January 2003 Newsletter
Volume 2, Number 3
Working Healthy Enrollment Keeps Growing
More and more Kansans with disabilities are taking advantage of the opportunity
to engage in meaningful employment and keep their Medicaid coverage. As of January
2, 2003, 510 individuals were enrolled in Working Healthy and more than half
of them (56%) were paying a premium for their coverage (see chart below). As
indicated by their comments, consumers really want to work.
Chart information:
Title: KS Working Healthy Total Monthly Enrollment
July 2002: Total enrollment = 175, 29% of which are paying a premium
August 2002: Total enrollment = 250, 45% of which are paying a premium
September 2002: Total enrollment = 297, 55% of which are paying a premium
October 2002: Total enrollment = 370, 49% of which are paying a premium
November 2002: Total enrollment = 447, 57% of which are paying a premium
December 2002: Total enrollment = 474, 55% of which are paying a premium
January 2003: Total enrollment = 510, 56% of which are paying a premium
Source: Kansas Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS)
CONSUMER VOICES
Consumer voices is a new addition to the Working Healthy newsletter. These profiles
and testimonials are given by consumers and shared with their consent. If anyone
is interested in sharing your experiences with the Working Healthy Program,
please call our toll free number (800) 449-1439. We would be delighted to hear
how Working Healthy is affecting your life and employment experiences.
Many consumers have expressed how Working Healthy has improved their lives
and enabled them go back to work or work more hours. One woman told us, "I
really like the Working Healthy Program. It is a life saver for people with
disabilities who choose to work because the premiums are very reasonable. I
do not have an outrageous spenddown and still can receive outstanding health
[coverage]."
One Working Healthy consumer shared that working as a CNA for older people
provides her not only an income but also a sense of value. With a spenddown
of a couple thousand dollars per six months, it was very difficult to maintain
her mental health and necessary medications. She needed greater support and
services from the Mental Health Center in dealing with the stress and spenddown
than she does with her Working Healthy premium. She goes less often to the MHC
and is more able to maintain employment.
Another consumer was recently laid off her job. She said dealing with the lay
off and loss of Working Healthy would have been a lot to deal with at once.
Staying connected with Working Healthy has helped her maintain her self-esteem
and stay positive about finding employment. The employment plan and its regular
check ins with her Benefits Specialist has helped her stay on track with looking
for a job. Having been a PD Waiver consumer, she will need to rely on earnings
to afford the attendant care services she uses to remain living independently
in the community. A strong desire to find employment and be self-sufficient
leads her to voice her hope that Working Healthy remains in place for her and
all other people with disabilities wanting to work.
Benefits Specialists' Corner
This issue's featured Specialist is Norm White from the Lawrence Area Office.
Consumers from all over his portion of the state continually comment about how
well Norm has assisted them with Working Healthy and in their employment endeavors.
Great work Norm, thanks for writing this piece and for your hard work and dedication
to the Working Healthy Program! Watch the April issue for a piece from Maddie
Anthony, Benefits Specialist from the Wichita area.
Ticket to Work
Starting a new year with an unemployment rate between 35 to 70 percent and a
national sustained employment rate for people on SSDI/SSI of less than 1 percent,
people with disabilities continue to experience an ongoing crisis. When people
with disabilities succeed in work, they often lose benefits including health
care coverage. The collective efforts of disability advocates, consumers, social
agencies, congressional leadership and many others created work incentives to
address this catch-22. The passage of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives
Improvement Act in 1999 included the incentives of the Ticket to Work and Working
Healthy Programs.
Employment Networks will offer a variety of Ticket to Work employment services.
Working Healthy's seven Benefits Specialists can provide a "neutral"
benefit analysis to consumers for informed choices in their selection of an
Employment Network and development of an employment plan. CDRs (continuing disability
reviews) will be suspended for consumers receiving ticket services. This can
allow consumers to achieve Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) while maintaining
SSA disability status and keeping beneficial supports. Benefits Specialists
provide outreach to all groups requesting information/technical assistance on
Working Healthy/Ticket to Work with follow-up consumer services.
The overall increase in statewide capacity resulting from Ticket to Work partnerships
can help move that national sustained employment rate for people on SSDI/SSI
from less than 1 percent to at least 2 percent. Perhaps the most important success
of Ticket to Work and Working Healthy Programs will be the legacy to our young
people with disabilities. They will expect to work healthy in their communities
and live independently in their own homes and will be able to do so.
-Norm White, Benefits Specialist
Personal Care Services to Support Employment (PCSE)
Staff members from SRS Health Care Policy and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services are continuing to work together to determine the best means by which
to include PCSE for Working Healthy enrollees. Several different possibilities
are being explored. We hope to have more information available in the April
newsletter.
Working Healthy Outreach Efforts Continue
The Working Healthy Benefits Specialists continue to conduct outreach and educational
activities for service providers, employers and consumers. Between October and
December of 2002, they provided a total of 159 presentations to 936 individuals.
In addition, they had one-on-one contact about the program with 282 consumers.
If you would like to have a Benefits Specialist conduct a presentation on Working
Healthy for your agency or organization, please contact Nancy Scott at (785)
291-3461 or NAS@srskansas.org
Surveys Mailed in January
The University of Kansas staff mailed Satisfaction Surveys to all people who
have been enrolled in Working Healthy for at least four months and who had returned
a baseline survey prior to the program's implementation. In addition, baseline
surveys were mailed to all new enrollees in the program. We will provide a preliminary
analysis of consumer satisfaction in the next newsletter.
Questions and Answers
In addition to these questions, consumers have expressed particular concerns
regarding the Working Healthy Program. Some of these concerns will be addressed
in more depth in the April issue.
Q: Can a consumer be enrolled in Working Healthy and on a Home and Community
Based Services (HCBS) Waiver?
A: No, a consumer must choose between Working Healthy or an HCBS Waiver.
Q: Why isn't there a Benefits Specialist in every SRS Area Office?
A: In light of the present budget constraints as well as the fact that Working
Healthy is a new program, seven Benefits Specialist seemed adequate for statewide
coverage. Other SRS Area Offices may have a Benefits Specialist added if the
budget and program enrollment warrants.
Q: I am not working right now, but would like to work. What can I do?
A: You can contact your SRS Worker and/or the Benefits Specialist in your area.
They can assist you in contacting employment service programs such as Kansas
Rehabilitation Services, Employer Networks, Job Service and One-Stop Centers,
etc.
HELP SAVE TREES! Please sign up to receive this newsletter via e-mail. Contact
Noelle at pixie@ku.edu. THANKS!
This newsletter and other Working Healthy program information can be found
online at: http://das.kucrl.org/medicaid.html
Working Healthy is published quarterly by the KU Department of Health Policy
and Management, in cooperation with the KU Division of Adult Studies and the
Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.
Additional copies and copies in alternate formats are available upon request
by writing the University of Kansas Department of Health Policy and Management,
c/o Division of Adult Studies, Attn: Noelle, 1122 West Campus Rd.. JRP Hall
Rm. 517, Lawrence, KS 66045, by phone (785) 864-7085, by email: pixie@ukans.edu
KU Research Team
Michael Fox, Co-Principal Investigator
Jean Hall, Co-Principal Investigator
Noelle Kurth, Editor
Erin Rink, Research Assistant
Cindy Pressgrove, Research Assistant
SRS, Division of Health Care Policy
Mary Ellen O'Brien Wright, Program Director
Nancy Scott, Benefits Specialist Team Leader