Patrick Administration Receives $3.2m in Stimulus Funding to Strengthen Employment Services for People with Disabilities

Stimulus-funded projects will support people with disabilities who want to start or return to work

BOSTON — As part of Governor Patrick's Massachusetts Recovery Plan to secure the state's economic future, Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. JudyAnn Bigby announced today that the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission (MRC) has received $3.2 million in federal funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to support improvements to its vocational rehabilitation program for people with disabilities. The funds will allow the state to initiate major program re-design efforts to better serve the 15,000 people with disabilities each year who want to begin or return to work.

"It's critical that people with disabilities have opportunities to participate fully in the economic and social fabric of Massachusetts," said Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. JudyAnn Bigby. "By investing in our training and employment services for people with disabilities, Massachusetts will strengthen its diverse workforce and create meaningful, long-lasting employment opportunities for valued members of our communities."

MRC Commissioner Charles Carr added, "This initiative also allows the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission to maximize our ability to identify and focus efforts on targeted sector-based economic growth areas and businesses to ensure that our consumers get the best possible jobs available. Even in a very competitive job market, we anticipate that more people with disabilities will enter mainstream employment over the next three years than ever before."

With these federal funds, MRC will convert its vocational case management system to a web-based application, reducing inefficiencies and speeding application processing time for consumers seeking employment. Upgrading this infrastructure will allow job counseling staff working directly with consumers to have access to the agency's case management system from anywhere an internet connection is available. Case managers will also be able to work with more consumers with disabilities in their own communities to promote independence and employment. Replacing the existing paper file system will also allow for faster eligibility determinations, improve job training and placement timelines, and reduce administrative costs.

The Commission will also develop innovative marketing materials for use with employers and schools to promote job opportunities for people with disabilities. MRC will partner with the University of Massachusetts to design and regularly update new materials, which will be used by counselors and job placements specialists to build partnerships with local businesses and training centers.

Stimulus funding will also support an overall redesign of vocational rehabilitation services with an organizational assessment to identify operational best practices for the future. In FY08, the Commission successfully placed more than 3,500 Massachusetts residents with disabilities into employment based on their choices, needs, and skills; estimated earnings in their first year of employment were $65.5 million. For every dollar invested in the Commission's vocational rehabilitation program, the Commonwealth receives approximately $5 in earned income tax and reduced public assistance program expenditures.

Investments in job creation and readiness are critical components of Governor Patrick's Massachusetts Recovery Plan (www.mass.gov/recovery), which combines state, federal and private efforts to provide immediate and long-term relief and position the Commonwealth for recovery in the following ways:

Deliver immediate relief by investing in the road, bridge and rail projects that put people to work today and providing safety net services that sustain people who are especially vulnerable during an economic crisis;
Build a better tomorrow through education and infrastructure investments that strengthen our economic competitiveness, prepare workers for the jobs of the future, and support clean energy, broadband, and technology projects that cut costs while growing the economy; and
Reform state government by eliminating the pension and ethics loopholes that discredit the work of government and revitalize the transportation networks that have suffered from decades of neglect and inaction.

About the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission (MRC)

The Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission assists individuals with disabilities to live and work independently. The MRC is responsible for Vocational Rehabilitation Services, Community Services, and eligibility determination for the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) federal benefits programs for Massachusetts citizens with disabilities. The MRC serves people with all types of disabilities except those who are blind, who are served through the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. To learn more about MRC, please visit: www.mass.gov/mrc.

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