Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program Evaluation Reports

Mathematica Policy Research Inc.    [Disclaimer] has completed the following reports on the WIPA program as part of the Ticket to Work Evaluation.

Fourth WIPA Evaluation Report:Evaluation of the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program in 2011: Beneficiaries Served, Services Provided, and Program Costs,” Final Report 

April 2013

This report presents findings on the activities of the 102 organizations receiving Social Security Administration grants under the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2011.  We established the WIPA program in 2006.  We designed the program to ”disseminate accurate information to beneficiaries with disabilities ….about work incentives programs and issues related to such programs,” with the ultimate goal to “assist SSA beneficiaries with disabilities succeed in their return to work efforts.” The findings presented in this report update results presented in the Second and Third WIPA Evaluation Reports.  This report follows beneficiaries who first contacted a WIPA project from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2011 and documents the characteristics of those who use WIPA services.  It also documents the nature of services that WIPA staff provided to WIPA enrollees and analyzes the extent to which WIPA enrollees who first contacted a WIPA project between July 2010 and June 2011 have received ongoing support.  Finally, this report relates output measures, such as the number of beneficiaries enrolled in WIPA, to the amount of funding each WIPA project receives to determine its relative performance.

This is the fourth and final report from our evaluation of the WIPA program.

Third WIPA Evaluation Report:

Third WIPA Evaluation Report Part 1: “Evaluation of Recent Experience of the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program: Beneficiaries Served, Services Provided and Program Costs,” Final Report

September 2011

This report presents findings on the activities of the 103 organizations receiving Social Security Administration grants under the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program from April 1, 2010 to March 31, 2011. The WIPA program was established in 2006 and was tasked by the agency to ”disseminate accurate information to beneficiaries with disabilities ….about work incentives programs and issues related to such programs,” with the ultimate goal of such assistance being to “assist SSA beneficiaries with disabilities succeed in their return to work efforts.” The findings presented in this report update results presented in the Second WIPA Evaluation Report. This report follows beneficiaries who first contacted a WIPA project from April 1, 2010, to March 31, 2011 and documents the characteristics of those who use WIPA services. It also documents the work incentives, benefits, and services that community work incentive coordinators discussed with or suggested to beneficiaries and assesses the extent to which beneficiaries who enrolled in WIPA services had sustained contact with WIPA projects. Finally, this report relates output measures, such as the number of beneficiaries enrolled in WIPA, to the amount of funding each WIPA project receives to determine its relative performance. 


Third WIPA Evaluation Report Part 2: “Employment-Related Outcomes of a Recent Cohort of Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program Enrollees,” Final Report

September 2011

Errata

We based the findings presented in the original version of this report in part on data from the 2010 Ticket Research File (TRF). After we approved the report, the agency revised the variables in the 2010 TRF reflecting nonpayment status following a suspension or termination because of work (NSTW). In this version of the report, we have updated the original findings using the revised variables. Although specific statistics related to NSTW and benefits forgone for work have changed slightly, the general findings and conclusions of the report have not changed. [Posted: February 2013.]

This report presents an analysis of beneficiaries who first enrolled for Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) services between October 1, 2009, and March 31, 2010. We based the analysis on data collected by the individual WIPA programs matched to our records. The findings include the services they received, their use of social security work supports, employment, earnings, benefit reductions due to earnings, and the likelihood that they left the disability rolls during the period following WIPA program entry and the end of December 2010.

Second WIPA Evaluation Report: “Evaluation of the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) Program: Beneficiaries Served, Services Provided and Program Costs,” Final Report and Appendix

September 2010

Errata

The original version of this report contained errors in the cost measures presented in Chapter VI and Appendices G and H. The cost indices for three WIPA projects—the Center for Independence of the Disabled (CA), Crossroads Diversified Services (CA), and Endependence Center (DC)—were incorrect. The corrected cost indices appear in the updated October 2011 version of the report, and we updated all other statistics related to the cost measure. Note that while the changes had a negligible impact on the summary statistics presented in Chapter VI, they resulted in changes in the cost quintile rankings of several of the WIPA projects, as shown in Appendix H, Table H.1.
[Posted: March 2, 2012.]

This report presents findings on the activities of the 103 organizations receiving Social Security Administration grants under the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program. Established in 2006, the purpose of the WIPA program is to disseminate information about work incentives to beneficiaries with disabilities, with a focus on promoting beneficiary employment. This is the second of three evaluation reports we will publish on the WIPA program. This report provides a national profile of beneficiaries served by WIPA projects and documents characteristics of those who use WIPA services. It also documents the work incentives, benefits, and services that community work incentive coordinators discussed with or suggested to beneficiaries and assesses the extent to which beneficiaries who enrolled in WIPA services had sustained contact with WIPA projects. Finally, this report relates output measures, such as the number of beneficiaries enrolled in WIPA, to the amount of funding each WIPA project receives to determine its relative performance. The third WIPA evaluation report, scheduled for completion in 2011, will examine the outcomes of WIPA beneficiaries subsequent to their receipt of WIPA services.

We summarized the major findings of this paper in a disability policy brief, The Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Program: Promoting Employment Among Social Security Disability Beneficiaries.”

First WIPA Evaluation Report: “Process Evaluation of the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Program,” Final Report.

February 2009

This report examines the initial period of Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program implementation. We focus on three objectives. First, the evaluation captures stakeholder experiences with the program during start-up. Second, it identifies early opportunities for improvement so the program can implement changes quickly and before they become institutionalized. Third, it informs future program data collection, evaluations, and outcomes analyses, ensuring that we base such activities on an accurate understanding of program operations. This report focuses first on the early WIPA rollout through the fall of 2007 and the transition of the program from the Benefits Planning Assistance and Outreach (BPAO) program—the WIPA program’s predecessor—to WIPA. It then examines WIPA program implementation as of the fall of 2008, how WIPA projects provide services to beneficiaries, partnerships with community agencies, data collection, and the training and technical assistance WIPA staff receive.