>> I want to welcome you to today's webinar. We will be talking about benefits counseling and protection and advocacy today. We have had a rebirth of two programs: The WIPA program, Work Incentives Planning and Assistance and the PABSS Program, Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security. So this is kind of a celebration event for the rebirth of these two very important programs in peoples' return to work journey. So, I'll be taking through some basic information today, talking to you about some technology, introducing our speakers and letting you know how you can participate and apparently we already have some people who know how to participate. There's a lot of action going around in my question box. Now if you have connected you've been automatically connected by your computer's speakers and microphone. We have muted your microphone so you cannot talk. That's because there are hundreds of you out there and we want to get this session done and if we have 100 people speaking at once you know exactly what's going to happen. In order for you to participate today you'll see a Q&A up on top of your screen. If you click on the arrowhead a Q&A box is going to open. This box down here is going to allow you to type in your answer. You're going to hit send and it's going to appear on Jamie's desktop. And the questions that we are going to answer today are going to be those that pertain to the largest number of people. If you have specific questions about your own situation we will be giving you information on where you can get those questions answered but for this type of general session they're really not something that we want to talk about. But if you do have questions about what we're talking about, by all means let us know. And we'll take a break after each presentation to ask those questions. And let's get on to the audio part. Again you've been connected by default to your speakers. If you do need to change I know we have weather in the country almost everywhere. And if you do lose your internet connection open the audio box. Audio conference is what you're going to want to click on. This box is going to open up. Click I will call in. You will receive information about today's phone number and the access code. And I'm going to give you that phone number right now just in case. Today's toll free number to call in is 855-749-4750 and the access code is 643-882-891. So you will be able to dial in toll free if you lose us on the net. Now, we are trying our best to make these webinars accessible to everybody and we take our obligation very seriously. We believe we're there so that everybody can participate and gain some knowledge from our sessions. If, however, you do have an issue we want to know about it so you can either type it into the question box or send us an email afterwards and you'll get all of our email information after. And let us know what your issue was. And more importantly if you know of a fix, if you know a program we can use, if you know some way that we can take care of your issue let us know that as well. Sometimes that's incredibly helpful to our tech team and our tech team is busy making sure that these sessions are as accessible as possible. Now if people are looking for closed captioning today that line is, it's in your chat box you can just type it in there. But it's http://www.ilr.cornell.edu /edi/captions.e. I'm sorry, dot cfm?activity_id =4630. And the webinar PowerPoint and accessible PDF text are all located in the link that you received to connect today. We will be archiving the presentation in approximately two weeks. Sometimes we get it up sooner but we are in the midst of a holiday. So, I'm not sure folks are going to be able to get to it too quickly because they want turkey too. But in two weeks time you'll be able to listen to the presentation again should you choose to and find other presentations that we've done in the past and they can be located at www.ilr.cornell.edu/ edi/m-wise-webinars.cfm. And as I said to you we will be breaking in between each section, after each speaker to take your questions and to ask those questions. Those questions all need to get into the Q&A box and we told you how to use that. You can submit your questions using that Q&A and that's what we prefer. But if you want to use the chat box, that's okay too. You can also send a note to webinars@choosework.net and we'll receive your question and after the session if you have any questions that come to you write to support@chooseworkttw.net. and we'll make sure you get those questions answer. You know who I am. I'm going to take you through a few more slides with some basic information and I'm going to ask you some questions and then we're going to show you a video. We have Darcie with us from Disability Rights Ohio who's going to talk to you about the WIPA projects and what they can do and how they can provide you with some great planning assistance so those return ventures that you're looking to take. She's going to talk about the Ticket to Work program as well. Then we're going to move to Tina Skeel from Indiana Works and she's an Employment Network. Employment Networks are private entities that are going to be able to help you get work ready or provide supports to you while you're on the job. We don't have anyone from VR with us today. So I'm going to talk to you about vocational rehabilitation's role in all of this planning and journey to work. Then we're going to move to Barbara Corner. She's an attorney with Disability Rights Ohio, one of the protection and advocacy for beneficiaries and Social Security advocates. She'll let you know what the legal arm of this return service system is. Then I'll give you some other resources and we're going to talk about the Facebook chat session after today's session. And if we do have time at the end we'll take some other questions or questions that we missed. So, that's basically the rules. Now before we start with Ben, I am going to ask you some questions. They're real easy but they help us know whose listening and how you found out about it. So, I'm going to open the first poll and the first poll is basically how did you learn about today's webinar? Was it via email, Facebook or Twitter, was it a website, family or friends, your WIPA project or was it somebody else, some other way? Just make a quick selection. And getting some good assistance. This information is actually incredibly helpful to us when we plan to advertise and try to get the word out. Alright, we're going to shut that one down. I have to wait 20 seconds so you can vote for another 20 seconds. [ Silence ] Ten seconds. [ Silence ] And polling question one is finished. What do you hope to learn from today's live session? Do you want to know about the Ticket to Work? Do you want to know about work incentives for SSI, work incentives for SSDI, Employment Networks, legal protection and advocacy or is there something else on your mind? Now, if you do have something else on your mind, remember you're going to have to send us a message because we don't know what that is. But if you do want to learn about something else or some specific aspect about the program let us know. We've created webinars based on some of these suggestions. Okay, we're getting a lot of good help real fast. Thank you very much. [ Silence ] Alright, I'm going to shut that down. You got 20 seconds. Sometimes we wait 20 seconds, sometimes we don't. And I never know when we're going to wait. Three, two, one and the third question, real easy. What is your gender, male or female? Ah, Jamie the guys won this time. I think this is the first time. [laughter] The first time we've had a guy hit that button first. [ Silence ] Alright 20 seconds again. [ Silence ] Ten seconds. [ Silence ] Okay one more question. What is your age? Are you 18 or younger, 19 to 25, 24, 26 to 40, 41-55, 56-65 or 65 or older, 66 or older; I'm sorry. I should just keep quiet and let you read. [ Silence ] Alright, you guys are great. You did a really good job really fast. We've got lots of participation. We're down to 15 seconds. You can still get your last minute votes in and we don't know who you are, so it's okay to say that you're 56 to 65 like I would have to. And the final question, sometimes we have other people sitting with you and they're-- you know we need to know how many folks are in attendance today. So, besides yourself, how many other people are watching your computer screen with you? [ Silence ] We got a couple of parties. [ Silence ] Alright, we'll shut that down; 