational rehabilitation purposes, because we will not put someone to work who might be medically at risk at furthering their disability or -- they have to be basically cleared to work as part of the eligibility criteria for vocational rehabilitation. >> Okay. And how would somebody get that clearance, Colleen. >> It can be as simple as a letter from their doctor saying, you know, so and so, has this disabling condition and they are cleared to work or they have these restrictions or they have -- they can't lift more than 50 pounds. Those kinds of things. >> Okay. Thank you very much. >> And I missed the second question that was directed at Tina in and I because we were working on the phones. >> Okay. Somebody had a question and they said they cannot drive. Are there home-based work options available through this program? >> Okay. Home-based work options. Sometimes. I know in Indiana we do have some home-based work options. They are few and far between. But, yes, there are some. >> Okay. Let's see, what else do we have here. While I have you on the phone, Colleen. Before you push your button again. How does somebody switch from vocational rehabilitation to an employment network? >> If somebody is already assigned or has their ticket in use with vocational rehabilitation, they must close their case with VR. And the VR office must fax a copy of the closure letter to MAXIMUS, who is the coordinator of the program. That must occur for the ticket to get un- assigned. And only until that occurs and MAXIMUS receives that closure letter, then the person can ask for their ticket to be reassigned. >> Okay. Thank you very much. So there is the need to have a little bit of formality and do that in writing. >> Yes. Because it doesn't work any other way. >> Okay. Great. Thank you for clearing that up. Okay. Kendra, I think I'm back to you. Are there any work incentives to help with transportation costs to and from work? >> There are, depending on the situation. For both SSI and SSDI recipients, there is a work incentive called impairment-related work expenses. After the trial work period for SSDI recipients and depending on the disability for both, if you have to pay a taxi or you have to have special door-to-door transportation, because you're disability prevents you from using the bus or utilizing public transportation or if there's no public transportation available, you can use transportation as an impairment related work expense. Social Security does have to approve that. But it can be used. And contacting your local WIPA projects will help analyze your situation in which work incentives can help you with that >> Okay. Thank you very much. Okay. Sue, I think this one is going to be for you. When I'm being interviewed by a perspective employer, do I have to tell that person that I have a disability? >> No, not necessarily. However, if you are going to need accommodation, you will need to answer somewhat of a dialogue with that perspective employer. Now, they can't ask you whether or not you're a person with a disability but you can disclose. And so, that's up to you, really. But at some point in time, usually at the point of job offer, then you enter into some sort of dialogue about need for accommodations. And remember, any employer for you to qualify for a job, there are some essential functions that you must be able to do, so what we are talking about are accommodations for non-essential functions such as maybe you need to utilize a computer for your work and you're able to do that, but your fine motor coordination doesn't allow you to necessarily print off pieces of paper yourself and file those and that sort of thing. That may be something that you request an accommodation for. >> Okay. Thanks very much, Sue. Okay. Kendra, back to you. I don't know if I'm able to work full time right now. Can I start by working part time? >> Sure. That is completely up to each of you out there whether you want to work 5 hours a week, or if you want to try working 50. It's your decision. Social Security has created all of these programs to help you find a job that you're looking for. None of the employment networks or vocational rehabilitation are temp services. They're not looking to just place you somewhere. They're looking to help you find the job that you're looking for. So if you would like to just try part time, you can do that. And if you have questions or just want -- and you're just in the contemplative stages of thinking about working, contact your WIPA and maybe they'll be able to point you in the right direction and help you finalize your goals. >> Okay. And Colleen and Tina, I think this one's going to be directed to you. I'd really like to go back to work, but I'm not sure what I am able to do or what I want to do. Can you help me with that? >> Absolutely, Ray. We, as an EN, an EN will work with you doing a variety of assessments. They may assist you with linkage to referral sources such as work one, or opportunity to help you do some career testing. There are a lot of resources out there for you, and each EN will be able to assist you with that. >> Okay great. Thank you. >> This is Colleen. And I want to second what she says. Voc rehab can do the same thing. >> Great. Good. So there are two options there. Okay. Kendra, I'm going to put you on the spot because this isn't the type of question that we normally take, but I think it's a good one to get somebody started. This person right now is working at a Safeway grocery store and wants to know if she can keep her job without losing her benefits. And that's all the information I'm going to give you. >> The best place to start -- what I would say, call your local WIPA. What your WIPA project and your CWICS such as myself are going to be able to do are help you determine whether you're receiving SSI or SSDI. With SSI, you will continue receiving until you reach what's called the break- even point which is when your earnings are a little bit more than the double federal benefit rate, which will be 698 in 2012. For SSDI recipients. If your earnings -- if your trial work period is complete, and your earnings are less than $1,010 a month, then your benefits would continue. But again, there's different factors to take into consideration. So I would encourage you to either go to the website, the link on Facebook, or call the MAXIMUS number. And all of those places will be able to get you in touch with your WIPA project and to help you figure out, okay, well what work incentives have you used and what can we do to help you or help you understand what will happen if your benefits do stop. >> Okay. Thank you very much Kendra. I didn't put you in the spot as much as I thought I was going too. Okay. We're going to go back to Colleen, I think. I had a career and then became disabled and I'm interested in returning to my old job but may need to relearn how to do that job. Can VR help me with that? >> Probably. In most cases what would happen is if you're receiving benefits you would apply to voc rehab. In most cases you would be presumed eligible because of your Social Security status, and the VR counsellor would do some initial assessments. If it's a physically disabling condition, there might be a functional capacity evaluation to determine what your physical abilities are or your capabilities or if it's a cognitive impairment, there may be a cognitive assessment that's done to determine your ability