StateData.info - Data Notes

Newsworthy Findings from StateData.info and Related Data Sets

State Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Agencies Expenditures for Integrated Employment Services

Data set: The National Survey of Day and Employment Programs

Job Seekers with Disabilities at One-Stop Career Centers: An Overview of Registration for Wagner-Peyser Funded Employment Services

This data note explores how states vary in the number and percentage of job seekers with disabilities who register for services and identify as having a disability. In 2005, across all states and the District of Columbia, 3.1% of all job seekers were people who reported having a disability at registration (see table). The percentage of registered job seekers with a disability ranged from 0% in Washington D.C. to 8.3% in Delaware. The percentage of individuals identifying they have a disability has shown a steady increase over time, from 2.3% in 2002 to the 3.1% 2005 figure. In examining and interpreting this data, it is important to note that this data may not fully reflect the use of these services by people with disabilities, as it does not include individuals with non-apparent disabilities who have declined to identify that they have a disability.

Timeframe from Application to Closure in Integrated Employment for Vocational Rehabilitation Customers with Developmental Disabilities

This data note describes the integrated employment timeframe from application to closure for people with developmental disabilities (i.e., mental retardation, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and autism) whose cases were closed by VR in 2006 (N = 27,579). VR typically closes cases when applicants have been in employment for at least 90 days.

Disability and Occupation

It is well-documented that people with disabilities have a significantly lower rate of employment than people without disabilities (36% versus 74% according to the 2006 American Community Survey (ACS). Less is known about the types of work they do. Using the occupational classification system within the ACS, researchers explored the prevalence of people with disabilities within occupational groupings and discuss its relationship to occupational growth1. Future analysis will address variation across disability groups.

SSI recipients with disabilities who work and participation in 1619b

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a federally funded program that provides cash assistance for basic needs. Individuals with a low-income who are over the age of 65, blind, or have a disability are eligible for assistance. SSI beneficiaries typically also receive health insurance coverage through Medicaid. Losing Medicaid benefits can be of concern for SSI recipients with disabilities who desire to work, or are currently working. Section 1619b of the Social Security Act allows individuals to work and continue to receive Medicaid assistance when their earnings are too high to qualify for SSI cash payments as long as they meet other eligibility requirements for the SSI program and continue to need Medicaid in order to work.

National Day and Employment Service Trends in MR/DD Agencies

The data represented here describe the core elements of ICI's National Survey of Day and Employment Services. Integrated employment includes both individual employment and group supported employment and facility-based settings include both facility-based work services and facility-based non-work services. Reported participation in community-based non-work services, defined as non job-related supports focusing on community involvement and typically identified as community integration or community participation services, has steadily increased since this service was added to the survey in 1996, growing from 14.5% in 1999 to 21% in 2004.

VR Rehabilitation Rates of People with Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities (MR/DD) in 2005

Of the over 48,000 persons nationwide with mental retardation or other developmental disabilities (MR/DD) who closed out of the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) system after receiving employment services in FY2005, more than half were successful closures, yielding a rehabilitation rate of 56.9%. The rehabilitation rate is calculated by dividing the number of successful closures, which is employment in any setting with the exception of sheltered workshops, by the total number of closures who received employment services.

Employment Rates for People With and Without Disabilities

Data show that people with disabilities are consistently less likely to be working than their non-disabled counterparts. In this data note, we compare the employment rate for working-age people with and without disabilities.

The Relationship Between Supported Employment Status and Minimum Wage for Vocational Rehabilitation Integrated Employment Closures in 2004

This Data Note examines how wages for VR customers in supported employment compare to those earned by other customers.

Relationship Between Integrated Employment and State Unemployment Rates for MR/DD Consumers

Researchers explored state unemployment rates to determine whether a state's MR/DD agency employment outcomes were related to the state's economy. Data set: MR/DD.

Relationship Between MR/DD Consumers in Integrated Employment and Working SSI Recipients

Analysis shows that employment outcomes for MR/DD consumers in integrated employment and working SSI recipients may be related within states. Data set: SSA.

WIA Employment Outcomes

The U.S. Department of Labor tracks several performance measures for people served in the One-Stop system. This Data Note focuses on people with disabilities in two funding categories. Data set: WIA.

Relationship Between SSI Recipients Who Work and State Unemployment Rate

Many people who receive SSI benefits are unemployed. However, in 2004 the percentage of SSI recipients who were working varied considerably by state. To understand this variation, researchers correlated the percentage of employed SSI recipients with 2004 state unemployment rates. Data set: SSA.

VR Outcomes for People with Spinal Cord Injury

An estimated 250,000 people live with a spinal cord injury (SCI). In 2004, 2382 individuals with SCI achieved successful rehabilitation with the support of state vocational rehabilitation agencies. This Data Note examines their outcomes. Data set: RSA (VR).

SSA Work Incentives Enrollment, 1990-2004

To encourage employment for individuals with disabilities, the Social Security Administration offers provisions that limit the impact of work on benefits. The September, 2005 Data Note displays the number of people enrolled in these work incentive programs.