20 seconds to go and then we'll get to Ben. [ Silence ] Alrighty, thank you very much for your help there. That's going to provide us with a lot of good information. Okay, Mike if you can queue up the Ben video, we'll be all set to watch. [ Silence ] [ Inaudible comments ] >> What is the Ticket to Work Program? How can it help you? Ticket to Work is a free and voluntary program from Social Security that provides you employment support services to help you go to work while still providing access to Medicaid and or Medicare. It can help you go to work, which can give you a greater sense of purpose and help you give back to your community. With [inaudible] you will be able to replace your cash benefits with your earnings from work, putting you on the road to financial independence with the peace of mind that your benefits will be available to you if you need them due to your disability. Meet Ben. Ben qualified for the Ticket to Work Program because he is age 18 through 64 and receives Social Security disability insurance. If Ben receives supplemental security income he is also qualified for the program. Ben wanted to work but needed to understand how work would impact his benefits, especially his healthcare. Ben did some research and found out that over 316,000 people with disabilities have participated in the program. After doing more research, he decided that the Ticket to Work was just the ticket he needed to be successful in going to work. When Ben contacted the Ticket helpline they talked to him about support from Social Security he could use to go to work. He found out with Social Security, Ticket to Work and Work incentives he might be able to work while keeping his Medicaid or Medicare with the peace of mind that if he needed to stop working due to his disability, there would be a fast track back to restarting his benefits. With the ticket program Ben had a choice of service providers, Employment Networks and state vocational rehabilitation agencies. He was able to select one of these service providers to work with him one on one to help him reach his work goal. Both could offer him specialized services and he could choose which was right for him. VR agencies work with individuals who need more significant services. The services that Ben could receive include benefits and career counseling, education, training and job search support. ENs are private or public organizations that may help with career counseling and assist with job placement and more. Different ENs offer different types of services. So Ben could pick an EN that was just right for him. Ben also had the option to receive services from his state VR agency and then when those services end he could work with an EN to receive additional services that would help him find a job or keep an existing job. Ben took some time to think about his options and decided to assign his ticket to an EN. Ben's commitment to participate in the Ticket to Work Program forged a partnership between him and his service provider. They both agreed to work together and jointly developed a plan that was just for him. His plan defined his work goals and described the specialized services that the EN would provide or arrange for to help him meet his goals. Ben's route to employment through the Ticket Program is a two-way street. In return for assistance in getting a job, Ben collects the Social Security, but he would take specific steps determined by the plan he developed with the EN within time frames set by Social Security to work at a specified earnings level, but complete certain educational work training requirements. Taking the agreed upon steps for employment with time frames set by Social Security is called making timely progress. By taking these steps Ben was able to fully take advantage of the support and protection the Ticket to Work Program provided. You can be like Ben. The Ticket to Work Program is here to help you become and stay employed, meet new people and gain fulfillment and financial independence. We know it's a big step but there is so much help for you all along the way. The ticket program offers many chosen resources to help you learn about setting your journey to financial independence. Are you ready work? Call the Ticket to Work helpline at 1-866-968-7842. For TTY call 1-866-833-2967 to talk to one our knowledgeable representatives or visit www.socialsecurity.gov/work to learn more. Good luck on your journey to financial independence. We are ready to help you on your way. [ Music ] [ Silence ] >> Alright, that's a little bit of an overview for the Ticket to Work and what we're going to be discussing today, but we're going to be adding some more detail to that. There's a lot of information that you just heard and I don't want you to run away scared [inaudible] because it was too much. This journey to work can take you a very long time or a very quick time. And if you want to watch Ben's video again www.YouTube.com/watch ?V=VOq5hF0MsHg. And that will get you to today's Ben video. Jamie has also posted that as a live link in the chat box for you. Now, before we start talking Ben as you heard could have been a Social Security disability recipient or an SSI recipient. So, what are these programs? There are basically two programs that Social Security runs for people with disabilities. The first is Social Security disability insurance sometimes called SSI, sometimes called Title Two. And Social Security disability insurance is the program that when you work and pay FICA taxes you're buying insurance. And after working for a number of years or a number of credits and paying into the system you become insured should you need disability benefits. Now that insurance level depends upon how much you worked, how long you worked and how much your wages were. So, everybody's insurance level will be different. There are no resource limits to this program. There are no income limits with the exception of earned income. So this is a program that is funded by your contribution to the Social Security trust fund. The other program is supplemental security income or SSI, sometimes called Title Sixteen. Now SSI is a welfare program that is run by Social Security and it is also for people with disabilities but people who do not have a work history to qualify for supplemental security income. The standards for disability are the same, but because this is a poverty program the benefits might be a little bit lower. The states might supplement those benefits depending on which state you're in and there are resource limits. A single individual can have 2000 dollars in comparable resources. A married couple can have 3000 dollars in countable resources so this program does not require a work history. Some of you who are on SSI now may be deciding to start work for the first time and that's quite alright. We're here to help you as well. There are folks that we call concurrent beneficiaries and those folks receive both SSDI and SSI. If we take somebody who is insured, but either became insured and then incurred a disability when they were young or somebody who had a low wage job and became disabled. If that SSDI benefit is below your state's SSI level and you meet the resource limits that we talked about. Social Security can pay you a combination of benefits bringing up to that SSI level. Now that's good news and that's bad news. There are work incentives or SSDI individuals. There are work incentives for SSI individuals. If you receive both benefits you use both sets of work incentives and it can be very confusing, which is why we want to encourage you to work with your work incentives planning and assistance projects and tell me how that works. But we're going to turn you over to Darcie. I'm going to let you-- let Darcie introduce herself and talk to you about the WIPA projects. So, take it away Darcie. [ Silence ] >> [inaudible] I am going to be talking to you about work incentives, planning and assistance projects also called WIPA projects. First I wanted to explain what these are. So, what a WIPA project is, pardon me, is an organization within your community that provides free benefits counseling to help you make informed choices about work. There are 95 WIPA projects across the country. WIPA projects can help you decide if work is right for you and how work may impact your benefits. Once you being working WIPA projects can also provide information and support to help you make a successful transition to financial independence. For example, I am working with a gentleman right now who has been on SSI for quite