Evaluation of the Ticket to Work Program Initial Evaluation Report

B.33
8. Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services
a. Implementation and Service Delivery Approach
Implementation. Interviewees said that DRS welcomed opportunities to participate in
early discussions with SSA regarding TTW. DRS wanted to be one of the program leaders,
especially because the state had 10 years earlier developed a milestone payment system for
purchasing services from CRPs. 4 Under this system, CRPs receive up to six milestone
payments totaling $9,000 ($11,000 if the consumer is highly challenged) for each successful
rehabilitation. 5 Interviewees said that, initially, most state VR agencies were firmly against
TTW and sought to oppose it. DRS, however, thought that attempts by state VR agencies to
stonewall TTW would only perpetuate the perception that VR agencies were not primarily
concerned with serving those people who needed the most help. Furthermore, DRS staff
believed TTW had the potential to increase revenue, and offered DRS the opportunity to
improve service delivery to SSA beneficiaries.
In 2001, DRS developed a formal plan in preparation for TTW rollout, based on an
engagement/outreach voucher model developed in 1998 through an SSA State Partnership
Initiative (SPI) Grant. Through this model (the “Oklahoma Model”), select VR technicians
receive training on work incentives and on the use of benefits analysis software
(WorkWORLD) that calculates the impact of employment earnings on benefits. This is used
to provide individual counseling to Ticket holders at state One-Stop employment centers
about the impact of TTW participation on benefits. The technicians refer individuals with
complicated cases, including all concurrent beneficiaries, to the benefits planning, assistance,
and outreach (BPAO) program for individualized benefits planning. 6 VR technicians are also
able to expedite applications and VR eligibility determinations.
Initially, every VR employee was required to be trained in the basics of TTW. To
familiarize VR staff with TTW, DRS held meetings in both Tulsa and Oklahoma City just
before the original date of TTW rollout, and again in advance of the revised rollout date.
DRS staff also visited all the field offices in the state. DRS began training the technicians
who would be working on TTW in January and February of 2002. 7 Technicians received
training in work incentives from DRS staff, as well as from the local SSA Employment
Support Representative (ESR) and staff of the BPAO program. Technicians also received
WorkWORLD training via video conferencing with Virginia Commonwealth University staff
and SSA trainers. In total, each technician received approximately 10 days’ worth of training.
4 This payment system was a finalist in the 1997 Kennedy School of Government
Innovations in American Government awards.
5 We provide more details regarding this payment system in Section III.D.
6 Interviewees said that approximately 5 to 10 percentof individuals are referred to the
BPAO to receive additional benefits planning.
7 Some field staff also participated in this training.
Appendix B: Provider-Specific Case Study Summaries