>> Ray Cebula: Good afternoon, everybody. This is Ray Cebula from Cornell University's Yang-Tan Institute, and I want to welcome you to today's webinar. We're going to be talking about the Ticket to Work, the Social Security Administration's program to help individuals with disabilities who are receiving benefits on the basis of that disability; receive free supports to return to work. We've got a lot of information for you today. I'm here with a good friend and Social Security worker, Terri Uttermohlen. She'll give you some more information about herself when her time comes around to present. But you can take what we say as gospel. You know, I don't think either one of us are going to try to pull any stunts. We're both straight shooters today, and we're going to take you through a lot of information, a little bit about the programs that might be paying you benefits right now. A lot about how to go to work and what kind of work incentives Social Security has. The information is going to be very general. We can't focus on specifics because, Jamie tells me there are about 700 of you out there, and that's going to be a difficult task for us. So we will give you information about where you can call and who you can contact to talk about your specific situation. That being said, we do want to hear from you. Today you've been connected to this webinar by your computer and the sound is most likely coming out of your computer speakers. If at any time you need to adjust that, you can switch to another audio mode that's going to allow you to use your telephone, and you just need to switch on the audio button at the top of your screen. It's going to open up, I will call in, use the phone, and if you click that, you'll be able to dial in. I will give you that information for dialing in in just a moment. Let me go back one slide here and show you this particular box. That question-and-answer box which is in your webinar console on the right-hand side of your screen, it's marked "Q and A." If you click on that arrow, this box is going to open up. Down below here you'll be able to type in any questions you have about today's presentation and hit send. Anne is going to be collecting those and at the end of the session, she will give us some questions that you have sent in. I can promise you we're not going to get to them all. We only have an hour and a half. We've got lots and lots of you and we always get lots of questions. But once again, we will always give you informations to where you can get your particular questions answered. One of the primary concerns we have when we're delivering webinars because it is a fairly new technology, it may be new for you, is our accessibility. We want these sessions to be as accessible as they possibly can before as many people as possible. We want you all to be able to get good information from us. So if you are having any trouble with the information that we're presenting today, please, let us know. And if you have a solution to the problem that you're having, you know of a program or a method that we can use to make our future presentations better, please let us know that, as well. And I can assure you that Mike, our technical guru in the background, will take all of your information to heart and will get this completely accessibility as the technology allows us to do that. Today, the toll-free number, if you do need to switch to telephone, is [Background talking] 1-855-749-4750. That's 1-855-749-4750. Once you dial that, it will ask you for an access code. That access code today is 645-046-155. Below that you can see our closed captioning link, going to read that real quick for you. It's at www dot ilr dot cornell dot edu/edi/captions. The PowerPoint, an accessible PDF, and the text of what we're talking about today are located in the URL link you received with your confirmation and access letter to today's session. In about two weeks' time, Michael will have this webinar edited so we don't sound so foolish and you'll [chuckle] have just the information you need and posted to the Cornell website so that you can review it. That site is www.edi.cornell.edu/m-wise-webinars.cfm. At the end of the session I did say you were going to have a question-and-answer period and we'll take as many questions then as we can, and Anne is going to surprise Terri and I; we're not going to know what she's going to ask us, so it we'll be exciting for us, too. If you want to, if you can't access that Q-and-A box online that we discussed, you can use the chat box. We'd prefer you don't use that chat box, but you can use it if you have to; or, send an email to choose work questions. That's all one word, chooseworkquestions@gmail.com. And if you do have a question afterwards, you know, after we close down today, please, send those questions to support@chooseworktty -- I'm sorry, let me do that again -- support@chooseworkttw.net. That's support@chooseworkttw.net. Now, I'm going to be with you through some basic information, then we're going to turn this over to Terri. Then I'm going to come back to talk to you about employment networks and some other resources, and we'll come together at the end for question and answer. So that's a basic overview of what we're going to do. Before we get started with our substance, we're always happy to hear from associate commissioner, Bob Williams, who works at the Office of Employment Support Programs at SSA in Baltimore. He's a great friend of Work Incentives and Return to Work efforts, and he has a video welcome for you. So, Mike, if you'd queue that video up. [ Silence ] [ Music ] >> Bob Williams: Hello and welcome to today's webinar. My name is Bob Williams and I am the Associate Commission for Employment Support at the Social Security Administratoin. We run the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program which assists persons ages 18 through 64 on SSDI or SSI who want to improve their life and future by becoming employed. By viewing this webinar, you will learn how you can receive training, become employed, increase your earnings, reduce your reliance on disability benefits and eventually earn a better living by becoming fully self-supporting whenever possible. The Ticket program is not for everyone. This is why the choice of whether to take advantage of it is yours and yours alone. I know firsthand that people with significant disabilities face many barriers to becoming and staying employed. This is especially true in today's economy. A major reason you receive disability benefits is that Social Security determines that you were not able to work enough to support yourself. But I also want you to know that having a significant disability no longer has to be a lifetime bar to employment and greater financial security. The Ticket can offer you the choices, training, opportunities, and support, you need to go to work and gain financial independence. I hope today's webinar begins your journey toward greater self-sufficiency. Your life and future can be better. Thank you for joining us. [ Music ] [ Silence ] All right. Thank you, Mike. Michael is now giving me the power to move these slides again and we're going to get into the substance of what we're talking about. What can you expect from us today? We're going to provide you lots of information about Social Security's Ticket to Work program and the work incentives that are associated with that. We're going to try to give you some answers to some of those frequently asked questions, the questions that Terri and I have heard from beneficiaries over, and over, and over again to ease your mind about what might happen to you when you do return to work and hopefully clear the air so that you can seriously make that determination as to whether you want to start that journey or not. Where to find more information. As I said, we're going to give you a quick overview as to what's happening today. You're going to need more information; it's in planning services before you're going to be able to start that journey to work. But we'll let you know where to do that. And we've got some success stories. We have one we're going to share with you during today's webinar, and there are a bunch more that we can get to of people who have actually taken that Ticket to Work and use it to get back to work and to get off of benefits. Now, when we say that to get off of benefits and we hear commissioner Williams say become independent of benefits, we have to tell you why we want that for you. Why would you choose work over disability benefits? The first reason is very obvious -- to earn more money. Terri and I have been at this for years, and years, and years, and in most cases, in the