some time. And as Ray said you have to earn enough credits to be on SSDI. Well, he's almost there. He's just one credit short. And so when he reaches SSDI he's going to have talk about using those work incentives. He may still retain his SSI so we're working closer together and he calls me a lot. And I provide a benefits counseling a benefits analysis to him, but we still just talk it out just like old friends, because I want him to understand and he wants to understand this. So, that's kind of the situation that we will deal with. Who can receive WIPA services? Anyone receiving SSI and or SSDI payments because of their own disability. Now this does not include people who are receiving benefits off of someone else. These needs to be a benefit of your record and your Social Security number. Also, someone who is receiving continued Medicare or Medicaid benefits because they have a disability and they have worked long enough to stop cash payments. So, for Medicare if they are receiving continued Medicare if you're SSDI benefits stop because your earnings-- because of your earnings, I'm sorry, but you are still disabled you free Medicare will continue for 93 months after your trial work period. So, you are still included. You are still receiving Medicare and in general we're talking about Medicaid now. In general, your Medicaid coverage will continue even after your SSI payments stop until your income reaches a certain threshold level. And that threshold level is different for every state. But we are trained to tell you the level for your state. And in most states where your Medicaid is continued you must need it in order to work, continue to have a disabling condition, meet all other SSI eligibility requirements. What an a WIPA project do for your? WIPA projects offer a range of services to help you understand your options if you choose to pursue work. We say if, because you are the ultimate decision maker, but WIPA staff we want to work with you and we want you to understand how beneficial work can be. So, we want to show you that your financial outcome may be greater. You can also experience personal and social benefits. Another thing that a WIPA project can do for you, WIPA projects are staffed by community work incentive coordinators, also known as CWICs who provide in-depth counseling about working, earning more money and how working may affect your benefits. We know it's going to be a scary thing to go back to work, but we want to work with you and be with you every step of the way. What can a WIPA project do for you? WIPA projects can help you understand work incentives including the Ticket to Work and how they apply to you. These can be complex but we'll just talk it out and we'll explain everything. And you won't move forward until you understand these. Well they will help you. The WIPA project will help you decide if the Ticket to Work Program is right for you. And we can also help you understand the potential benefits of employment as a person who receives disability benefits from Social Security dispelling the myths about working. And one major myth is that you cannot work while you are receiving SSA-- while you are receiving benefits from Social Security and that is just totally false. What else can a WIPA project do for you? WIPA projects can help you analyze how work and earnings would impact your SSI, SSDI, healthcare and other public benefits. Many times your work incentives can work with other work incentives, especially in housing. They have work incentives where you have earned income that definitely impacts other benefits that you are receiving. So it will help you to understand the services provided by a vocational rehabilitation, sorry that's a long word, vocational rehabilitation agency or an Employment Network and how they might fit best with your needs. The Ticket to Work Program. >> Oh okay. Darcie if I can interrupt you for a few minutes before we move into the Ticket to Work. I've got a couple of questions from the audience. >> Yeah. >> And the first one is how long will you work with me? >> We'll work with you as long as you're receiving benefits. If you're in a benefit status, being paid benefits or receiving Medicare or Medicaid services through that, we'll work with you. >> Okay and can you help me with different options if I'm not sure about what I want to do right now? >> Sure. We'll go through all that with you. And when I said we'll work with you, you are the ultimate decision maker. We're not going to make you do anything that you really don't want to do. But we want to work with you and help you understand how beneficial these things can be and how it might improve your financial outcome when you work, but also improve your personal and social benefits. So, we'll work with you as long as you want us to. >> Okay and the last question, the all important one is how much do your services cost? >> These services are free. >> Alright, well I guess that's easy enough. Alright so let's move back on to the Ticket to Work Program. >> Okay, just one moment, sorry. [ Moving around ] The Ticket to Work Program, Ticket to Work is a free and voluntary program. There is nothing that you have to partake of, but it is free so you want to take advantage of this. It's a voluntary program to assist SSDI and SSI beneficiaries who have a disability go to work to enter the workforce for the first time or to increase their current work hours. Our representatives at the Ticket to Work helpline can help you understand how the program can work for you. For more information call 1-866-968-7842 or if you would like the teletype, the TTY number, that number is 1-866-833-2967 or another option is you can visit our website on the computer and that website is www.socialsecurity.gov/work. We will tell you about the Ticket to Work Program. If you are ready to earn more money the Ticket to Work and Work Incentive can help you improve your earning potential. If you need the personal fulfillment that comes from working, remember I told you that there are many more benefits than just financial. That personal benefit and if you would like that then Ticket to Work and Work Incentives can provide the assurance and stability you need to feel competent when you pursue employment. If you want to be able to get your benefits back, if your job does not work out because of your disability, then Ticket to Work and Work Incentives can put you on the fast track back to receiving your benefits. Also, if you are overwhelmed and do not know where to turn, then the Ticket to Work and Work Incentive can connect you with the people, resources and services you need to develop a work plan. >> Okay, thank you Darcie. I do have another question from an audience member. How do I know if I have the ticket? >> Most often you are sent a ticket in the mail, but you do not need this. You don't need it and it can be verified that you are receiving SSI or SSDI and you can call Ticket to Work and they can work with you through that. And you can tell them you don't have the actual ticket but you don't really need that physical ticket. >> Okay and we've got another one. Can an SSDI beneficiary who receives benefits based on a parent's work record access the ticket programs; for instance use an Employment Network even though they can't use WIPA services? >> I am not clear on that. Just one moment. >> Yeah, I think that's a really good question. When I read it I was kind of frightened by it and I would think that if that DI beneficiary were disabled and not just a dependent then the answer would probably be yes. But we will see if somebody else on our panel has an answer, a definite answer to that question, because that's a very good question. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Great. Thank you Darcie. If we have any other questions coming in we'll get you later on. >> Okay. >> But right now we want to share a real story with you. Rob is a real Ticket to Work user. He's one of our success stories. He had diabetes and kidney issues and lost 300 pounds and went back to work and began becoming financially independent and recovered. The ticket helped him become an active community member. As Darcie said, it's much more than just a paycheck. He now has a bigger paycheck and has transitioned back to stability. So, Mike if you can queue up that video. [ Silence ] [ Music ] [ Silence ] >> You did good. I think he hung up. [ Silence ] [ Music ] >> He drives 108 miles one way to work, to both sites, same amount of time. Snow storms Robby is still on time. [ Music ] He's got a tremendous, tremendous amount of pride in his work and in himself. >> Robby is just a go-getter. He just, he wants everything. He wants to try everything. He wants to be able to do everything and healing is a part of that you know. With the sickness, it really hindered him to be able to get back into the workforce and to get back to work and traveling and everything has just-- it's been a wonderful thing for him. [ Music ] >> Pretty much I was overweight and I was always doing something. I was always in order to keep five businesses going and you know it was just something I needed to keep going. So, my weight problem was deteriorating my health. I had some history of kidney failure and then I got sick when I was in the middle of that and that's when I had to shut everything down. Finally, my kidneys completely failed. The only way to get a kidney transplant was I needed to lose the weight. I went from like around 550 down to 250. I got a transplant and it was scary. It was really, I didn't know what to expect. I had bills. I didn't know what, you know, how to transition from work until Social Security. So, finally I went and I got on Social Security through my doctor's office. And at that time too, then I went back to school as well, to college. >> What was clear with Rob immediately is that he was not comfortable where he was. He knew that he had, he had to get back to work and it needed to be meaningful work. Now in the process, he was going to do anything that he needed to do to make that happen within the context of his existing circumstances. He knew he had a health issue that needed to be addressed and he knew that in order for him to be able to get back into some work that was meaningful, that really did serve him but also put him in a position where he could earn a living that was going to support him, the he needed a college degree. He was also very active as an EMT in the mountain area and that was something that meant a lot to him. >> And then after I got that degree, it was like one of the biggest accomplishments because I worked during my sickness and I wanted to get myself back into a life to where I can enjoy it, and I don't have to be relied on a government program. I didn't want to keep living that way, on a fixed income on a limited area of being able to do things. My DVR, we have a Ticket to Work Program after you-- there's certain agencies that represent Ticket to Work and ERI was the one that was most suggested by them. >> Well, when Robby came to us he had a lot of questions. First, Robby was very well versed and more than a lot of individuals who come to me, in understanding his benefits. He knew that he had work incentives and he also knew that he was able to continue a lot of his-- continue with his medical insurance. So we worked together to talk to Social Security to insure that the month that he actually was using trial work month was accurately reflected in his Social Security record. Ticket to Work Program offers individuals access to employment services for free. Work Incentives are given to an individual through virtue of whatever their entitlement is. So, an individual who's receiving SSI has different Work Incentives versus an individual who has SSDI. An individual does not need to assign their ticket in order to access Work Incentives. Anyone can go to work who has a disability and utilize Work Incentives. >> Anytime I had a question, she was available. She helped me through the programs. Any of my questions and concerns I had, we'd take them on, you know put them down. And we'd take one at a time until we got them accomplished. So, anybody out there that has worries, it's only human nature to be worried. But in all reality, until you start getting through it, you just take one day at a time. You'll be just fine and you'll get through it. So if your health happens to keep you from working yet, you still can go back into the program and they're there to help you transition any which way you want to go, they're there to help you. >> [Inaudible comments] >> Oh, he was so happy because he could go back to work. And he started, he got on the internet and he started looking different places, what he could take and where there was jobs available and he came up on this, this one part where it was at the DMV. So then, then he started going. He went all over the country for the interviews. >> And Robby was hired as part-time examiner down in the southwest corner of the state. When we opened up the opportunity in Chilton, Robby took a transfer up to Chilton. At that time he was just part-time we were able to get a 50-50 position where we could get him over to Manitowoc and allow him to be full-time. He is the kind of guy that when he's at work he shows a deep appreciation for having a job. He is very dependable. He wants to be out there doing his job. He wants to be accepted and he is pretty much. >> He operates as a firefighter also and an engineer on the different apparatuses. I think actually overcoming a profound illness, such as a transplant and being to recuperate to the point where you come back and be incredibly productive, not for yourself for self-esteem reasons and for your own pride and goals. But he really adds flavor to the general overall work environment. So I think he's a huge benefit and he's done a fantastic job in coming back. >> The Ticket to Work Program has kept me stable and has kept me you know be able to stay with my job, to help support me. Any needs that I'll be having in the future it will keep me going and keep me working. >> He was my hero because of what he went through. He took it through in stride and he never complained. And even now today you never hear him say you know I'm so tired or-- he just goes right on to work. He just never liked to be on Social Security. So when he got his job it was a real blessing for him. >> I guess I'm not scared to keep taking steps forward. In my whole entire time here I never took a step back. I always took a step forward. I always maybe stopped a little bit to reassess my choices, but I never went back. I always went forward. Alright, you ready. Big smile now! One, two, three. There we go. [ Music ] [ Silence ] Alright. Thank you Robby for sharing that story. Now if you do want to hear from some other folks, please get on the website. Get on that socialsecurity.gov/work website and there are other stories from people who actually used their Ticket to Work and succeeded. Now we're going to move on and Tina Skeel will introduce herself and she is part of an Employment Network in Indiana. So, Tina you want to talk to us? >> Hello. >> Take it away. >> Thank you for having me here today. I'm excited to be part of the rebirth of the WIPA and PABSS projects. So glad that we're apart of that again. As Ray said, my name is Tina Skeel. I'm the Director of Employment Services at Aspire here in Indiana, trying to stay warm today. To get us started I want to talk just a little bit about the number of Employment Networks and so you're going to hear me use the word Employment Network or EN. So, just as a reminder that's going to be an acronym that we're going to talk about quite a bit. So, as I said, we are an Employment Network here in Indiana. We're one of 126 Employment Networks that provide Ticket to Work services here in Indiana. So, there are a number of them. So, let's get started. If we look at slide number 22 one of the first things that you need to do is figure out how to get connected with the resources to find an Employment Network. So, in building your Employment Network team first thing you need to do is figure out how to contact an Employment Network. And if you look at that slide you can see one of the easiest ways to get in contact with an Employment Network is just by simply calling the Ticket to Work helpline at 1-866-968-7842 or you can use the TTY services at 1-866-833-2967. You can speak with a benefits counselor there and request a list of Employment Networks that are in your service area. Now, there's also another way that you can find an Employment Network and that's simply by going to the worldwide web visiting www.socialsecurity.gov/work to access a list of Employment Networks. And there are a number of Employment Networks. I believe that there's actually pretty close to about 4000 Employment Networks throughout the United States. So, in selecting your Employment Network one of the best ways to find a really good Employment Network is simply by going to that web. As I mentioned before that's socialsecurity.gov/work. If you go to that