Eastern Montana Graduate to Work Social Security Resources – Montana Transition & Employment Projects

Question and Answer Forum
As part of the Eastern Montana Graduate to Work Project (EM-GTW), we created a listserve for people who had questions concerning Social Security and Social Security Work Incentives. Questions were answered by Rural Institute staff, Montana Advocacy Program’s Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) program, or the Social Security Administration PASS Cadre. Click here to go to to the Question and Answer Forum.

Ticket to Work:
Under the Ticket to Work Program, the Social Security Administration (SSA) sends SSDI and SSI disability beneficiaries a “Ticket” they may use to obtain vocational rehabilitation, job training, and other supportive services. Individuals may take their Ticket to any enrolled employment service provider (called Employment Networks). A list of Employment Networks for each state can be found on the Web at http://www.yourtickettowork.com/endir.

Employment Networks (EN) choose which services they want to provide, where, and to whom. People receiving Tickets may contact any of the ENs in their state, review available services, and then work with the EN to jointly develop a work plan to assist them to reach an employment goal. SSA does not conduct continuing disability reviews of an individual’s medical condition while he or she is using a “Ticket to Work.”

SSA pays the Employment Networks for successfully helping people go to work. While this program is a useful resource to some SSA recipients, due to the funding structure for the Employment Networks that provide services to ticket holders, this program will serve a limited number of people. The Ticket to Work was designed to serve only an estimated ½ of 1% of all ticket holders. For a more extensive review of the Ticket to Work read Marsha Katz’s article “Ticket to Work…Great Opportunities and Room for Improvement” located at the following website: http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/monographs/innovations/ticket.asp

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/Ticket/ticket_info.html
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/legisregfact.html
http://www.yourtickettowork.com/
http://www.msubillings.edu/transition/TTW%20News.pdf
http://www.onestops.info/article.php?article_id=177

PASS Plans:
A Plan for Achieving Self Support (PASS) allows a person with a disability to set aside countable income and/or resources for a specified time to achieve a feasible work goal. In order to be eligible for a PASS, the individual must either receive or be eligible to receive SSI, and must have income and/or resources other than the SSI payment to set aside in the PASS.

PASS plans can help individuals establish or maintain SSI eligibility, and they can help SSI recipients with reduced checks increase their SSI payment amount. The income set aside under a PASS is not counted when determining the SSI payment amount. Resources set aside under a PASS are not counted when determining initial and continued eligibility for SSI.

PASS can fund anything that will help the individual obtain or expand their employment. Plans have been utilized to fund vehicles; services such as job development, job coaching, and transportation; college; and equipment needed for work or for a self-employment opportunity. Anyone may write a PASS. Plans must be approved by the regional Social Security Administration (SSA) PASS Cadre before they can be implemented.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.passplan.org/
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/pass.html
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/transition/Samplepassplans.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp
http://www.passonline.org/
www.barrierbreakers.com (an advocacy site on PASS plans that is owned and maintained by persons with disabilities)

For examples of PASS plans utilized for students and young adults transitioning from school to work, visit http://www.ruralinstitute.umt.edu/transition/articles.asp and read the PASS the Bucks and Manage the Bucks monographs, as well as the two “Transition Newsflash” articles.

SEIE:
The Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE) is available to students who receive SSI. It allows students under the age of 22 to work and receive their entire SSI check amount (and Medicaid benefits) if they earn less than $1,410 per month (2005 limit), up to a total of $5,670 per year (2005 limit). Students who might be eligible for the SEIE include:

A student who attends classes, either in college for eight hours per week or high school for 12 hours per week.
A student who attends a work preparation training course for at least 12 hours per week.

Note: Class or training requirements may be reduced for reasons beyond the student’s control, such as an illness that results in the student getting instruction at home for less than the hours mentioned above.

In order for a student to use the SEIE, Social Security will need the following:

Written verification from the school that the student was regularly attending school in at least one month of the current calendar quarter, or is expected to attend school for at least one month in the next calendar quarter, and
Proof of the student’s gross monthly earnings.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/workincentives.html#ssdissi
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/paychecks_and_ssi.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/transition/seicletter.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://www.onestops.info/article.php?article_id=177

IRWE:
Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE) is a Social Security Work Incentive that applies to both SSI and to SSDI. When a person has an IRWE, it allows SSI and SSDI to view a person’s gross earnings as LESS than the numbers that appear on the person’s paycheck. For recipients of SSDI, IRWEs are deducted from their gross earnings when Social Security is making Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) determinations. For recipients of SSI, IRWEs apply when figuring payment amounts for SSI, and they allow SSI recipients to recover some of their out-of-pocket disability and work-related expenses, so their SSI checks will not be reduced as much.

