Evaluation of the Ticket to Work Program Initial Evaluation Report

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After some initial ups and downs that reflect the rapidly growing number of Tickets
mailed, the participation rate has increased steadily among beneficiaries in both Phase 1 and
Phase 2 states. The rate in Phase 2 states is much lower but appears to reflect the more
recent rollout of Tickets in those states. The August 2003 participation rate in the Phase 2
states is similar to the participation rate in the Phase 1 states in June and July 2002, when the
initial Phase 1 mailings were nearing completion. Growth in the participation rate in Phase 1
states has continued steadily from the end of the initial mailings through August 2003. We
would expect the experience in the Phase 2 states to be similar over the next 12 months.
3. Payment and Provider Type
A large majority of in-use Tickets are assigned to SVRAs under the traditional payment
system. In August 2003, the share of in-use Tickets assigned under that system was 87
percent in Phase 1 states and 75 percent in Phase 2 states (Figure IV.4). This share has been
rising for two reasons. First, we know from interviews of SVRA staff that it took some
months for the agencies to obtain Ticket assignments from existing clients after they had
received their Tickets. As a result, the number of Tickets in use under the traditional
payment system in the early months of rollout likely understates the number of beneficiaries
receiving services from SVRAs under that system. Second, evidence from the site visits and
from statistics on new assignments and withdrawals indicates that ENs, as a group, are
reducing the number of Tickets they are willing to accept.
Figure IV.4: In-Use Tickets Under the Three Payment Systems
Phase 1
Phase 2
100%
90%
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70%
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50%
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10%
0%
100%
90%
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70%
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10%
0%
Feb-02
Apr-02
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Feb-03
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Jun-03
Aug-03
Nov-02
Dec-02
Jan-03
Feb-03
Mar-03
Apr-03
May-03
Jun-03
Jul-03
Aug-03
Traditonal Payment System Outcome Only Milestone + Outcome
Although Tickets are considerably less likely to be assigned under the outcome-only
system than under the milestone-outcome system, evidence through August 2003 indicates
that use of the outcome-only system is now growing relative to use of the milestoneoutcome
system (Figure IV.5). In fact, it appears that in Phase I states, the number of
Tickets in use under the milestone-outcome system essentially stopped growing early in 2003
while the number under the outcome-only system continued its slow growth. Further, in
Phase 2 states, the outcome-only system was used relatively more frequently than at the same
IV: Early Participation Patterns