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Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Advisory Panel Quarterly Meeting
Wednesday, November 5, 2003 – Day 1
Carol Brenner, Designated Federal Officer, called the meeting to order at approximately 9:30 a.m. and turned the meeting over to Chair, Sarah Wiggins Mitchell.
Presiding: Sarah Wiggins Mitchell, Chair
Welcome, Introductions and Review of Agenda
Attendees
Advisory Panel Members
Sarah Wiggins Mitchell, Chair, Bryon MacDonald, Jerome Kleckley, David Miller, Thomas Golden, Stephen Start, Mary Katie Beckett, Andrew Imparato, and Torrey Westrom.
Libby Child, Berthy De La Rose-Aponte, and Frances Gracechild joined the meeting on Thursday, November on 6.
Advisory Panel Staff
Marie Strahan, Executive Director, Bernard Wixon, Lisa Ekman, and Kristen Breland, Monique Fisher, and Jim Wiegel.
Shirletta Banks joined the meeting on Friday, November 7.
Designated Federal Officer
Carol Brenner
Presenters
Mary Glenn-Croft, Raymond Frentz, and Mary Ellen Kyle, Social Security Administration; Mary Satterfield, Maximus; Craig Thornton, Mathmatica Policy Research, Inc.; Beverlee Stafford, Rehabilitative Services Administration; David C. Stapleton, Cornell Center for Policy Research; Joe Razes and Steve Knapp, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Stephen H. Bell, Martha R. Burt, Laudan Y. Aron and David Wittenburg, Urban Institute; Tanya Gallagher, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; David Mank, Indiana Institute on Disability.
Members of the Public
Judi Drew, Su Liu, Andrew Sperling, Marty Ford, Randall Bosin, Lisa Kinard, Jenn Rigger, Stephen Fear, Dorothy Watson, Dan O’Brien, John Kregel, Gina Livermore, Ann Osborne, Charles Harles, Andrea Harles, Joe Hickman, and Susan Webb.
Social Security Administration Implementation Updates
Presenter: Ramona Frentz, Acting Associate Commissioner, Employment Support Programs
Topic: Update on Ticket assignments, ENs, regulations, BPAO customer survey, marketing contract and “EN best practices” contract
Presenter: Mary Glenn-Croft, Associate Deputy Commissioner, Operations
Topic: Area Work Incentives Coordinators (AWICs), Work Incentive Liaisons, SSA
Presenter:Mary Satterfield, Project Director, Maximus, Inc.
Topic: Training for AWICs, Ticket mailings and marketing
Presenter: Craig Thornton, Ticket Program Evaluation, Mathmatica, Inc
Topic: Evaluation of TTW
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS)/Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) Implementation Updates
Presenter: Beverlee Stafford, Director, Program Administration Division
Topic: RSA Panel memorandum to RSA
Lunch
Urban Institute Briefing Paper
Presenter:C. Stapleton, Director, Cornell Center for Policy Research
Topic: SSA’s Organizational Culture and its Compatibility with the Mission of Returning People with Disabilities to Work
Public Comment
Presenter:Susan Webb, ABIL and Arizona EN Network
Topic: SSA marketing, distribution of Ticket reminder letter, payment for outcomes
Presenter: Andrea Harles, INABER
Topic: Provider training, lack of successful ENs, payment increase to 95 percent of cost savings
Presenter:Tom Foran, Integrated Disability Resources
Topic: Need for capital and process of getting paid
Presenter:Dan O’Brien, Oklahoma VR Agency
Topic: Lack of a good business model for the Ticket program
Presenter:Randall Bosin
Topic: Work disincentives for beneficiaries
Top of Page
Break
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Implementation Update
Presenter: Joe Razes, Project Director
Topic: Update on Medicaid Infrastructure Grants and Medicaid Buy-in Programs
Presenter: Steve Knapp, Technical Advisor, TWWIIA Implementation, Disabled and Elderly Health Program Group
Topic: Evaluation of Medicaid Buy-in Programs
Break
Panel Committee Meetings
Presenter: Bryan MacDonald, Chair, Program Design, Implementation and Evaluation Committee
David Miller, Chair, Program and Legal Policy Committee
Thursday, November 6, 2003 - Day 2
The meeting reconvened at approximately 9:05 a.m. with Sarah Wiggins Mitchell, Chair, presiding.