An IRWE deduction must be:
• Necessary for the person to work;
• Related to the person’s disability;
• Paid for by the person and not reimbursable from other sources;
• Paid in a month in which the person is working; and
• Reasonable.

Possible IRWEs might include (but are not limited to):
• Supported employment services that the person pays for;
• Certain work-related attendant care services the person pays for;
• Transportation costs;
• Medical devices which allow a person to work and aren’t covered by insurance;
• Prosthetics necessary for employment;
• Residential modifications;
• Routine drugs or medical care to lessen the impact of disability; and
• Cost of service dogs and their care.

IRWEs are not time-limited, so they can go on for as long as the person works and has those expenses. IRWEs may also represent one-time (rather than monthly, ongoing) expenses, such as the cost of getting a lift installed in a van. IRWEs must be documented and claimed through the local Social Security Administration office.

BWE:
Blind Work Expenses (BWE) is a Social Security Work Incentive for people who receive benefits based on being blind. With a BWE, the cost of any work-related expense is deducted before figuring countable income. For SSI recipients, using BWEs results in the person’s SSI check not being reduced as much as it would be based only on the person’s gross earnings. Blind Work Expenses include (but are not limited to):
• Taxes (Federal, State, local income taxes; Social Security taxes);
• Lunches;
• Transportation;
• Service dogs (as well as all associated expenses);
• Personal assistance;
• Visual and sensory aids;
• Translation of materials into Braille; and
• Union dues.

TWP:
The Trial Work Period (TWP) provides an opportunity for recipients of SSDI to test their employment skills. It allows individuals to work for nine months (not necessarily in a row) within a five-year period while still receiving full benefits. Any month in which the person grosses over the TWP amount ($590 in 2005) counts toward the nine-month limit.

At the end of the Trial Work Period, the Social Security Administration (SSA) reviews the person’s work and makes a decision about whether the person will be able to consistently work at the SGA level. If SSA decides he or she cannot work at the SGA level (grossing at least $590/mo in 2005), SSDI benefits will continue. If SSA decides the person can work at the SGA level, SSA will send the person’s SSDI check for that month plus the next two months (the “grace period”), and then will stop sending SSDI checks.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/workincentives.html#ssdissi
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/sga&twp.asp
http://www.onestops.info/article.php?article_id=177

EPE:
At the end of the Trial Work Period (TWP), SSDI recipients enter a 36-month “Extended Period of Eligibility” (EPE). (This overlaps with the 3-month TWP “grace period.”) During the EPE, the person receives their full SSDI check for any month in which his or her gross earnings are below the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) amount ($590/mo in 2005). In the months in which gross earnings are above SGA, the person won’t get his or her SSDI check, but he or she is still considered eligible for SSDI because the EPE protects disability status.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/workincentives.html#ssdissi
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp
http://www.onestops.info/article.php?article_id=177

Extended Medicare:
Extended Medicare benefits are available for SSDI recipients who are earning at the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level at the end of his or her Trial Work Period (TWP), and therefore stop getting an SSDI monthly check. Medicare can be continued for at least 39 months after the end of the TWP, although the person must pay the monthly premium because they won’t have an SSDI check coming every month from which to deduct the premium. Medicare can continue even longer (four additional years) with the Medicare buy-in program and the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act provisions.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp

Subsidy or Subsidized Employment:
Subsidy refers to services, supports and accommodations, monetary and non-monetary, which are received by a working SSDI recipient and which help him/her to get or keep a job or business. When subsidies exist for working SSDI recipients, the Social Security Administration (SSA) reduces the person’s gross monthly earnings by the amount of the subsidies. This reduced amount is then compared to the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level to determine eligibility for continued SSDI checks and Medicare coverage. In essence, subsidy is another work incentive that allows Social Security to view a person’s gross wages as less than the numbers on their paycheck.

To qualify, the person must either receive more supervision than other workers doing the same or a similar job for the same pay, or have fewer or simpler tasks than other workers doing the same job for the same pay, or have a job coach or mentor who helps perform some of the work. If dollar values were attached to these supports they would show what a recipient with a disability is actually earning as opposed to what he/she is being paid. Other examples of subsidy are when an employer pays to make the business accessible for the worker; or when an employer carves out a job that the person can do; or when an employer uses creative scheduling so the person with a disability is working with a supportive supervisor.

1619(a) Special Benefits:
Section 1619(a) of the Social Security Act allows SSI recipients to continue to receive SSI checks and Medicaid benefits even when their earnings exceed the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level ($590 in 2005). An individual may remain in 1619(a) status as long as he/she continues to meet all other eligibility requirements for SSI and Medicaid, and as long as his/her earnings are more than SGA ($590 in 2005) but less than the SSI “break-even point” ($1443/mo in 2005). The SSI breakeven point is the amount of earnings a person must have to be due $0 in SSI.

