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2. 2015 SOAR Outcomes Presented BY: SAMHSA SOAR Technical Assistance Center Policy Research Associates, Inc. Under Contract TO: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

3. Webinar Instructions • Muting • Recording availability • Downloading documents • Evaluation • http://soarworks.prainc.com/topics/webinars

4. Agenda Welcome • Dr. Pamela J. Fischer, Social Science Analyst, Homeless Programs Branch, Center for Mental Health Services, SAMHSA 2015 SOAR Outcomes Overview • Kristin Lupfer, Project Director, SAMHSA SOAR TA Center Tales from the Top Ten • Ambrosia Crump, SOAR State Team Lead, Nevada Consistent Progress • Latasha Howlett, SOAR State Team Lead, Virginia Making Improvements • Fred Morton, SOAR State Team Lead, Connecticut Questions & Answers

5. Welcome Pamela J. Fischer, Ph.D. Social Science Analyst Homeless Programs Branch Center for Mental Health Services Substance ABUSE and Mental Health Services Administration

6. Kristin Lupfer, Project Director SOAR Technical Assistance Center Policy Research associates, Inc.

7. You Made This Possible • 44 states and the District of Columbia reporting • Sharing and celebrating successes together • Supporting sustainability and expansion efforts

11. How Do You Compare?

12. Quantity AND Quality • States that consistently reported over 100 decisions for 3 years • Some states in BOTH categories Arkansas Florida Maryland Michigan Nebraska North Carolina Ohio Oregon Pennsylvania Tennessee Virginia

13. Average Days to Decision

14. Meeting the Need

15. Increasing Efficiency

16. Quality and Success

17. Show Me The Money • SSI brought over $275 million into the economies of participating states and localities • Eight states report $1.32 million in Medicaid reimbursement, or an average of $6,400 per person • General assistance reimbursement was on average, $2,218 per person approved for SSI • Based on reports from 462 approvals, retroactive benefits equaled $3.6 million

18. Ending Veteran Homelessness • Thirty-two states reported assisting Veterans with their disability applications and over 300 Veterans were helped with their applications • Currently, more than half of the 380 Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) grantees report using the SOAR • Fourteen percent (42 grantees) use SSVF grant monies to fund a dedicated SOAR benefits specialist • An additional 15 percent indicated that they plan to incorporate one in the future • One-year SOAR pilot with federal VA staff at four VA Medical Centers • VA released federal guidance for staff: SOAR Works to End Veteran Homelessness: VA Caseworker’s Guide

19. Justice-Involved Persons • Our mantra is "decision before discharge” • Collaborations were reported by 20 states and include: • Jail in-reach for pre-release applications • Jail diversion programs • State prison reentry initiatives • Training for state departments of correction (and state forensic mental health facilities) • Collaboration with parole and probation to coordinate services

20. Transition Age Youth • Twenty-one states reported working with 171 TAY applicants • 81 percent approval rate in an average of 81 days • These states did reconsiderations with 23 TAY applicants • 70 percent approval rate in 71 days • Of those youth approved, 57 percent were alsoworking post-approval

21. Working Together • People seeking or receiving SSA benefits are encouraged to work independently or with the help of professional supports • Twenty states reported that 25 percent of their 1,896 applicants were working during the application process. • Sixteen states reported nearly 50 percent of the 929 SSI/SSDI beneficiaries were working post-approval

22. Sustaining our Efforts • 19 states reported that they were successful in securing new or sustaining funding for their SOAR programs • Creation/continuation of: • 60 FTE SOAR benefits specialist positions • 2 FTE SOAR Coordinator positions • Funders: PATH, CABHI, foundations, universities, hospitals

23. SAMHSA Homeless Programs PATH CABHI Eleven states reported that they used SAMHSA’s CABHI grants to fund dedicated SOAR positions Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Rhode Island, and Tennessee Arizona, Louisiana, and Pennsylvania are using CABHI funds to support training and expansion efforts for SOAR • All fifty states report collaboration with the SAMHSA PATH program including: • Dedicated benefits specialists on PATH teams • SOAR training for PATH outreach and case management staff • State PATH contacts serve as SOAR coordinators and leaders

24. Tales from the Top Ten: Nevada Ambrosia Crump Nevada SOAR Coordinator Clark County, Nevada

25. Where We Were in 2014

26. Factors that Contributed to Improvements

27. Nevada SOAR Newsletter Sent to everyone SOAR-trained in Nevada, COC coordinators, SSA/DDS, and supervisory staff Provided outcome reporting process and timelines, training opportunities, and other SOAR related announcements

28. Recent Milestones

29. Where We are Now!

30. Consistent Progress: Virginia LATashaHowlett SOAR State Team Lead Virginia Department of behavioral health and developmental services

31. SOAR In Virginia:2014 Overview 206 TOTAL SOAR APPLICATIONS COMPLETED IN 2014 NO DIRECT SOAR FUNDING BUT CAHBI GRANT FUNDS HAVE BEEN USED FOR SOAR EFFORTS OVER 100 ACTIVE SOAR WORKERS ACROSS THE STATE 72% APPROVAL RATE IN 2014 105 PEOPLE HOUSED IN 2014 THROUGH SOAR EFFORTS VIRGINIA

32. SOAR In Virginia: 2015 Overview 182 INITIAL SOAR APPLICATIONS COMPLETED 68% APPROVAL RATE IN 2015 93 PEOPLE HOUSED IN 2015 THROUGH SOAR EFFORTS 124 SOAR INITIAL APPLICATIONS APPROVED DECISION RECEIVED IN AN AVERAGE OF 102 DAYS!

33. SOAR In Virginia: Our Approach PLANNING COLLABORATION CONTINUATION MODIFICATION

34. SOAR In Virginia: Spotlight WORK INCENTIVES SSA AND DDS IN -SERVICE TRAININGS BEST PRACTICES FOR COMPLETING DDS AND SSA FORMS UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIAL SECURITY DRUG ADDICTION AND ALCOHOLISM POLICY ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE (ALJ) AND SOAR

35. Making Improvements:Connecticut Fred Morton, SOAR State Team Lead, Behavioral Health Program Manager Housing and Homeless Services Connecticut department of mental health and Addiction Services

36. Incorporating SOAR into New Initiatives

37. Continued Training and Assistance

38. Regional Collaborations

39. Quality Improvement

40. Encourage Employment

41. Keep Up The Great Work! • You are transforming lives one application at a time.

42. Super SOAR says:

43. Questions and Answers • Facilitated By: • SAMHSA SOAR Technical Assistance Center • Policy Research Associates, Inc. • Please type your question into the Q&A panel located underneath the participant tab, or • To ask a question by phone, please raise your hand by clicking the hand icon in the participant pod. We will unmute you so you can ask your question.

44. Contact Us • http://soarworks.prainc.com • SAMHSA SOAR TA Center345 Delaware AvenueDelmar, New York 12054(518) 439 – 7415 • soar@prainc.com • www.facebook.com/soarworks @SOARWorks