page you can actually click on your state. It'll take you right into a little map. You just click on your state and it will give you a list of Employment Networks right off the bat. And one of the best tools on that website is something called an EN Profile. And you can click right on that profile and it will tell you things like how many tickets have they actually taken. It will tell you what disability group they typically work with. It'll also tell you things such as who they basically serve and what services they provide. So, there are a number of different services and each EN is a little bit different. So, after you've located a few ENs that are near to you, choose one that's going to answer some basic employment questions. For instances, I like to call this kind of an interviewing stage and really taking time to ask questions such as how many people have you actually helped through the Ticket to Work Program? And as I mentioned before, you can look at that profile that will give you an answer or by just simply calling them on the phone and interviewing them. Another question that you might want to ask is what kind of companies do you work with for job placement services? You're looking to see do they have the diversity of working with different types of employers. You also might want to hone in on those Employment Networks that may be specialists in specific job areas. For instance, some Employment Networks may work more with the-- as far as manufacturing industry. Others may be working with schools. So, pay close attention to what kind of jobs, job placements there are. Another question that you may want to ask is what kind of jobs might be available? So, asking is it a starting wage, is it minimum wage job, is it-- or do you have jobs that typically meet my qualifications. So again, looking to see what kind of jobs might be available. And then the last question that I find really important is how often will you communicate or meet with me? Some Employment Networks aren't even located in your state. For instance, in Indiana you can access an Employment Network that might be in Pennsylvania. And instead of meeting with you one on one they will meet you over the phone. So, assessing how often you're going to meet, are we going to meet in the office? Are we going to meet by phone? Will it be monthly contact? Will you contact me every week? So, trying to find that employment network that really fits you. The next piece is when you're calling an Employment Network office there's some basic tips that you really kind of want to follow. For instance, the Employment Network should explain, should be able to explain how that ticket program works. If you call somewhere and they seem a little bit confused about how the Ticket to Work Program actually works, you may want to ask some more questions. Another thing that you may want to look at is the Employment Network should ask you about your work goals are and what your intentions are for work, so that they're focusing in on you. One of the key points of the Ticket to Work Program is creating an individual work plan. So, they should be asking you about your work goals. The EN should also talk to you about any fears that you may have and be able to address those concerns about going back to work. You and the EN will develop an individual plan that will include your employment goals and the services the Employment Network will provide to help you get there. The plan will cover a variety of different goals and objectives. Some will be your long-term, some of them will be short-term employment goals. So, when you're visiting that Employment Network office or when you are looking online remember some other tips. For instance, your signature on the individual work plan assigns your ticket to that Employment Network. So your ticket is not technically assigned until that plan is complete and you're assigned it. The next piece is the Employment Network may have some other routine forms for you to sign that will allow you to work together. So, know that part of getting signed up for the Ticket to Work program is first completing that individual plan and then there may be a little bit of other additional paperwork that the Employment Network may require. Now, we are hopeful that you and your network, your Employment Network work out well together, but there are sometimes where an individual may find that they aren't quite as satisfied with that and they may decide that they would like to unassign their ticket. You can unassign your ticket at any time if you change your mind or decide that the EN is not a good match for you. Lastly, one of the key components of the Ticket to Work Program is that Social Security will actually postpone your Continuing Disability Reviews, as long as you are making timely progress towards employment. Now, what does that really mean? What that means is that Social Security you will not have a Continuing Disability Review as long as Social Security sees that you are making progress towards become employed. For instance, you are active with job searches. You might be attending school. They are just looking to make sure that you are working towards employment. Alright, well let's go on to the next slide. As I mentioned earlier, one of the critical steps is finding an Employment Network that fits you. All ENs should provide the following services: First of all, an Employment Network should assist you with the resume development and advice on how to fill out a good application, especially online applications since many, many of the jobs available today are online. Another example of what an EN might do might be assisting you with brushing up on your interviewing skills. They may assist you with explaining some of those long absences from work without disclosing their disability. Another thing that they might do is assist with job accommodations, assisting you on requesting accommodations or even where to obtain accommodations. Another thing that an Employment Network help with is with tax credit information. For employers there are a number of tax credits out there for businesses and those can be the icing on the cake when you're going out in the job search. The last piece is that an Employment Network may actually help you with referrals to other services. For example, I work at a behavioral health care facility that offers a number of services. We provide mental health counseling which is traditional to behavioral health, but we also provide a number of other programs such as housing programs, case management services and even physician's assistant. Another thing that an Employment Network might help you with is some basic job leads and information on employers. They might be the inside source for job fairs in your area. They may have links or resources for recruiting events. They might have contacts for various businesses that are out there. So, they can be a wealth of knowledge for job leads. They might also have access to resource centers. For instance at our facility we have a computer lab that individuals can come in and utilize to help fill out applications online. They may have access to email, maybe phone lines or even fax machines. So, there are a number of resources that your Employment Network may have available. Another thing that the Employment Network may actually do is something called job development. Now what job development is, is that an Employment Network may either go with you or on your behalf to contact a potential employer. So they act as a referring source to that employer. The next piece might be referrals to other organizations that can help you. For instance, it's cold out right now and they may have assistance to energy assistance programs. They may have assistance or know where you can find the interviewing clothing. They may have assistance on where to get linked up with various job openings or websites that might be available for individuals. They're called job search boards. So, those are some options that an Employment Network might do. To continue with services the Employment Network will continue to provide services through the Ticket to Work. After you finish working with vocational rehabilitation. In Indiana once the vocational rehabilitation process is complete then the vocational rehabilitation counselors will make that referral onto the Employment Network for long-term support. And I'm sure you're going to get to hear more about vocational rehabilitation and how that works with the Employment Network networks. So, thank you very much. >> Okay, thank