vast majority of cases, if you make the decision to go to work there will be more money at the end of each month. And more money is going to enhance your ability to be independent of a lot more than just the benefits that you're receiving. Gaining independence from the benefits that you're receiving from the reporting requirements, some of you are going to have resource limits because of the program you're receiving benefits from. You will be free from that and gaining the independence to do what you want with your earnings when you want to. That is going to be a major benefit of choosing work. To meet new people and here's Jamie saying, "Here goes Ray again." But, you know, I met my spouse at work, so I got myself married because I worked. I met Jamie through work. I met Terri through work. All of these people today that I am working with to present this information to you, I know because of work. You know, I have traveled a lot because of work. Meeting new people is going to end any sense of isolation you may have, get you out there, get invited to those holiday parties at the end of the year, all of that good stuff. That's some of the benefits that we see from work that are I think more important than just that weekly paycheck. Learning new skills; you'll definitely learn new skills on the job whether it be through an education and training program, whether it be through a vocational program or some computer skills, some online sessions that you may have to take to your employer, or if you need new skills or need to relearn certain skills because of your medical condition. We can help you do that. You know, I can assure that, you know, I've been doing this work for over 30 years now, and not a day goes by where I don't learn something that I didn't know the day before. And it's amazing how much you will learn just by being out and being a member of the workforce. Now, we want you to meet Robert. He is a real client with a real success story to share with you. He's a veteran who spent seven years in the army and after a surgical accident in 2000 he sustained a spinal cord injury that left him with limited mobility. The Ticket to Work helped him discover his passion for helping other veterans navigate the transition back into civilian life. So he has a passion to help other people and the Ticket to Work let him do that. So, Michael, if you could queue up Robert's video. [ Music ] [ Silence ] [ Music ] >> Robert Statam: Coming straight out of high school from Chicago, I had a strong interest for the military. I joined the service and I went into the army; and my job that I went into service for was a communications and I was a communications specialist. I spent two tours in Europe, in Germany and I spent over -- about seven years total in the military. Once I completed my time in the service, I continued to work off -- for the government as a United States postal carrier and after 13 years of this work, it began to take a toll on me health-wise and it led to some medical issues that I started to have. I became disabled from a surgery kind of a mishap where a disc ruptured and it paralyzed me. The Ticket to Work program was introduced to me throughout my rehabilitation time period. The VA was assisting me. They even offered me the ideas about if I ever thought about going back to work, so they introduced me to a representative from the Social Security board who told me about this Ticket to Work program. Well, as the representative explained the program, it was obvious that there was some safety nets there. Some of the things that I was worried about I really didn't have -- there was no worry at all. Now, it wasn't until the voc rehab representatives for Paralyzed Veterans who again introduced me to the Ticket to Work program. And I told them I had heard of it and I was aware of it, but at this time as years that went by, I felt a little bit more stronger about actually accepting it this time because I knew that I was at a level health-wise and I thought it was time for me to make some serious decisions and not be living on a fixed income when I had such a desire to want to do much more. The program had told me all the things like, well, if it don't work out it was still enough of a security net there, to say that you don't have to worry about that. They even gave me a year even while I was working that I was still covered under Social Security. They make sure that they are there to assist you and help you in all types of ways, not only to put you back in the workforce or give you the skills that you need to get there, but to follow you once you're there. After being a part of this Ticket to Work program, I started looking again into the availabilities, positions for National Service Officer. At that time they just happened to be some available positions. >> Winston Woodard: He put in the Ticket the position that he had to apply for the position normally. That position came up shortly thereafter he was selected as a candidate to be a National Service Officer at Chicago office. >> Robert Statam: After the interview, they immediately told me that I was very much qualified and I could prepare just begin to come to work. I became a National Service Officer for the Paralyzed Veterans of America. Paralyzed Veterans of American, of course, is a service organization dedicated to helping those veterans with spinal cord injuries, spinal cord disease, as we assist all veterans with VA benefits and we advocate for veterans healthcare. ...Robert Statam. I'm a National Service Officer with the Paralyzed Veterans of America. I greet and meet with especially the new veterans or new patients that had just come in for the first time. Coming back to work has promptly built up my independency, the self-pride, and, you know, I'm an achiever again. You know, I've got something to offer society and, you know, it's almost like you, you know, regaining a good portion of dignity back. Prior to even coming back to work I was highly interested in -- got interested in some of the disabilities sporting events. The wheelchair games, I used to participate in that every year, and it was a big event for me. The Ticket to Work program, it helped open up the door and put me back to where, you know -- it's almost like it put my life back on track. [ Music ] [ Silence ] >> Ray Cebula: All right. Always want to thank Robert for sharing his story with us. We will give you the link to a website later on in the presentation where you'll be able to see other success stories and there are some really, really great ones. And you can see how that return to work made Robert feel good about himself, as well as, it allowed him to help other people through his work. Okay. So when you're ready to work, when you've made that decision to return to work, what do you need to do as a beneficiary? First thing you need to do is gather information. That's key and look at the resources that are available to help you plan this journey. It sounds like it's an easy thing, send out some resumes, file a few applications, someone's going to call you and you're going to go to work. Well, because of the benefits, it's a little more complex. You know, you need to think about how much you can work. You need to think about what's going to happen to your benefits as you being to earn income. And there are lots of resources that the Ticket to Work and the work incentives in Social Security has put in place that can help make this journey to work a very, very smooth one for you. Building an employment team is key here, building an employment team. You know, building an employment team is going to let you get people in line to provide you with the supports and the plan that you need to return to work. Now, when I tell you to build an employment team, you might be thinking, "What are you talking about, Ray?" Well, we need you to start by speaking to an expert at the Ticket to Work helpline. That Ticket to Work helpline is at 1-866-968-7842; or if you're a TTY user it's 1-866-833-2967. Now, Jamie is posting a lot of these links and phone numbers in the chat box if you need them. That's a great place to get started. The wonderful thing about this program is we have a no-wrong-door policy. If you want to look at some success stories, check out the rules and regulations, read the blogs to see how other people have fared using these tickets. Go to the Social Security website, www.socialsecurity.gov/work. It's a very easy website to get around and can provide you with lots of information, and it's a real safe way to get that information because no one's going to know you're there. And employment network, we're going to talk about those later