1619(b) Extended Medicaid
Section 1619(b) of the Social Security Act allows working SSI recipients to remain eligible for Medicaid even when they aren’t due any SSI payments because of their earnings. The person will continue to keep their Medicaid until their gross earnings are over a “threshold” amount that is calculated for each state or, for those individuals with extraordinary medical expenses, when their gross earnings surpass their “individual threshold” (which is calculated for each person separately).

To qualify for 1619(b) Extended Medicaid, the person must also need Medicaid in order to work. Need for Medicaid exists when the person has used Medicaid in the past year, or says that he/she expects to use it in the coming year.

For additional information, please visit the following websites:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/workincentives.html#ssdissi
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/Health/1619b.html
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/7th_edition_rocket.asp
http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/training/publications/fact_sheets/ssa_work_incentives.asp

RESOURCE LINKS

WIPA:
Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) projects are funded by the Social Security Administration. Trained Benefits Planning Specialists help SSI and SSDI recipients understand the impact of employment on Social Security and other public benefits.

For more information about the WIPA projects, please visit the following website:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/wipafactsheet.html

For a list of WIPA providers in your area, go to:
https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/oesp/providers.nsf/bystate

For people residing in Montana, WIPA information is available at:
http://www.msubillings.edu/socialsecurity/

Or by contacting:
Tiffany Kelker
Social Security Community Work Incentives Coordinator
406-657-2098 or 1-888-866-3822 (voice, TTY)
Email: tkelker@msubillings.edu
Fax: 406-657-2313
Montana Center on Disabilities
1500 University Drive
Billings, MT 59101

Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS):
MAP, the Montana Advocacy Program, administers the PABSS program in Montana. As described on their website, MAP is a non-profit corporation that administers eight Protection and Advocacy programs and one private program that all advocate for the rights of Montanans with disabilities. MAP staff includes professional advocates and attorneys.

The PABSS program is funded through Social Security to protect the legal rights of a Social Security recipient as they return to work.

PABSS staff can:

assist you to negotiate accommodations in the workplace,
help you calculate the impact your returning to work will have on your SSA benefits, and
provide information and technical assistance to help you use SSA work incentives such as a PASS, IRWE, BWE, and continuation of Medicare and/or Medicaid.

For more information about the Montana Advocacy Program, please visit their website:
http://www.mtadv.org/
They may be contacted at:
Montana Advocacy Program
PO Box 1681
400 North Park, 2nd Floor
Helena, MT 59624

406-449-2344 Voice/TDD
406-449-2418 Fax
800-245-4743 Toll-free Voice/TDD
E-mail: advocate@mtadv.org

For a nationwide listing of Protection and Advocacy System providers, please visit the Social Security Administration website at:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ServiceProviders/PADirectory.html

PASS Cadre:
PASS Cadres are regionally located groups of Social Security Administration employees who are trained to work with Plans for Achieving Self Support. These experts work directly with applicants. They review the PASS to see if the work goal is feasible, and if the items and services listed on the plan are needed to achieve the goal and are reasonably priced. If changes are needed, the PASS expert discusses those changes with the applicant.

PASS Cadre Examples 2005

Montana is served by the Denver Region PASS Cadre. They may be contacted at:
800-551-1034 (toll-free) or
303-231-0015, extension 35009, 35011, or 35010

For a listing of PASS Cadres across the nation, please visit the Social Security website at:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ResourcesToolkit/cadre.html

SSA:
According to their website, the Social Security Administration (SSA) provides financial protection to more than 152 million workers and their families, and more than 45 million Americans receive monthly Social Security retirement, disability or survivors benefits. The SSI program pays monthly benefits to more than 6.6 million Americans who have little or no resources and who are aged, blind or disabled. SSA is headed by a Commissioner and has a staff of over 65,000 employees within an organizational structure of 13 offices. SSA’s central office is located in Baltimore, Maryland. The field organization, which is decentralized to provide services at the local level, includes 10 regional offices, 6 processing centers, and approximately 1300 field offices. Montana is served by the Denver regional office.

SSA headquarters may be contacted at:
Social Security Administration
6401 Security Blvd.
Baltimore, MD 21235-0001
800-772-1213 (toll-free)

The Denver regional office may be contacted at:
Regional Communications Office
Social Security Administration
1961 Stout Street
Denver, Colorado 80294

For more information, please visit the SSA website at:
http://www.ssa.gov/

To locate the SSA office nearest you, please visit the SSA website at:
http://s3abaca.ssa.gov/pro/fol/fol-home.html

For those residing in the Denver region, you may locate the SSA office nearest you by visiting:
http://www.ssa.gov/denver/offices_states.htm