Participation in Cost of Vocational Rehabilitation Services

The Federal regulations governing the vocational rehabilitation program give the Commission the option to consider the financial need of individuals with disabilities when determining who should pay for the cost of rehabilitation services except for those individuals who receive SSI or SSDI benefits. The Commission will measure the financial need of individuals other than those individuals who receive SSI or SSDI benefits to determine the extent of their participation in the cost of their services. In this way, the Commission’s resources can be targeted to individuals most in need. (2) An individual’s financial participation must be determined before the Commission can fund any service. Financial participation must be determined at least once annually and whenever there is a change in the financial status of the individual, a dependent of the individual, and/or the person(s) claiming the individual as a dependent. The individual is responsible to inform the Commission of any changes in financial circumstances and provide the appropriate documentation within 30 days of the date of such changes. Failure to do so may result in termination of paid vocational rehabilitation services. (4) Federal regulation prohibits requiring the financial participation of an individual who is an SSDI/SSI recipient regardless of his or her family’s income or assets. However, the individual may be asked under certain circumstances to contribute to the costs of his or her services but this contribution can not be required. Individuals who receive SSDI or SSI benefits must provide documentation, sign and date the Commission’s financial participation form. For those individuals who have verified SSDI and/or SSI benefits, their mandated contribution to the cost of their vocational rehabilitation services is zero. (5) Financial participation is based on cash assets and annual income. Cash assets and annual income include: checking accounts; savings accounts; mutual funds; stocks and bonds; and the annual taxable income of the individual, the individual’s spouse, dependents of the individual and the person(s) claiming or allowed to claim the individual as a dependent, such as the individual’s parents, stepparents or legal guardians as documented by the most recent Internal Revenue tax forms. Cash assets do not include pension funds or individual retirement accounts. (6) A dependent is any individual who for federal income tax purposes is claimed or allowed to be claimed as a dependent of another. (a) When the individual is 18 years of age or older and is not claimed or allowed to be claimed as a dependent of another person, financial participation will be based on the individual’s income and assets alone. (b) When the individual is married, financial participation is based on the combined incomes and assets of the individual and the spouse, regardless of age. (c) When the single individual is under 18 years of age, financial participation is based on the combined incomes and assets of the parent(s) and the individual. (d) When the parent(s) claim or are allowed to claim a single individual 18 years of age or older as a dependent because the individual has received more than one half of his or her support during the most recent calendar year from the parents; financial participation is based on the combined income and assets of both the individual and the parent(s). (7) When the income of the individual is subject to income tax, the individual shall provide copies of the most recent applicable portions of the Internal Revenue forms as required by the Commission. If an individual’s income changes so significantly that the most recent Internal Revenue forms are no longer valid; verification of income shall be provided by other means. When income is not subject to income tax, the individual must provide verification including copies of benefit eligibility notifications and most recently received checks or notices of direct deposit. This non-taxable income may include but is not restricted to: (a) supplemental security Income; (Title XVI of the Social Security Act) (b) transitional aid to families with dependent children (M.G.L. c. 118); (c) emergency aid to elderly, disabled and children (M.G.L. c. 118 A); (d) emergency assistance (M.G.L. c. 117); (e) veterans services (M.G.L. c. 115); (f) federal food stamp program and state supplemental food stamp program (8) An individual’s financial participation shall be determined by deducting the annual dollar standard from the sum of cash assets in excess of allowable cash assets and annual net income. Documentation includes: (a) Most recently filed Internal Revenue Service forms (Form 1040, Form 1040A and/or Form 1040EZ); and (b) Verified annual income for individuals not subject to filing income tax. The annual dollar standard and allowable cash assets are each 300% of the Poverty Threshold by size of family as reported by the United States Census Bureau. The annual dollar standard and allowable cash assets will be disseminated by the Commission as instructions to staff. When an individual’s annual resources exceed the financial participation requirements, the Commission shall, after consideration of comparable benefits including financial aid for higher education, require the individual to apply the annualized excess to the annual cost of vocational rehabilitation services. (10) The Massachusetts Wage Reporting System Statute (M.G.L. c. 62) may be used by the Commission for the verification of wages and assets. (a) The wage information, including name, social security number, employer name, employer address, employer identifying number, and amount of wages and assets may be used by the Commission in the administration of the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Program to identify fraud, error, and abuse relative to financial eligibility of clients. (b) Identification of such fraud, error, and abuse could result in termination of Commission assistance. (11) The following services are provided by the Commission without consideration of an individual’s financial resources. This however, does not eliminate the requirement to use all available comparable benefits the individual is eligible to receive before providing Commission funds. (a) information, referral and other services; (b) services to determine eligibility and order of selection priority for vocational rehabilitation services; (c) services to determine vocational rehabilitation needs; (d) counseling and guidance; (e) placement services; (f) personal assistance services and auxiliary aids and services such as interpreter services for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing including sign language and oral interpreter services, reader services, note taker, personal care attendant services, and rehabilitation teaching services as necessary for an individual to participate in the VR program as required under § 504 of the Rehabilitation Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act. (12) Services that are not listed in 107 CMR 6.03(11) may be provided only after determining an individual’s financial participation in the cost of services.