on but they are private rehabilitation service providers, like the VR agencies and all your state vocation rehabilitation agencies are also ENs. So either an employment network or you're state VR agency is a great way to start, you know. And what you're doing is taking the people that you need to provide you with the planning services, provide you with the education, provide you with the training, provide you with the on-the-job supports and getting them all together so everybody is on the same page to help you move forward. And the last thing what's important about this is that you need to stay connected to that employment team that you have built because you are the captain of that team. These people are all working for you trying to make sure that you successfully attain the goal that you have chosen. That's the important thing about this. You are the boss of us, you know. You guide this team. Now, I want to talk very quickly about the Social Security Disability programs. There are two main disability programs that Social Security administers. The first one is the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, or SSDI. This is the program that people become eligible for because they have worked in the past. Depending upon your age, you need to purchase certain numbers of credits. That is determined by how much you work, how long you worked and what you were paid while you were working. And Social Security certainly will know if your work has been reported to them, or reported to the IRS whether you are insured or not. It is an insurance program. That's the important thing to know about Social Security Disability Insurance. You have paid for this coverage should you become disabled, it becomes available to you. The second program that they administer, the second major program, is the Supplemental Security Income or SSI program. Now, SSI is a completely different animal. SSI is a needs spaced program. It's basically a federal welfare program that provides a base level of earnings to people so that they can meet their basic needs for food and shelter. There aren't a whole lot of people on SSI who can't go to work tomorrow and be better off. So work incentives that are attached to these programs are both different, but most certainly the SSI programs are going to see you earning and having more money at the end of the month. And there is a third group of you out there and we call you "concurrent beneficiaries." You're receiving both SSDI and SSI. As I said, SSI brings you up to a specific base level of income that the federal government decides is necessary to meet your basic needs. If you happen to have an insurance amount that is lower than that, you could be eligible for SSI to increase that monthly cash benefit. But those are very, very important facts. The first thing that you need to know for sure when you start building that employment team is which benefit do you have, or do you have both? Because as I said, again, the work incentives are all different; some of them sound alike but as Terri is going to talk to you in a few minutes, they're all different. Now, I told you we go to some frequently asked questions and we'd like to call them the "common myths." This is what people believe will happen. The first most common myth is if I try to go work I will automatically lose my Medicaid or Medicare. Well, that's just absolutely incorrect. Nowadays with the Ticket to Work program -- and it's not nowadays, it's been 12 years now -- if you go to work, there are programs in most of the states that control Medicaid and in all of the states, because Medicare is a federal program that will allow you to keep your benefits, your healthcare benefits intact for many years. There is no way to go to work tomorrow and automatically lose your healthcare benefits. You may be in a situation where your earnings are high enough so that you'll be paying a premium. But to be frankly honest with you, that just puts you on the same playing field that we're all on because we have to pay premiums through our health insurance, as well. The premiums for both Medicare and Medicaid are very reasonable and well worth it. So that's just false. Let's talk about the second myth. "If I use my ticket to go to work, Social Security will perform a medical review and I'll lose my benefits." You know, I understand why people feel that way. You have gone through a lot of trouble to prove to the federal government that you're unable to work, and now, I'm telling you to go to work and it will be okay. Well, the fact of the matter is, if you use that ticket, to put that work team together, your employment team together, and that ticket is assigned to either an employment network or that VR agency in your states, Social Security can't perform a medical review on you. You're protected from those reviews. And why is that? Nobody wants to pull the rug out from under you while you're getting back to work. So that's another myth that's incorrect. And the third one; "If I go to work and have to stop working because of that medical impairment, I have to reapply all over again. And it took me so long to be approved the first time, I can't afford to wait without any income so I should not try to work." That one, folks, is also wrong. There is a new program under the Ticket to Work that's referred to as EXR. Terri is going to give you some information about that as soon as I turn this over to her. And I can assure you that EXR is going to take care of you even after your benefits have been terminated because you go to work. So Social Security is not only watching for you while you are still a beneficiary, but for a good long time after you no longer receive cash benefits because of earnings. So with that being said, I'm going to turn this over to Terri and she's going to take you through the Ticket to Work program and some of our work incentives. Take it away, Terri. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Thanks, Ray. Hello, everybody. I'm on this call for a couple of reasons. I work for Social Security now, but in the past I was a beneficiary and I received benefits twice in my life and I've worked off the benefits twice. And I've done a lot of benefits training through the years because I really want people to go back to work, not so much that it's not a moral question for me, it's a quality of life question. It is, as Ray was talking about, having more money to pay your bills, having more money to do things that you want to do. I want work to pay and so I want people who are considering going back to work to do it in a planful way and think about what's going to impact it, what's going to impact the benefits that I count on. But it -- I hate to see it when people are so afraid of losing benefits that they don't try because there are a lot of protections in the law. They're complicated and they're challenging sometimes and sometimes people don't understand them. But there are protections and they're out there to allow you the opportunity to get started, to get started on a better path if you want to work. Now, the Ticket to Work... Switch the slides, Ray. >> Ray: Yep. I'm all set, Terri. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Okidok. The Ticket -- well, let me back up a little bit. I'm going to -- I will periodically ask Ray to read something to me because I'm blind and I'm doing this from a Braille printout, so I want to make sure that we're all in the same page here. But what is the Ticket to Work? And that's a pretty important question because it's not even a ticket anymore. We [chuckle] -- when the program started, we actually as an agency used to mail out these pieces of picture on it of a ticket, but we don't do that anymore. Essentially what a Ticket to Work is is an opportunity to pay for rehabilitation services that aren't provided by the state vocation rehabilitation or to get extra support to help you go back to work because the reality is, Social Security saves money. If you go back to work at a point that you're self-sustaining, the agency saves money and you live better; so everybody wins. It's a really wonderful [Background Sound] [inaudible] when that happens. The Ticket to Work is voluntary and I cannot stress that enough. You have to make the decision that you want to do it. We don't require it, we're not going to affect -- it's not going to affect your benefits if you decide not to. It's also voluntary for the organizations that provide services to pick their ability to work with you and Ray is going to talk about that in a little while when he talks about employment networks. But anybody who's receiving a disability benefit as an adult and who is permanently -- you know, is on the role. There's some -- a couple of exceptions, but usually if you're between 18 and 64 and you're receiving disability benefits, you're going to be eligible to participate in this program. You don't need a "ticket." You don't need the piece of paper. But what it's saying is SSA is willing to make an investment in your future and they're willing to pay people for you to provide services that you need in order to be successful returning to work. Rick, the next slide was -- did not Braille well, so if you [Background Sound]... >> Ray Cebula: Yeah, I can't see that it would, Terri. [Laugh] Lots of charts. When you're ready to work -- I'm going to ask you the questions, Terri. If you're ready to earn more income, what will the ticket do for me? >> Terri Uttermohlen: Well, the ticket will give you support to get what you need, either to increase your hours, to return to work at a higher pay. It'll give you the opportunity to possibly to get training, to get support with your resume, to possibly get job assistance, job coaching to get started. It is pretty much whatever you wanted to be that you can get an employment network to do with you. And, again, Ray is going to talk about how that works later, but they can help. >> Ray Cebula: Okay. And if I need the personal fulfillment that comes from working, how is the ticket going to help me get to that point? >> Terri Uttermohlen: Again, if ticket helps you go to work, you're going to be more integrated in the community. And a little more self-disclosure, when -- the second time I went on disability benefits, I was -- I had already been blind for years but I developed problems with my hands. And I lived in a small town and I have a sister who's also blind and my sister's a lawyer. And people would walk up to me and say, "Oh, are you the lawyer?" And I'd say, "No," and they'd say, "What do you do?" And I'd burst into tears because I didn't -- I have a lot of identity based in what I do for a living, and at that point I wasn't working. So I felt really unconnected to the community. I felt -- so bottom line is, if this program helps you get back to work, it can help you some more integrated and feel better about what you're doing. At least -- I didn't use the ticket because I came back to work before ticket existed. But I did use work incentives and other programs that were extremely helpful to help me figure out where I needed to be. >> Ray Cebula: Okay, Terri. I'm overwhelmed already. Where do I start? >> Terri Uttermohlen: I remember that feeling. [Laugh] I totally remember that feeling. And where do you start is to decide to do it, and to make little steps. So the first step is, I'm going to call that 800 number that Ray gave me or that will give you again later, and talk to them about whether or not I can use [Background Sound] it and where it is, where I might be able to access somebody who can help me. The decision is the hardest part because it's really hard sometimes to convince yourself that you're employable, and because you get so many cultural messages that you're not. [Inaudible] experience. I've been working for, again, for 15 years. But when I was on disability benefits, I had time, I would've thought no one would hire me. I can I ever get a job as a blind [inaudible] with their hands. So and I have had other friends who are working, who are people with disabilities who had similar experiences. So take it step by step; don't say, "Okay. I'm going to go for $100,000-a-year job tomorrow." I mean, it would be great; we'd all like to do that. But instead, say, "I want to go to work. I'm going to take one step and then figure out what the next step is, and set goals and work your way where you want to be. Okay. >> Ray Cebula: All right. We're on the next slide, Terri. >> Terri Uttermohlen: We're on the next slide. When you're ready to work, am I correct? >> Yeah, that's the one. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Go on. Okay, good. Thanks! Help me out here, Ray, because...[Laugh] >> Ray Cebula: All right. Well, this is going to be a lot of phone numbers, again, Terri, and repeating what the whole building the employment team is. So why don't I do this one for you. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Okay. >> Ray Cebula: Terri, answer this question for you. When you're overwhelmed, if you are overwhelmed, you know, the best way as Terri said -- is to plan. Make a definitive plan once you have decided to go to work. But if you're not quite sure yet, you can still talk to us, to build that employment team. That employment team's first job might be to help you figure out whether or not the answer to your return to work is "Yes. I want to do this." Again, talk with an expert at the Ticket to Work helpline at 1-866-968-7842; or if you're a TTY user, 866-833-2967. socialsecurity.gov again, it's a great website; www.socialsecurity.gov/work. Look at the success stories. Read the blog that's on there to get more information about the ticket and about how other people have used that. And then lastly, the employment networks and your state VR agency are out there. You can find who they are on socialsecurity.gov/work under the resources page. Everything you need is going to be on that website to get you started. Meet with people, talk to people and determine whether or not you're ready to go to work and what you want to do and how you move towards that. As Terri said, this is a very planful event. You have to take steps and take steps knowingly and carefully. And above all, stay connected with all of these people once you put them together, because they are your employment team. Okay, Terri, I'm... >> Terri Uttermohlen: ...[inaudible] for a second about employment teams, because at one of the... >> Ray Cebula: Sure. >> Terri Uttermohlen: ... one of the things that I think is important for people to remember is who's the most important on that team. The most important person on that team is you. You have to drive the train. You have to be willing to drive the train. But sometimes other people in your family, people who care about you can be cheerleaders and can be part of that team with you. There's also professionals that you can access through the work line, through state vocation rehabilitation agencies, through employment networks, through other areas. You can also have people on your team who are doing the kind of things that you want to do, and that's kind of -- it's sometimes a little scary to do that but if you know you want to do something, call somebody who does it and say, "How did you get into this business? How do you do this? Can I shadow you?" Employment team can be whoever you want it to be as long as they're willing to do work with you. And, again, get a cheerleader. Get somebody who can help you continue to believe in yourself because anybody could be looking for a job even whether or not you have a disability. Looking for a job is hard and sometimes some days you're going to go, "Oh my goodness. This is -- just seems overwhelming and that's when you want to get some -- get a cheerleader or get somebody who will go out to lunch with you and say, "Hey. You know, you really can do this." But don't forget that you are the most important member of that team and you need to keep that in mind because you're the one who's [inaudible] with what the decisions that you make. All right. The next slide, work incentives has me again -- very exciting. >> Ray Cebula: That's you, yep. [Laugh] >> Terri Uttermohlen: And what are work incentives? And, Ray, I'm going to trouble you again. For some reason, I'm having trouble focusing on that Braille. >> Ray Cebula: Sorry. Well, this is just basically a photograph, an image. And work incentives, as you can see, we have this solitary figure on this little island holding a puzzle piece. And that puzzle piece is the piece that fits in the middle of the bridge and work incentives are basically going to be your bridge to success. Again, if they are carefully and planfully used and you work with your employment team, there is no reason that any one of you can't be successful. Yeah, you may be working part time, you may be working full time. You know, we don't care. You know, again, Terri said [background phone ringing] we want people to make decisions that are right for them and to receive those other benefits. It's wonderful. That Terri said when people, you know, lose their benefits, the system saves money, everybody saves money. But we're not looking for that as our goal. We're looking to help you get all of those other goodies from work, and that work incentives that Terri is going to share with you now are the bridge to that[background music] success. So. Terri, we're back to you on work incentives have many advantages. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Yes. Essentially they are a safety net. Work incentives were built into the law to help people transition to work, and again, they're complicated. Sometimes they're confusing but if you can be proactive and understand them and make sure that you report your work timely, don't forget that. I don't think that's not on any of the slides but I'll tell you, that's one thing you don't want to neglect. But if you understand them, if you try to learn them, if you work with people who understand work incentives, they can help you transition when times are shaky in the beginning when you're trying to get started. So, like I said, they offer a safety net. They can help you receive trainings for new skills. [Background Sound] Now how can that happen? Well, there's work incentives if you're on SSI that might help you pay for school. There is a work incentive -- just sorry -- that might help you buy equipment or things that you need to develop a certain skill. It might help you improve skills and in an area that you have. It might help you get your education. Sometimes people who become disabled because they're doing jobs that require a lot of stressful activity and maybe they can't do that anymore. So suddenly, that college degree that you didn't want to get when you were 18 may seem really important. And the Ticket to Work program -- or working with the vocation rehabilitation agency, or possibly using this -- one of the work incentives that we're not going to talk about it in any detail today, but it's called the "plan to achieve self-support" might help you pay for that college. Help you try different jobs; and by that we don't mean, you know, like work a day, quit a day. But if you try a job and it doesn't work out, there are -- it's the safety net that'll catch you if you need to go back on benefits. And start a career, I think we all want to. I'm 52, I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. [Laugh] And [Background Sound] [inaudible] there's a word cut off. >> Ray Cebula: Okay. And the last one is gain confidence. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Gain confidence, okay. Something I sometimes demonstrate and sometimes don't. Okay. Now we're going to get to the fun part and this is actually talking about some of the work incentives; these are just a few, a very few of the work incentives that are available through the Social Security Administration. Now, earlier in the presentation, Ray was talking about Social Security Disability Insurance. Now, that's a benefit that people work and they pay Social Security system and when they pay into the Social Security system they earn a benefit, when they become disabled they get payments. [Background Sound] So essentially taking your [inaudible] disability. People who receive that [inaudible] have something called a "trial work period," and that means you go to work and you earn over a certain amount, it doesn't matter how much you earn actually in a month. You still are due your payment for that month and there's nine of those trial work months in a trial work period. So that's a protection. So you go to work, you try it for a couple of months and something happens and you can't do that job. Maybe you'll try something out but you can't do that job so you stop. Your benefits just keep going. Once you've used up those nine months, there's something called an "extended period of eligibility," and that's a 36-month period that protects you. It protects even if you go to the point that your earnings are too high for you to get a check and you're performing substantial gainful activity and your earnings are high enough that SSDI suspend your payments. If you're still on your extended period of eligibility, something happens, you can get back on benefits just by reporting your work -- the change in your work activity giving Social Security your paystubs, they can start your checks back up. There are other work incentives under the Social Security program, but we don't have time to go through all of them today and they're confusing. But what you want to do is when you go back to work, you want to look up your program, what you get, or talk to the ticket's call center and find out information about what applies to you at the time that you're earning money. So the next work incentive on the list, the earned income exclusion, applies only to the SSI program. No, SSI is the program that Ray was talking about earlier that is for people who have low income and few resources and have a disability. And the earned income exclusion is one of the reasons that people who go to work on SSI almost always have more money to live on at the end of the month. Ray talked about that earlier. You get an exclusion of $65. The first $65 you earned doesn't affect your payments. That's not a big deal obviously, but if you -- once you earned over $65, only half of your money counts against your SSI. So if you go to work, you're going to have more money at the end of the month. There are other work incentives in the SSI program for students, the plan to achieve self-support I was talking about earlier; these are all options that you can use to plan a successful transition to full time work down the road. Expedited reinstatement, or EXR, is another work incentive. One, it protects you if you worked long enough and you get paid enough that your benefits are terminated from work and that work for both [inaudible] program [inaudible] disabilities. What happens when you're expedited reinstatement is you've got a five-year safety net after you've been terminated. If your disability makes you unable to work, it can get you back on benefits and while you're waiting to get back on benefits they can pay up to six months of provisional payments which is a really tremendous work incentive. It's a safety net so you go -- let's say you go to work, you earn a lot of money long enough that your benefits is terminated and something happens and you lose your job, then your disability makes it hard for you to get another job or you lost your job because of your disability, you come into the Social Security office, you tell them "I want to apply for expedited reinstatement"; and they can start up the checks relatively quickly during the time that they're looking at your disability to see if it has improve or not. If it hasn't improved, you'd be [inaudible] benefits again. If it has improved, you still would get those provisional payments for up to six months. And then there's the last one is -- there's two different protections that keep you from having a medical review. One is, if you've been on disability benefits for more than 24 months and you go to work, your work cannot cause Social Security to start a medical review. So that's the protection that goes to everybody whether or not they're using a Ticket to Work and all of the work incentives I've talked about so far are -- apply whether or not you're using your tickets. They're stronger because if you're working -- using the Ticket to Work program, you have access -- they have access to rehabilitation services that you wouldn't [inaudible]. [Background Sound] But the earned income exclusion, the trial work period, expedited reinstatement, they're all outside of the ticket program. The biggest [inaudible] in the ticket program is other than the services that you would get is protection from a medical review. As long as you're actively using your ticket doing what you and your employment network agreed to, and you go to work and earning money, you would not have a medical review regardless of your medical conditions if the medical review would be suspended while you're actively working to reach your work goal. And I think that's the last one of my slides, Ray, and thanks... >> Ray Cebula: That's the last one of your slides, Terri. It's back to me. And I just wanted to emphasize one point that Terri made earlier, all of these periods that she's talked about and all of these work incentives require that Social Security know that you are working. So once again, I want to echo Terri and let you know how important it is for you to let Social Security know that you are working and how much you are making in both the title to the SSDI and the SSI programs -- very, very important. Again, you're the captain of that team and that's probably going to be your responsibility. >> Terri Uttermohlen: And, Ray, not only let us to say "no," but keep a book, keep out a notebook where you say what you earn, who you've talked to at Social Security where you keep receipts. When