you Tina. But before you turn it back over to me I have some questions for you. Is there assistance available for training and education through ENs? >> That is a great question. Each, as I mentioned earlier, ENs are a little bit different. Some ENs do have the ability to provide assistance with job training, specialized job training. They may have a relationship with a school or a university. So, part of that process is just finding out what your Employment Network will provide and won't provide. >> Okay, and what about transportation? Is there any assistance with transportation? >> And that's the big question. Transportation is a big one for a number of people. Some Employment Networks have assistance with things such as bus passes. Actually there are some programs within different communities. They might be able to link you up to a program to help you get cars at reduced prices. So, there are a number of ways to get linked into transportation. But an Employment Network wouldn't typically take you to work everyday. But they can help you find some resources to help get you back and forth to work. >> Okay and are ENs going to be able to help me with the work Darcie talked about, what the CWICs do? >> Well, some Employment Networks do have what's in their agencies a WIPA staff or CWIC staff that an assist. But, if you go to a WIPA they are going to make sure that you are linked up with all the Employment Networks in your area. So, although the WIPA staff or CWIC staff may be in the same agency, you may actually want to go to a different agency depending on what services your Employment Network, you want that Employment Network to provide. >> Okay, and we have a couple more that are coming in as you're answering. You provide us some good information. Can a ticket holder age out of the ticket program and if so, when? >> Well at age once you're at full retirement you go into a different status for Social Security and the rules are a little bit different for those individuals who are of retirement age. And I would bring that back to the CWICs or the WIPA staff that are online to address that question. >> Okay and I just want to let everybody know that when she says full retirement age, right now we're in a transition period where the age is raising from 65 to 67. For instance, I can retire when I'm 66 and four months. So, until we get past that transition, we've been calling it full retirement age as opposed to 65 or 67. And I think that's going to do it. Thank you very much Tina. >> Thank you. >> Don't leave. Okay, now I'm going to talk to you about vocational rehabilitation services. Now these agencies are the agencies that are run by the state. They received some state money. They received some federal money and they are big agencies. Every state has one? There is usually a headquarter and branch offices scattered across the state. And how does this state vocational rehabilitation agency and the ticket to work, work together? Well, first thing you need to know is that every state VR agency can accept the ticket. They actually have two choices. They can accept the ticket or they can just put you into a special status and we'll talk about that later. But if you receive Social Security benefits either SSDI or SSI because you are disabled, you are automatically eligible to receive vocational rehabilitation services from the state. So, that means you're a priority. It doesn't mean you're going to get served right away, because a lot of the agencies don't have full funding. They're not able to help everybody without some wait. But it does mean that you're eligible. Eventually you'll be assigned to a VR counselor and you'll counselor and you'll develop an employment plan. Now it can be assigned if the VR agency decides to take you ticket and just like Tina said, when you sign your plan you assign your ticket if that's the choice. But there is another option. VR can provide you with services and then use a mechanism called cost reimbursement. That doesn't assign your ticket and will basically allow you to use your ticket for VR services and then go to an agency like Tina's to get ongoing support services, which is a great option. But in either case, whether you assign your ticket to VR or it's placed in use status, Social Security is also going to postpone those Continuing Disability Reviews as long as you're making timely progress and Tina talked about that. So, Social Security has set forth some guidelines. Your plan will be set to coincide with those guidelines and you just need to agree to do what those plans are telling you to do. And in return social security will not review your claim for disability during that period of time. Now when you begin to work with your state VR agency using that ticket, you and that counselor who we assigned to you discuss your opportunity to have the EN work with you when services end. This is a program called partnership plus. And it's really a great thing because as you learned in the beginning, VR agencies are big agencies. They are the agencies with the deep pockets, so that if you need a lot of schooling, if you need a lot of durable medical equipment, if you need a lot of personal care assistance, the VR agency is likely where you're going to go to get those services. But if the VR agency does not assign your ticket when they close your case, you can use the remaining value of that ticket to take over to Tina, the Employment Network to get follow along services while you're working. The vocational rehabilitation's job is to rehabilitate you so that you can work. And they're real good at that, but when they close the case services end. So that if you believe that you need ongoing services on the job or just somebody to talk to about what's happening, you can get services from an Employment Network after. And again, that's under the partnership plus program, which is a great, great program. Okay, I'm looking through the questions that Jamie has sent over. Will they assist for payment for schooling? Most VR agencies are going to be able to do that. It depends on what your goal is and your plan is and it's more likely that a VR agency will provide money for schooling rather than deployment network. It could be that you'd be working together in order to get those services. And we have somebody whose a little confused about the difference between Ticket to Work and Trial Work Period. So I'm going to give you a very quick explanation. The Ticket to Work is a program that acts as an umbrella over all of the other work incentives. The Ticket to Work is voluntary. You do not have to participate in the Ticket to Work. The Trial Work Period is a specific work incentive for SSDI recipients. And that happens based on earnings. And that, before you go to work you would want to talk with CWIC. Talk to somebody like Darcie who would explain what that trial work level is and what starts that trial work period. But you can access a Trial Work Period without using your Ticket to Work. All of those work incentives remain available to you. And the last question here is how do I contact the VR agency? Well, you can do that in many ways, but the easiest way is www.socialsecurity.gov/work. And that list contains-- the EN list is going to have every state VR agency listed as well. And you're local CWIC or your local ENs can get you in contact with that VR agency. If you're beginning to catch on here, we're working as a team to get you the services that you need. And I guess that's about all the questions you have for me. So, I'm going to turn you over to Barbara. Actually you know, I do have one more thing to say before I turn you over to Barbara. We do have an answer to your question about receiving benefits on somebody else's record. If that person is disabled themselves and is receiving benefits on somebody else's work record and they have been determined to be a disabled adult, so they have gone through an age AP review they are eligible for a Ticket to Work and that would come along with all of the services that we have with the exception of WIPA services. One more question, how do I know if I'm on SSI or SSDI? You can call Social Security. There is within that socialsecurity.gov website a link that's called mysocialsecurity and you can register to check your records. I registered and I check mine all the time. It's totally confidential and totally secure. And you can check that way or you could look at any notice that you received and it will say right on the top of the notice in big bold letters, which type of benefit that