Evaluation of the Ticket to Work Program Initial Evaluation Report

B.2
After a client has become employed, he or she must print out a one-page Payment
Request form and mail it to TakeCharge, along with the necessary earnings documentation,
to start the Ticket payment process. As noted previously, TakeCharge pays clients 75
percent of the Ticket payments it receives from SSA. This amounts to approximately $245
per month for SSDI beneficiaries and $150 per month for SSI-only recipients. The client will
receive the payment after TakeCharge is paid by SSA. TakeCharge selected the outcome
payment system, primarily because it was more straightforward than the outcome-milestone
method. The interviewee believed it would be easier for Ticket clients to understand the
outcome payment system and the resulting payments they would receive as clients of
TakeCharge.
The interviewee noted that she has a patent pending for her model of web-based service
delivery and cash payments to clients under TTW. She believes it to be a very simple idea,
which will only succeed if administrative costs are kept at a minimum. Most of the burden of
program administration is placed on the beneficiary. She described her development and
involvement in TakeCharge as more of an interesting hobby than a business. In addition to
the President and owner, TakeCharge has two other part-time staff persons, both family
members of the President.
At the time of initial interview, TakeCharge had not had any interactions with state VR
agencies. Several months subsequent to initial interview (in October 2002), TakeCharge
began to negotiate agreements with state VR agencies.
b. Early Experiences Implementing TTW
Beneficiary Outreach and Enrollment. At initial interview, TakeCharge did not
conduct marketing or outreach. All Ticket clients were based on referrals from the
PROGRAM MANAGER website or mailings. Staff interacted with clients entirely through
the EN’s website and email. TakeCharge operated an 800 number that provided a twominute
recorded explanation of the program, but directed callers to the website. The website
(www.aaatakecharge.com) described the services and conditions for participation. Potential
clients had to print out the application/ Individual Work Plan form, complete it, and return
it via mail to TakeCharge. Staff did not screen clients; instead, the website contained
information for potential clients to assess for themselves whether the services of
TakeCharge would be appropriate for them, and to discourage those for whom TakeCharge
might be inappropriate. For example, the website noted that beneficiaries should sign up
with TakeCharge if they intended to become financially independent of Social Security
disability payments and believed they could find work on their own; or if they were already
working, but were not yet making enough money-- or making it for a long enough period of
time—to stop their SSA cash benefits. If they intended to continue working or to increase
earnings to the point where monthly SSA cash payments would stop, they were encouraged
to sign with TakeCharge.
The website also suggested that if beneficiaries needed assistance getting a job,
completing a college degree, or obtaining adaptive equipment, they should contact the state
Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agency and/or other ENs in their local areas. The website
Appendix B: Provider-Specific Case Study Summaries