you report work you should be able to get a receipt from Social Security. Keep your pay stubs; keep everything together so that if there's ever a problem, you have the information at your fingertips. It's really, really important. This is a really important part for you as the leader of your team to keep in mind. >> And it's also going to be a great exercise for you because if you're keeping all of these records for Social Security purposes while you begin that journey to work, you are also learning how to keep records when you are working about bills, about credit cards, about housing payments, about all of these things. You're just getting the same file cabinet the rest of us have, and we want you to use that. All right. So let's talk about employment networks, and Terri, feel free to chime in if you have anything to add. We've talked about building that team, the employment team. Now contacting an unemployment network is a fairly easy thing to do. If you are interested in returning to work, you can find out who those employment networks are that serve your area by calling that Ticket to Work helpline; and, once again, it's 866-968-7842; or for TTY users, 866-833-2967. You'll be able to speak with a benefits counselor at that helpline and get a list of people that serve your area. Now, these employment networks are also available on the Social Security website, www.socialsecurity.gov/work, and when you go into that website or you get that list from the ticket to help -- Ticket to Work helpline, you're going to find that employment networks serves specific areas. They may serve specific zip codes or towns, or the entire state or the entire country. Now, what they're also going to give you information about is what types of people these employment networks work with. Some of them may specialize in working with people with blindness. Some of them may specialize working with people with mental impairments and others may work with people with physical impairments. You want to know that because, again, you are picking your team members and you want to focus on those employment networks that serve people who are in your situation. Okay? And you need to shop. And how do you shop? You let them know that you have a ticket and you ask questions. And just like you getting prepared for a job interview, your EN, anybody that you've called who's an EN or a state VR agency, I included those here as well. You want to ask how many people have they helped through that Ticket to Work program. If they'd helped a lot of people they probably have a good idea of how this program works and what's entailed. What kinds of companies do they place people with? You know, are they getting people jobs in McDonald's or are they getting people jobs at IBM? You want to know that because if your goal is to become a computer programmer and you need education to do that, you don't want to be working with an employment network that generally places people in service industries. You know, so make sure that that placement experiences matches your needs and desires. What kinds of jobs might be available to you? Just based on a short description of your situation, that employment network should be able to come up with several jobs in your area that might be available to you when you are trained or when you are rehabilitated and ready to begin work. And one of the most important things is how often are we going to be in touch with each other? You know, Terri mentioned and she used the word "cheerleaders" and, you know, that -- it wasn't intended to be a joke. Cheerleaders are very important. We all have cheerleaders. Every once in a while when something comes crashing down, you need to talk to somebody, and the same work stresses are going to affect you. So if you're having a bad day at work, if something happens at work, is this employment network going to be available to talk to you, or are you going to have to rely on someone else? How often do you report to your employment network, and how often do they check with you to make sure things are going well? Make sure that measures with what you need, too. If you feel the need to talk to somebody once a week about how things are going, then make sure that employment network is available to do that. And many of them are. We're talking about some good people here. Now, when you call that EN office, you know, that EN should be able to explain how that ticket program works. You know, Terri said that the ticket is free and voluntary, but it's voluntary for them, too. You're going to be interviewing you as much as you're interviewing them because they want to know that you are serious about this return to work, because frankly, they're providing you services at no charge and will not be paid by Social Security until you are working at certain levels. So if they're not buying your story that you really want to go to work, they may not work with you and that is part of the voluntariness on their part. But they should be able to explain how that program works for you. They should ask you about your work goals, what do you want to do and does it make sense? You know, is there a way you can do the job of your dreams given your situation? You know, and what are your intentions? Are you intending to work part time? Are you intending to work full time? Somewhere in between? You know, what is your ability to do that? What limitations do you have? All of that's going to come out and be part of this puzzle. Is that EN -- the EN should, but is that EN willing to talk to you about whatever fears you may have. You know, are they willing to talk to you about those rumors that we presented to you early on? You know, or am I going to lose my benefits? What happens if my cash benefits start decreasing? What happens to my healthcare? You know, your employment network should have the knowledge to help you understand and understand that all of those fears you have, have answers and answers that will work for you. And you and your EN, once you choose the EN that you want to work with, they're going to develop an individual work plan that includes the employment goals that you have selected, not the ones that anybody has selected for you, but the ones you have selected, as well as the services that you need to get you to that goal. You know, the EN is going to help provide some of those services and is going to help round up other types of services that you're going to need and maybe make that employment team a little bit larger than it was when we started. But that employment network is going to be your quarterback; if you're the captain of the team, the employment network is the quarterback. They should have the answers for you. Now, when you visit an EN offer -- an office, I'm sorry [chuckle] -- remember a couple of these tips. Once you sign an individual work plan, your ticket is assigned to that particular employment network. So once you sit down and develop a plan with an employment network and your signature is on it, then your ticket's assigned not before, not after, but once that happens. Now, the EN may have some other forms that they're going to need you to sign, some release of information forms. They need information from Social Security. They may need information from your doctors about your capability. They may need some information from other providers to talk about equipment that you may need. All of that is going to require your permission so they may ask you to sign those forms, as well. Now, that ticket, Terri said, it's voluntary. So once the EN finds an agreement with you, if you're not happy, you can unassign your ticket for whatever reason. We can start with the reason, "I thought I was ready to go back to work and I'm not ready yet." That's good enough. And we can go to the next reason, "This employment network was not a great match for me and I want to find another one." Any of those reasons are fine, you --any of those reason are fine. But you can't just stop working with the EN. You have to let that EN know that you want that ticket back and it's time for you to move on to another EN, or you're just not ready to move forward yet. Either one of those situations or any other reason you can come up with are okay. Now as Terri said, one of the big, big incentives is that while you are working and making what's known as timely progress towards the goal in your plan, Social Security is going to postpone the continuing disability reviews. Once again, nobody wants to pull the rug out from under you while you were making progress towards that employment goal. That's just counterproductive for everybody involved here. So that's a great thing to know. Not only