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26 North Arsenal Avenue | Indianapolis, Indiana 46201 | p 317 632 0123 | f 317 632 4362
Ticket to Work
The Ticket to Work Program, a program of the Social Security Administration, is one method of helping our clients meet their individual work goals. Ticket to Work provides Social Security beneficiaries real choices in obtaining the services and resources they need to find and maintain employment, while providing a safety net to help during this transition. The Damien Center is completing the process of becoming an Employment Network (EN), which will provide our agency the proven framework and support of this well established program, as well as provide a strong network of resources for clients and staff. Funding from the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust in 2010 helped launch The Ticket to Work program.Ticket to Work is available to clients who receive SSDI or SSI benefits, which currently includes approximately 42% of the Damien Center's client base. With the help of the employment network, disability beneficiaries who receive Social Security or Supplemental Security Incomes can take the next step toward work while maintaining their benefits. Unlike many Americans whose healthcare benefits are provided through their employer, many of those with disabilities have to choose between life sustaining healthcare coverage and work. For individuals living with HIV, this is simply not a choice - healthcare is an absolute necessity. For many clients, the misconception that they will lose Social Security and health insurance benefits if they obtain regular employment keep them from applying for jobs. Correcting that misconception is key to the success of this program and to our clients, and has been missing in past programs at the agency. Though Ticket to Work itself is only available to those clients with disabilities, the framework and resources put in place by the program will be available to all clients, and all clients will benefit from the program.
For more information on Ticket to Work, please contact Michaelangelo McClendon at mmclendon@damien.org or at 317-632-0123.