to learn those skills. And if it's a matter of learning the skills again because the field has changed since you came back to it, that's a possibility for training. It may be a matter of assistive technology, so there might be an assistive technologically evaluation that's done. So, yeah, there's a possibly. It comes down to assessment and determining where's the gap and was it caused by the disability itself and if it was, how do we rehabilitate you to be able to return to that type of job. And if in the course of the process, it's determined that that's not possible, then the counsellor can look at -- that's where the vocational guidance and counseling comes into play. And the counsellor can discuss what are some other options given your abilities and skills, how could they be redirected. >> Okay. Great. Thank you. And, Tina, I think I'm going to direct this question to you. How do I explain the gaps in my work history when I'm meeting with a new employer. >> Absolutely. There are a number of ways you can do that. First of all, looking at what have you done in the past, during those gaps. For example, some individuals may have been assisting the care for a child or an older adult, and that can be considered family caregiving. So there are a number of ways. That's just one simple example. And the EN that you chose will be able to assist you in determining what is the best language to utilize, to really describe those gaps in your work history. >> So, Tina, it sounds to me that an EN would be somebody who could be able to do some practice interviewing with somebody. >> Absolutely. Absolutely. A number of ENs across the United States do mock interviewing, where you have the opportunity to practice those skills with different individuals. And they will provide conference and feedback on how you can improve your interviewing skills as well. One of the services that we do oftentimes is actually do video taking of those mock interviews. So not only are you provided with feedback from that EN, but you can actually look at how you actually appear when you interview. >> Okay. Great. That sounds like a very good service. Okay. This person had a ticket in 2006 and never used it. And now this person has a good sense of human, I'm 63 years young, and I still eligible for this program? Kendra, can you address that? >> Sure. The Ticket to Work program you're eligible until [inaudible] age of 64. So the best thing to do is to call MAXIMUS at the 866 number listed. What they'll be able to do is they'll be able to see if your ticket is assigned or in use anywhere and help you un-assign it if it is. And they'll be able to give you some referral resources. Something to consider, though, for those of you who are approaching retirement age or even at early retirement age. Benefits change and that retirement rules are very different from disability rules. So it's definitely something for you to consider and know about when you are reaching 63, anywhere around that age. >> Okay. And a CWIC, such as yourself, would be able to help somebody with those questions? >> A CWIC will be able to answer the basic questions for you. But honestly, your best bet is going to be to contact your local Social Security, because it's going to depend on whether or not you take early retirement or wait until your full retirement. The rules are different. And your CWIC and your WIPA projects are strongly trained in disability regulations but only know the basics when it comes to retirement. >> Okay. Thanks a lot for that. Okay. I'm going to go back to our EN and VR folks. This person was a certified nursing assistant prior to becoming disabled. And he's unable to do that job because of the physical demands right now and has no other education, other than the certified nursing job. Who's the in the best position to help him right now? >> In that particular situation, if there's a possibility that he's going to need more retraining or training at all, it's going to be vocational rehabilitation. ENs are basically set up to provide training and job assistance and job placement directly into the community. And vocational rehabilitation is going to be able to look at the need for additional education or training, most likely, which would not -- in most cases is not going to be able to be provided by your typical EN. Now, I say that knowing also that there are ENs out there that are training academies and colleges. So there are those circumstances where certain colleges and training organizations are ENs. And so it comes down to looking at who are the ENs in the area and what services do they provide, what certifications, those kinds of things. >> Okay. All right. I have one more question here. If I'm not working now but am still looking for a job, how long is my ticket going to last? How long is it good for? >> Who is the question for? >> Kendra. >> I think that was Kendra. I wasn't quite sure. >> Your ticket -- again, call MAXIMUS, call that 866 number. The Ticket to Work program is for people between the ages of 18 through 64, so it covers the whole working range of people. If you have any questions about whether or not that ticket is available or you have it, give MAXIMUS a call. And another common question that people ask is, do I actually have to that paper ticket. And you do not have to have the paper ticket to utilize the services that it provides. You just give MAXIMUS a call. They'll be able to get you hooked up with the different agencies and get you started as you begin thinking about working. >> Okay. Thanks a lot, Kendra. We put you to work this afternoon. Okay. Before we sign off and begin the Facebook session. I have a couple of questions for those you of in the audience just so we can know a little bit about how you found us. So if you'd respond by making a selection. How did you learn about today's webinar? I'll give you a couple of seconds to get those answers in. That will help us outreach to more people. [ Pause ] >> Okay. Thank you for that. And we want to know what you hoped to learn from today's session. Ticket to Work program, work incentives for SSI, work incentives for DI, employment networks and VR, or legal protections and advocacy services. [ Pause ] All right. Thank you for that. Now just statical information for us. If you could let us know if you're male for female. So, once again, the women jumped to that answer right away. [ Pause ] >> Okay. And if you wouldn't mind letting us know which age group you fall into. [ Pause ] >> Well, I'm hitting the last year of my age group. It's a sad thing. Okay. And one final question. In order that we know how many folks are listening, because we know that some of you may be participating with more than one person at your computer or terminal, can you tell us how many people are with you. Don't count yourself. Just let us know how many other people are with you. [ Pause ] All right. Thank you for your help. We'll use that to do outreach for our next webinar session. And remember, after today's session, there will be a Facebook question and answer session. To participate with that get on to www.facebook.com/choosework. And that Ticket to Work program help line if, want to talk to somebody about your own situation is 1-866-968-7842. And for TTY users is 866-833-2967. And I'd like to thank all of our presenters today, and once again invite you to that Facebook session. Everybody have a great holiday. Take care.