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SOAR TA Center Presents at NCHV Housing Summit
Jen Elder, National Policy and Partnerships Coordinator at the SAMHSA SOAR TA Center, joined the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV) Housing Summit in October to help raise awareness about the importance of income stability in ending Veteran homelessness. The Summit focused on the Drive to December and the goal of reaching functional zero in Veteran homelessness by the end of 2015.
Jen spoke briefly at the final plenary to share the importance of working together to find creative solutions to end Veteran homelessness:
"As we approach functional zero, the work gets harder and there's no one 'right answer' to solve homelessness. Instead, we need to focus on a holistic approach to find the right combination of resources for each Veteran to end his or her homelessness. Social Security benefits are just one piece of this puzzle -- true income and housing stability comes when we can integrate this with employment, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits, and supportive services."
Learn more about NCHV's Housing Summit on the NCHV website.
Sharing Our Successes
Maryland
On October 8, 2015, the Maryland State SOAR Planning Group celebrated the adjudication of the 1000th SSI/SSDI application using the SOAR model! Maryland has consistently been one of the top SOAR states, with an average approval rate for initial claims of 84% in 76 days from application date to decision. We are excited to celebrate your outstanding work!
California
The Centene Foundation for Quality Healthcare has announced the award of $360,000 in Improving Health in Rural Counties/Parishes grants to three programs, one each in California, Kansas, and Louisiana. In California, the grant was awarded to the Tuolumne SOAR Collaborative, a collaboration between the Tuolumne County Behavioral Health Department, the California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions, and 15 other community stakeholders! Congratulations, Tuolumne SOAR Collaborative! What a fantastic success!
From the press release: "The $140,000 award will help to increase timely access to income, health insurance, and transitional housing among persons with a disabling mental illness or co-occurring disorder who are homeless or at-risk of being homeless as they exit institutions such as hospitals, jails, and prisons." Read the full press release.
If you have a SOAR-related success story to share, e-mail soar@prainc.com.
Federal Updates
With consumer prices down over the past year, monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for nearly 65 million Americans will not automatically increase in 2016. The Social Security Act provides for an automatic increase in Social Security and SSI benefits if there is an increase in inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index. As determined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there was no increase in the CPI-W from the third quarter of 2014 to the third quarter of 2015. Therefore, under existing law, there can be no COLA in 2016.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is soliciting public input about how it should consider the vocational factors of age, education, and work experience in adult disability claims under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act. There have been significant changes in technology use and workforce demographics since SSA first adopted its vocational factor regulations in 1978. SSA is requesting public comments, along with any supporting data, to assist in efforts to streamline, simplify, and ensure the ongoing relevance of its disability determination programs. The comment period closes on November 13, 2015 at 11:59 p.m. ET. To view the rule and provide comments, go to http://www.regulations.gov and enter SSA-2014-0081-0001 in the search box.
Friday, November 20, 2015 in Washington, D.C.
The next National Disability Forum meeting will be held on 11/20/2015 at 1:00 p.m. EST. The meeting will focus on gathering input on the realities of work for individuals with severe impairments, especially for those who are older and/or have low skills or low education levels. The discussion will address how vocational factors such as age, education, and work experience affect an individual's ability to work or adjust to other work that exists in the national economy.
Job Postings
Bread for the City is seeking a SOAR Case Manager who will be based in Washington, D.C. The SOAR Case Manager will use the SOAR model to assist people with disabilities who would have difficulty applying independently for SSI/SSDI benefits.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is seeking a full-time Departmental Specialist who will be based in Detroit, Michigan. This position serves as the State PATH Contact and SOAR State Team Lead.
Learn more about these postings on the SOARWorks website. Do you have a job posting you would like to share with the SOAR community? E-mail it to soar@prainc.com!
Funding Corner
Network for Good Resources: How to Write Amazing Fundraising Appeals
Recent Stories from the SOAR Voices Blog
Jason (not his legal name) previously lost his SSI benefits for more than a year, due to incarceration and not being available for the recertification process. He was also chronically homeless, not receiving psychiatric treatment, and not taking medication to help impede his mental illness symptoms.
Our federal partners recognize that the hard work you do every day using the SOAR model is key to successfully ending homelessness. In July 2015, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, SSA, VA, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released Key Strategies for Connecting People Experiencing Homelessness to SSI/SSDI.
Swords to Plowshares is a San Francisco-based non-profit Veterans advocacy agency that provides a wide array of core services to former military men and women. Our motto is, "when their service ends, ours begins...," and to that end, we provide emergency and transitional housing assistance through various grants and permanent housing placement assistance through the Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program.
Upcoming Events
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Webinar
November 12, 2015; 3:00 pm-4:30 p.m. ET
Please join us for an informational webinar on Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) in the context of representing the SOAR applicant with SSA. In recent years, SOAR practitioners have seen an increase in Veterans with a TBI, a common medical impairment among this population.
This webinar will educate the SOAR practitioner about the presence of TBI among returning service members, as well as individuals who are experiencing or at-risk of homelessness. Often, the hidden presence of a TBI makes it difficult to engage successfully in services and live/work independently in the community.
Speakers will include a TBI Expert, a DDS Medical Relations Officer, and a DDS Medical Doctor who will share their expertise on TBI and its impact on functioning. Register here: http://bit.ly/1KVY7YU
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