you receive. Is it also a rule that when you're enrolled in the Ticket to Work you are not subject to regular disability. Yes, that's the rule. That goes back to that Continuing Disability Review postponement. If you are making progress with your plan you will not be reviewed. I mean boy, the questions are coming in now. Can a Ticket to Work be transferred to another state? I can switch ENs if I don't like the one I'm working with. Answer is yes to both of us. A Ticket to Work will move with you. If you move from Massachusetts to Maine you may take that ticket, unassign it from the Massachusetts VR agency or a Massachusetts EN and move to Maine and reassign it to the Maine agency or an EN Maine, you can do that. How do I switch ENs? I'm going to answer this one for Tina and Tina, step in if you disagree with me. But I think the best way to switch ENs is to do it in writing. You need to let Social Security, Maximus is the name of the agency that does that for Social Security know that you are taking your ticket back. I think it is always best to send a copy of that letter, it has to be done in writing, to your EN as well as just a matter of courtesy so that everybody knows what you're doing. That will unassign your ticket and then you will have a 90-day period to get it reassigned. If you don't you will lose that continuing disability review protection. >> Absolutely Ray, I totally agree with you. >> Okay, thank you. I'm glad we're thinking alike. And I think that is going to calm down the questions that came in while I was talking. Three little slides and look what it did. And I'm going to take you over to Barbara Corner who's going to talk about the PABSS Program. Barbara take it away. >> Okay, I'm an attorney and the employment team leader with Disability Rights Ohio and I've done PABSS for a number of years. PABSS services are in every state, in every territory and all the U.S. territories and there's also a PABSS for tribal nations. PABSS Programs are designed to help SSI and SSDI beneficiaries remove obstacles that are preventing them from working. So PABSS Programs as I'm going to explain you could get a lot of different services from them. And like the other programs we have described today, they are free. It will not cost you anything, anything to work with the PABSS Program. Okay and they are free to everyone that receives a Social Security benefit or Medicare or Medicaid based on disabilities. And PABSS, the type of things that PABSS can do for you. They can help you get vocational rehabilitation services or from Employment Networks. They can explain the process to you because a lot of times for people with disabilities the more you get involved with different agencies the more complex and complicated the rules can be. You know, they can help you with appealing decisions of the vocational rehabilitation agency or [inaudible] or with the Employment Networks it's called the grievance process. Our office has helped people with vocational rehabilitation get vehicle modifications so they can drive. They've helped them in disputes with the VR agency about an appropriate vocational rehabilitation goal and we have convinced the VR agency to pay for training, you know for undergraduate associate and graduate degrees. They can help get appropriate assessments. We had a client who was autistic and the VR agency didn't think that that client could work, but we were able to show that the kind of assessment that was done for him was inappropriate for his disability. We can also help, you know there's been a lot of discussion here about working with a counselor and we've also persuaded VR agencies to switch counselors if our clients had a problem with the counselor. PABSS also can provide you with just information and referral groups related to your benefits and what's available in your area. For example, as was mentioned earlier if there are any specialized transportation services. In Ohio we have our benefits back and we can refer you to one of the-- to each of these and find out what's available in your area. We could help with issues concerning Medicaid waivers or the Medicaid buyin. If it's a barrier to work if you're having a problem with a foreclosure we can refer you to resources for that. And what-- you know the purpose of the PABSS is to assist beneficiaries in moving barriers to work. And in that case-- in that concern our office has helped people who had issues with child support where it was supposed to have ended and hadn't and the beneficiary's benefits or wages were-- their wages were being garnished because they were working. We've also helped with issues in terms of finding accessible housing. We've helped with student loan issues, resolving those because that was a barrier because the individual's SSDI benefits were going to be garnished. We've helped in terms of getting expungements of criminal records and providing information on straightening out credit reports, because a lot of employers check credit reports. PABSS can also help with any Social Security overpayment issues relating to employment. In terms of providing information about how to get-- how to establish a repayment plan or what the options are for appealing or requesting a waiver. And I just want to note that it's very important if you are working, it's important to report your income to Social Security on a regular basis. PABSS also has assisted beneficiaries who have had representative payees in terms of making sure that the Social Security benefits were used correctly for the benefit of the payee, explaining to the beneficiary how they can switch representative payees or how they can become their own payees or how they could become their own payee. PABSS, we've also helped beneficiaries obtain special education and transition services. We've helped in situations where there was a VR agency in the school district and they were arguing over who was going to pay for something. We've gone to process hearings and special education. We've made sure that the students IEP had the services they needed to be able to progress in school. We've done disciplinary cases. If the discipline was related to the person's disability, so it's really a wide range of services. We've also helped you know an individual get services to do job tryouts and to make sure that the school setting was an appropriate school setting. You know we had one case where a student was still in high school and was going to high school in the morning and actually had a job in the afternoon and we straightened out who was going to provide transportation so the student could get to and from his job, because the school district and the VR agency argued over it. And we can explain to you, you know a basic understanding about how the work incentives work. We can explain to you, you know how to report any income and when to report any income. While we don't do marriage counseling we do-- can explain how getting married might affect your benefits if you're on SSI or you're an adult child receiving benefits on someone else's record. We can explain about what the work incentives are but for really detailed and analysis of that, we're going to send you to the WIPA program because they are really equipped to help you with that. We could you know explain to you basically how the income is going to be calculated and counted because it's different for SSDI and it's different for SSI and it also depends on whether or not you meet the legal definition of blindness, so it can be really complicated. We also can help protect your rights regarding the conditions of employment. You know in that regard our office has, you know we work with someone who has the charge of discrimination once he was fired from his job. But we were able to successfully negotiate and have him get his job back and get the support he needed on the job. In another case we were able to get our client some damages because she was illegally fired from her job and she wanted to use that money because she was going to school, so she could get a much better job and eventually get off her benefits. And because we work with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, they made sure that that employer put in a training program to teach them about what their requirements were in terms of employees with disabilties under the Americans With Disabilities Act. You know we also have somebody get unemployment compensation because he was fired for asking for a ride, which he had to do because he was visually impaired and couldn't drive and there was no