is that going to be able to give you more confidence, but it's going to remove one of those fears and one of those worries to allow you to focus on your work goal, rather than on what might happen to those benefits, because nothing is going to happen to them. Now, some examples of EN services; these can be simple services; they can be very complex services. Everybody who's listening will have a different individual employment plan. You know, it all depends on what you need -- resume development, advice on how to fill out a good application, interviewing skills, practice; you know, assistance, how to dress appropriately for that work site. You know, all work sites have different dress codes nowadays. They're going to know who these employers are. You know, along with the interviewing skills, what questions might you have for the employer? The employment network should be able to provide you with information about job accommodations, if you need a reasonable accommodation to work. The employment network can discuss that with you and let you know what your rights are, let you know what the employer has to provide, let you know how you can make those provisions on your own and what resources you can bring to bear to get those accommodations if you choose not to let your employer know that you have a disability. Remember that even that is up to you. If you don't want your employer, your potential employer to know you're disabled, you don't have to tell them. Tax incentive information, you know, both for you, as well as, for your employer. That employment network may have some information that is very valuable to your potential employer and might make the difference when it comes to making a hiring decision. And referrals to other resources; the other resources are countless. They can include computer stores. They can include programmers to help you get those computers that you're going to need, working appropriately for your situation along with transportation resources. But they should be familiar enough with your area to be able to make this job work for you so that you can make that work pay. There are lots of other -- so did I miss a slide here? Yeah, there are lots of other things that these employment networks can do -- job leads, information on companies. These people are in touch with businesses every day. Who's hiring now? Where are the job fairs? Where are the recruiting events that you should be attending? Access to resource centers. They should have access to one-stop centers and they should be able to help you access other centers, possibly your state unemployment offices that will have computers and internet, and email, and telephones, and fax machines, so that you can begin to apply for jobs. They might be able to do some job development. You know, they may be able to contact an employer and make a job for you. You know, there are employment networks that do that specialize work. And above all, referrals to other organizations, other employment team members that can help you along this journey. That employment network is going to be incredibly important but they may not be able to do everything you need done, so they should know and have at their fingertips the phone numbers for other organizations that you might need during that journey to work. And continue to provide you with services through that ticket after you're finished working with vocational rehabilitation. This little blip here, this one little bullet, is known as Partnership Plus, and it's a great thing because some of you may need to go to your state vocational rehabilitation program in order to get significant training, significant education or very expensive equipment. Well, you should know that after you've finished working with your state vocational rehabilitation agency, you can take your ticket; that ticket still has value, and use it with an EN to help you get that job and help you get the services that you might need to keep that job. So it's an unlimited program that we have here, and it's tailored specifically to your individual needs and desires. Excuse me. Now let's take a little look at vocational rehabilitation services, and when we say VR now we're talking about that state rehabilitation agency. As recipients of Social Security benefits, you are automatically eligible for state VR services. Now, I hear somebody chuckling in the background. Yes, there are orders of preference and vocational rehabilitation agencies run out of resources, but you are automatically eligible, and you just need to persevere with that. Much like in employment network when you work with the VR counselor, you will develop an employment plan. And as Terri said, you were the most important person here. You can't have a VR counselor to determine what you are going to be when you grow up because much like Terri, I'm struggling with that, too, [Laugh] you know, and I get a few years on her. You know, but it's your decision as to how you want to make a living and what you want to do. That ticket is assigned to state VR agencies when you sign that employment plan. And the ticket is put into a very special status when you're working with a VR agency because it's really placed in VR in-use status. And what that refers to is the fact that you're receiving services from a VR agency, so that you get that continuing disability review protection that we talked about, but still have a ticket to take to an employment agency for services after you've finished with the VR agency. And just like the employment network, in order to get that postponement of those continuing disability reviews, you have to be making timely progress in accordance with the plan that you have developed with that VR agency. Now, when you begin to use your ticket with the state agency, you and the VR counselor discuss the opportunities that you have to have that EN support when your VR program ends. Now what might that be? You know, it might be the continuation of job coaching services. It might be cheerleading services. You might just need somebody to talk to at the end of every week. You might need some on-the-job training and support or some assistive technology, some equipment that will allow you to do the job. Despite the fact that you've worked with the state VR agency, you really aren't going to know how this job is going to work out until you're there. And if VR has closed your case, the employment network can provide those follow-up services and supports that you'll need on the workplace, and that's a very, very important thing. As you can see, there's a theme here and the theme is, no one is just clapping their hands and saying, "You're done. Go away now." People are here to follow up with you and there are safety nets, after safety nets, after safety nets, to help you make this return to work successful. So we've got some other resources for you. I told you that we're going to get you these -- this information because we're not like that we get to all of your questions, although it looks like we're going to have about 10 minutes. I want you to visit www.socialsecurity.gov/work. We've talked about that website over and over again. I'm on it daily, you know. You can find ENs, you can find information about the work incentives that Terri talked about. You can find about that Ticket to Work and how that works. Look at other stories such as Robert's. There are some great videos in there that you can take a look at and determine whether or not you're willing to take a chance. And I think based on those videos you'll be surprised that you can do this, too. You know, you can do it, too. If it worked for Robert, it's going to work for you. And call that Ticket to Work helpline if you have further questions, or if we don't get to your question today; and that is 1-866-968-7842; or if you're using a TTY, 866-833-2967. All right? And we are just about ready to take your questions, but if you want to play with social networking you can like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/choosework. And if you're familiar with Facebook, you know you can keep in contact with a lot of people and basically read streams from other people who have the same concerns that you have and figure out how things are working for them. You know, so you realize that you're not alone, that there are lots of people in the same position and lots of people slowly moving forward to choose work. And if you're into tweeting, you can follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/chooseworkssa. And once again, the Ticket to Work helpline number is 866-968-7842; or for TTY, 866-833-2967. And that being said, Terri, I'm going to ask you to put your thinking cap on because we are now free game for questions that Anne's going to throw at us. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Ray, I may have to look for the cap first! [Laugh] >> Ray Cebula: [Laugh] >> Terri Uttermohlen: But as soon as I find it, I'll put it on. [Laugh] >> Ray Cebula: All right. [Laugh] Okay. Anne, whenever you're ready. Oops. Anne's been muted. Mike, can you unmute Anne? [ Silence ] Ah, there we go. Anne, you should be with us now. >> Anne: I am with you. Can you hear me? >> Ray Cebula: Yes, we can. >> Anne: All right. We've got some great questions today, so I'm glad you have your thinking caps, Terri, and so hopefully you found it. One of our [inaudible] today wants to know if Ticket to Work can help them with any work from home options. Are those opportunities available? >> Ray Cebula: All right. Well, I'll take a shot at that, Terri, and you can add to it since I had the EN and VRs subjects, the topics. Yes. There are lots of options, you know. Anybody can work from home now whether you are employed by an employer or self-employed. And because of the great recession that we are now coming out of, state VR agencies and employment networks have all recognized that working from home is a great option. As a matter of fact, I'm sitting at home working for my employer right now. So, yes, that is very much an option under the Ticket to Work program. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Ray, I want to add something. I actually am working from home today, too! [Laugh] But I want people to understand that the Ticket isn't a job. It is a way to help you find whatever jobs exist in the economy. Its support to help you get the job that you want, so if that's the kind of job you want, that's what you look for and hopefully that's what you can find. >> Ray Cebula: Okay. Anne, next question. >> Anne: Next question. What if I have no prior work experience? Is that required to participate and to get to work? >> Not at all. That ticket is available, as Terri said, to anybody who is considered an adult and considered disabled by Social Security. And some of the benefits that are paid, those SSI benefits that are paid are paid to people who may never have worked because of that disability. So you don't need to have any experience. You can start from scratch, work with an employment network, and/or the state VR agency, and perhaps get some education, do some volunteer work to build up that resume and start working that way. But, no, you do not need any work experience. You just need the desire to go to work and to figure out what is best for you. >> Anne: Great. And another question we have which I think is a very common concern for a lot of people is around insurance. What happens to medical insurance with Medicaid and Medicare for people when they start working and begin making more money? >> Ray Cebula: Okay. Terri, that was your topic. >> Terri Uttermohlen: That was my topic? Okay. >> Ray Cebula: [Laugh] >> Terri Uttermohlen: There are protections under the law to help people who are going to work keep their health insurance, and there's a lot of them and it's not something that we can answer in 10 minutes. But I want you to understand that there's -- if you're receiving a Social Security benefit, something called the "extended period of Medicare coverage" which Ray talked about a little tiny bit in the beginning, it's something that helps people retain Medicare for years after they go to work. Under the SSI program, there's something called Medicaid for - "continued Medicaid for people who work" and that's something that if you're earning enough that you don't get it check, but you could still retain Medicaid under your state Medicaid program. There are and yet more protection for people who had Medicare and Medicaid and are going to an employer group health plan that you would -- you can't be denied for preexisting conditions if you've had coverage. So there's a lot of stuff out there to protect you, maybe a little bit complicate to find it, but it isn't -- that you will be able to keep health insurance. >> Absolutely. Absolutely, Terri. >> Anne: All right. So this one, I'm not sure I think, Ray, you might answer this question. Can you explain the difference between an employment network and vocational rehabilitation agency? >> Sure, sure. The state VR agency, there's one in every state. They may have a bunch of offices scattered across your state if it's a really big state. But it is a state agency that works with folks who need rehabilitation services in order to work. You know, the state VR agency unlike an EN has to work with you if you have a disability and meet the criteria that they've established. So they are the go-to agencies in the States. They also tend to have more money and being much bigger than employment networks. Now, employment networks could be businesses. They could be employers, or it might be just a single person. You know, it could be Terri's job shop, and Terri is an employment network and she's a job developer, and knows enough to get you a job, help you get your resume built, help you get some interviewing skills, and that's about all Terri is going to do for you. So the services might be limited. They may be extensive, but I think the employment networks are going to be much more specialized as to the types of people they're going to work with, and much like you are making a business decision to go to work, that employment network is making a business decision to work with you because they think you're going to be successful. That's something the VR agency cannot consider. They just need to provide the service. So I hope that helps a little. We're basically all looking at the same thing, the question is how much resources the agency or the EN has and who's -- and whether or not they have the right to refuse services. >> Terri Uttermohlen: And you don't always have to choose one or the other. There are... >> Ray Cebula: Exactly. >> Terri Uttermohlen: There are states, vocation rehabilitation agencies that you can work with and then once they've finished, you've done what they need and they've done what you need, then you can work with an employment network for post employment services like somebody maybe you need ongoing job coaching support, or you need to develop some extra skills to get a better job or whatever you need at that point. That's certainly an option so you don't have to choose one or the other, unless you want to, and that's the [inaudible] about ticket is you can pick. You can say, "Hey. You know, I really only need this and I'm going to go to this employment network because I've had cranky dealings with VR in the past," or you can say, "Hey. I really want to go to this VR agency and get what I can and then get services after that." and the ticket is flexible enough to let you do that. [ Background Sound ] >> Anne: All right. I think that means we're closing up our webinar today, but I just want to say to everybody who submitted questions, there's really good ones in there, we recommend that you contact the Ticket to Work helpline. We'll be giving you [inaudible] throughout the webinar. There are more than 40 customer service reps standing by to answer your questions. They can help you out no matter how specific your question may be and help you find providers who are local to you. So we highly encourage you to give them a call. I'd also like to encourage you to register for our next webinar. We're going to actually take a lot of the questions that were asked today and in previous webinars and going to them sort of more in-depth. So if you have, you know, questions about really specific work incentives, we're going to go through them during the webinar in February 6. It's a Wednesday. Webinar will start again at 3 p.m. in the afternoon, Eastern Standard Time, and you can register by going to www.socialsecurity.gov/work using the same process that you used to register for today's webinar. So we look forward to seeing and hearing from you then. Ray? >> Ray: Okay. Thank you, Anne. I just want to thank Terri for presenting with me today. It's always a pleasure to work with you, Terri. >> Terri Uttermohlen: Thank you, Ray. >> Ray: Thank you. Thank Jamie for being Jamie out in the background, and Michael, who makes these webinars work, and Silvia out there who is helping everybody with registration. So as Anne said, watch for the next webinar. It doesn't hurt to come to one or two of these things to get as much information as you can to help you make that decision to return to work. And that being said, I'll bid you goodbye, and see you next time. Have a great day and thanks for attending.