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As the state fiscal year draws to a close, the biennial
budget process is also nearing completion.
Despite the short time frame remaining--the budget must be signed by
Governor John Kasich by midnight on June 30th--some difficult work
remains as the House and Senate wrestle with significant public policy issues.
The current schedule, subject to change, is for the Ohio
Senate Finance Committee to continue deliberations on the budget bill (HB 64)
next week with committee passage and a Senate floor vote to follow. Conference Committee would begin following
passage by the full Senate with the intent of sending Governor Kasich the bill the
week of June 22nd.
We will continue to keep you informed as this process
continues. Once the budget has passed
and is signed by the Governor, we will be reaching out to our stakeholders
and partners to discuss budget provisions impacting the agency and those we
serve. This outreach will include
stakeholder conference calls and email updates as well as events and meetings
across the state.
This month’s Governing magazine had an
interesting article exploring how states are rethinking their approach to
vocational rehabilitation twenty-five years after the passage of the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA).
It discusses
the progress and reforms that have been made but also notes the challenges that
remain. The article also highlights the
current and future impacts of changes resulting from the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services (CMS) rule changes and the implementation of the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
Obviously, a great deal of work remains to truly serve
individuals with disabilities seeking employment in Ohio but I am proud of the work
our staff, and our partners and service providers, have done to increase both
the number of individuals we serve and the number of individuals with a
disability finding successful employment.
Since Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2011 we have reduced the average
time to reach an eligibility decision by nearly 60%, reduced the time to
rehabilitation by 23%, increased the number of plans written by 85%, and increased
the total number of rehabilitations by 36%.
All while reducing the cost per outcome by 10%. These numbers indicate we are serving more
people, more effectively, and in a timelier manner.
Challenges remain, but we are excited about the opportunity
to achieve even more for those we serve in the future.
Read the Governing article in its entirety at the following
link: http://www.governing.com/topics/mgmt/gov-american-disabilities-act-compliance.html
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This week the Division of Disability Determination (DDD)
welcomed a new class of twenty-two adjudicators and I was happy to welcome this
impressive group to OOD. The division
has also received federal approval to bring in another class in September with
an additional sixteen staff members.
In FFY 2014, DDD determined eligibility for 183,976 claims
and had an accuracy rate of over 99%.
Ohio continues to be the top performing state in its six-state region.
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As noted last week, OOD has already exceeded our goal of 16,110 meals for the 2015 Mid-Ohio Foodbank Operation Feed Campaign. With one week remaining, we have already collected funds and goods equal to nearly 24,000 meals!
It is great to see staff volunteering their time and resources to such a worthy cause.
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Individuals in Job Ready Status* Statewide: 3,892
(For larger map and county details please click here)
*Job Ready Status: Have received Vocational Rehabilitation
services and are ready and seeking employment.
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