public transportation available at that time. So, again it's a wide range of services. We assist beneficiaries in obtaining vocational rehabilitation and employment preparation services and supports. You know we've assisted people in representing people and the closure of their case with the VR agency and being able to take a GED exam with appropriate supports. We, you know we helped somebody work with a VR agency and environmental health providers to make sure that she had the supports in the morning so she could get up and go to work because she needed a routine since-- because of her disability. She had problems like for instance her car wouldn't start, she wouldn't know how to cope with that. PABSS can also help you with understanding your rights and responsibilities under the Americans With Disabilities Act. And that includes understanding what employers are covered by the Americans With Disabilities Act, have them request reasonable accommodation, whether or not you should disclose you disability, because an employer has no duty to accommodate you unless you, you know identify yourself as having a disability and make a request for an accommodation. And we can also assist you with understanding what documentation an employer might want about your disability and we can help negotiate with an employer to get those accommodations or to get your job back or whatever else in the circumstances that you might need. In one case the gentleman that we had helped get unemployment benefits when he went back to the VR agency we were able to help him move up on the waiting list so he got services sooner. And we were also able to help him successfully eventually obtain a favorable ruling from the EEOC and he eventually settled with the employer and got damages, which he was able to help pay some of his bills. We can also help you understanding rights concerning wage an hour issues. When are you entitled to earn the minimum wage? When are you entitled to overtime? You know what are the rules on breaks? What are the rules on taking FMLA leave and also other issues concerning leave under the ADA because we have a lot of clients who need to take leave and we could make sure that that issue was handled appropriately by the employer. We can also help with issues relating to transportation related to employment. We can help with you applying for the paratransit services or appearing a denial of both services. We actually sued one of the transit companies here because their drivers weren't calling the stops, which were needed was needed for people who are blind and visually impaired. We've also helped in terms of getting people accessible parking spaces you know at a college or university or with their employers so that they were then able to get in and out of the place quickly. We also help, can help with protecting access to housing if that issue is related to employment because if you're going to have a job you know you're going to need a place to live. You know we've negotiated with landlords and the management companies to get ramps installed when necessary to allow an individual to have reasonable accommodations in terms of perhaps a parking space or being able to have a service dog. And changes in policies in terms of-- there was one case there was an emergency door that our client needed to use because it was the closest store to her apartment and we were able to successfully negotiate her ability to use that door. We can also look at it you know whether you're in subsidized housing whether we can refer you to places that might help with subsidized housing and look and see whether or not your rent is being calculated correctly. So, there's a real variety of services that PABSS can offer. And I just want to give you some idea about what the services might be, because anything that's an obstacle to employment you know PABSS is ready to help you with information referral or representation concerning those services. >> Okay, thank you very much Barbara. Excuse me, you've given us some great information and clearly let us know that employment related services can be very, very broad. And actually you answered the question that we had for you. So, we're going to move on. We're running a wee bit late. How do you find service providers in your area. We talked a bit about this or I should say Tina talked a bit about this. If you go on to the Social Security website you are going to find a map that looks just like this. And what you-- all you need to do is click on your state. When you're ready to being work as we talk you into exploring you're going to need to build an employment team. And what you need to do is speak to somebody at the Ticket to Work Helpline. That number again is 866-968-7842 or if you're a TTY user 866-833-2967. Learn more about that Ticket to Work program. Read the blogs. View the success stories that we told you about. Read some other success stories that are all posted on www.socialsecurity.gov/work. Now that's a real great way to get a lot of information without any obligation because you don't even have to talk to somebody. Locate an employment network near you using that finder tool or contact your state VR agency. And then once you have begun to build your employment team, because you know there's just no wrong way to get in, you can get in an build a team any way you want. Stay connected. You may have a WIPA member. You may have a PABSS member, an EN or a VR, but you want to stay connected. Because I think it was Darcie who said that you are the leader of this team and I think Tina echoed that. You are the one that's telling us what you want. Now to find providers again in your state, www.socialsecurity.gov/work. Enter your zip code or click on a state and you are going to find the state VR agencies and all of the ENs that provide services to that state. You'll be able to find WIPA projects using that same tool. You'll find the PABSS project. Again, ENs and VR as well. Remember as Tina said, some providers are local. Other providers are going to provide services to the entire state. As Barbara said, PABSS is a statewide agency. The Employment Networks may be servicing a town or a county or the entire country. The VR agencies are serving states and the WIPA projects are serving areas within a state. So, you're going to need to find the one that serves your area. And that finding tool is a great way to do that and then contact the service providers directly. And if you contact the wrong service provider well then they're going to get you in contact with the right one. There's really no wrong way to get into these services. And for other resources, we want you to know that for the questions we were not able to get to, you can attend a Facebook Q&A after today's session. It's running actually as soon as we finish until 5:30 eastern time. And if you want to view that Facebook Q&A you can ask some questions at http://www.facebook.com /choosework. You'll be able to participate and ask questions. Our experts are going to be with you. If you need to create an account on Facebook you can do that real fast at www.facebook.com/help /createaccount. And if you need accessibility or assistive technology information concerning using Facebook that's at facebook.com/help accessibility. Now there's going to be a way to participate via HTML as well. And you're going to want to go to m.facebook.com /choosework#! /choosework? V-feed_ user-0 and Jamie is posting that. If you cannot access Facebook, send you questions to webinars@choosework.net and visit the Choose Work blog after the session to access the Facebook Q&A question transcript of you're not able to participate in this session today. And that's going to do it. We have the last slide here that's going to say www.socialsecurity.gov/work. That's the easiest way in. The helpline again is 1-866-968-7842 or for TTY users 866-833-2967. When I do finally say goodbye to you there is going to be a survey that is going to pop up on your screen in about 10 seconds. If you'd take 30 seconds to fill that out and then move into the Facebook session we'd really appreciate that. You can like us on Facebook at facebook.com/choosework. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/ chooseworkssa. And once again, the helpline is 866-968-7842 or TTY 1-866-833-2967. And I want to tank Darcie and Tina and Barbara for there help today. Thank you Jamie for getting those questions to us and Mike and Ellen in the background making all things technical work. Everybody have a great Thanksgiving and enjoy the Q&A session.