The involvement of Employment Networks in Ticket to Work

Issue title: Ticket to Success? Early Findings from the Ticket to Work Evaluation

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Silva, Tim

Affiliations: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., 600 Maryland Ave. SW, Suite 550, Washington, DC 20024, USA. Tel.: +1 202 484 5267; Fax: +1 202 863 1763; E-mail: tsilva@mathematica-mpr.com

Abstract: In creating the Ticket to Work (TTW) program to move more disability beneficiaries off the rolls and into self-supporting employment, Congress felt that a major key to success would be increasing consumer choice and establishing a competitive market for return-to-work services. State vocational rehabilitation agencies long had been the dominant players in this field, but under TTW, a wide variety of private and public entities can register as Employment Networks (ENs) to accept Tickets from, and provide services to, disability beneficiaries who want to work at a level that will take them off cash benefits. Given the potential importance of ENs, the national evaluation of TTW has devoted considerable attention to understanding their involvement in the program. For three consecutive years, we analyzed administrative data on EN enrollment and on Ticket assignments and payments, and interviewed many EN representatives from around the country. This paper highlights the evaluation's findings concerning ENs' involvement in Ticket to Work. A variety of measures suggest that ENs' involvement has been limited. By June 2005, about 1,400 organizations were registered as ENs, but they were not necessarily readily available to many Ticket-eligible beneficiaries. A majority of ENs had not accepted a single Ticket, and ENs accounted for less than 10 percent of all Ticket assignments. ENs' involvement in TTW has been substantially influenced by three main factors: concerns about financial feasibility, low demand for EN services, and administrative challenges. These issues became apparent early in the program's rollout and continue to affect EN involvement today. In September 2005, SSA proposed new regulations intended to reduce the financial risk to ENs but, as of this writing (September 2007), the changes had not been implemented. It remains to be seen whether the proposed changes, if implemented, really will stimulate greater EN involvement.

Keywords: Social Security Administration (SSA), Ticket to Work (TTW), Employment Networks (ENs), return-to-work services, community rehabilitation providers (CRPs)

Journal: Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 117-127, 2007