Urban Institute Briefing Paper
Presenter:Stephen H. Bell, Principal Research Associate, Urban Institute
Topic: Creating Financial Incentives to Serve Partial Benefit Recipients in the Ticket to Work Program
Presenter: Martha R. Burt, Principal Research Associate, Urban Institute
Laudan Y. Aron, Research Associate, Urban Institute
Topic: Promoting Work Among DI/SSI Beneficiaries with Serious Mental Illness
Break
Presenter:David Wittenburg, Senior Research Associate, Urban Institute
Topic: Ability or Inability to Work: Challenges in Moving SSA Toward a More Work Focused Disability Definition
Lunch
Business Meeting
Presenter: Sarah Wiggins Mitchell
Topic: Approval of Minutes
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded, and approved the minutes for the August 26-27, 2003 Quarterly Meeting.
Presenter: Marie Strahan
Topic: Administrative and Panel Operations Update
Committee Reports
Presenter: David Miller, Chair
Topic: Program and Legal Policy (PLP) Committee
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved the PLP Committee’s plan to go forward with a draft response to proposed regulations on expedited reinstatement, prior to the December teleconference, based on Panel recommendations.
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved acceptance of the PLP Committee’s five recommendations regarding youth priority and plans to include them in the annual report.
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved the PLP Committee’s suggestion to place three recommendations on health care and/or Medicaid buy-in into the annual report.
Action: Draft a letter asking Congress to reauthorize BPA&O and P&A programs, doubling the funding and increasing the minimum award in each program.
Presenter:Libby Child, Chair
Panel Planning and Operations
Action: The Panel set the dates of next year’s November meeting in Washington, D.C. as November 17, 18, & 19, 2004.
Presenter: Bryon MacDonald, Chair
Topic: Program Design, Implementation and Evaluation Committee Report
Break
The Adequacy of Incentives Advisory Group
Presenter: Tanya Gallagher, Dean College of Applied Life Studies, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Director, Disability Research Institute
Topic: Recommendations for Improving Implementation of the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program (Regulatory and Administrative Changes)
Presenter: David Mank, Director, Indiana Institute on Disability and Community
Topic: Recommendations for Improving Implementation of the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program (Regulatory and Administrative Changes)
November 7, 2003 – Day 3
The meeting reconvened at approximately 9:05 a.m. with Sarah Wiggins Mitchell, Chair, presiding.
Public Comment
Presenters: Susan Webb, Director, ABIL Employment Services
Topic: Recommendations for improving SSA’s marketing plan under the Ticket to Work Program.
Action: Ms. Webb plans to write comments to the Panel in reference to EXR and Ticket and the interaction with the Employment Networks
Panel Discussions and Deliberations
Presenter: Marie Strahan
Facilitator: Jim Weigel
Topic: CANAR proposal for changes needed in the Rehabilitation Act
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved support and continuation of funding of 69 consumer programs for Native Americans on the basis of performance without re-compete every five years.
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved their support of tribes becoming employment networks, but the Panel believes it is outside their scope and purview to approve additional requests.
Presenter: Berthy De La Rosa-Aponte
Topic: Coordination and request for presenters for the “Emerging Workforce Conference”, sponsored by the Office on Disability at HHS on February 9-10, 2004.
Presenter: Sarah Wiggens Mitchell, Chair
Topic: Location for August Advisory Panel Meeting
Action: Berkeley California was chosen as the location for the August 17-19, 2004 quarterly Advisory Panel meeting.
Presenters: Bryan McDonald, Thomas Golden, Stephen Start
Topic: PE Workgroup Report
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved a plan to devote a half day at the February quarterly meeting to receiving beneficiary testimony and soliciting email responses to questions that will assist in determining a consumer consensus for moving forward.
Motion: The Panel moved, seconded and approved Thomas Golden’s report from the PDIE Committee and PE workgroup, as submitted, through number six.
Presenter: Marie Strahan
Topic: Outline for Annual Report to Congress and the President
Action: Timeframe for approval be executed more expeditiously
Presenter: Brian McDonald
Topic: Recommendations to Congress (other issues)
Action: The Panel expressed concern with the Ticket’s marketing letter in reference to promising more than it delivers and determined that the frequency to which it is mailed to beneficiaries be discussed further with SSA and the contractor.
Action: The Panel recommended that Congress track SSA progress with AWICS, WIL, and OR.
Action: The Panel will express its concern to Congress that the AOI Report, including roll-out of the six demonstration projects, is late.
Presenter: Sara Wiggins Mitchell
Topic: Key issues to share with Congressional staff based on this quarterly meeting.
The meeting adjourned at approximately 11:30 am.
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