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I would like to take a moment to comment on the March 18, 2004 Hearing
on the Social Security Administration's Management of t
Statement of Terrell I. Murphy, Texas Department of
Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, Austin, Texas
I
would like to take a moment to comment on the March 18, 2004 Hearing on the
Social Security Administration's Management of the Ticket to Work Program.
The
Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS) administers the
public vocational rehabilitation program in Texas. DARS has invested a
significant amount of time and other resources in order to train VR counselors
about the Ticket program. We have responded to numerous calls from consumers
inquiring about the program, and do our best to explain not only the program
but also the options available to them. We routinely refer consumers to the
Benefits Planning Assistance and Outreach programs around the State, and
encourage consumers to contact other Employment Networks (EN) in Texas so
they can make informed decisions regarding the service provider that can best
meet their individual needs.
We
originally developed a template for an EN agreement based on models from other
States. This template basically required full repayment of VR's costs. For
example, when VR expends less than $10,000 on a beneficiary referred by an EN
that holds the beneficiary’s ticket assignment, VR may ask for 50 percent of
the EN’s outcome payments until VR has received full reimbursement for the
services purchased for that beneficiary. For cases where VR expends more than
$10,000, VR may seek a greater percentage of the EN’s outcome payments. Our
rationale was that it was in the best interest of our consumers for us to
reclaim as much money as possible in order to be able to serve additional
consumers. Our experience has been that Employment Networks have demonstrated
little interest in entering into this type of agreement. As a result, we have
initiated a process to meet with representatives from Employment Networks to
discuss creating an agreement that would be more suitable.
Our
goal is to work cooperatively with Employment Networks and all other interested
individuals and organizations in order to best meet the employment needs of
individuals with disabilities.
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