Of the 46,543 total beneficiaries, 9,651 (21%) were in the 13 states included in the first phase of implementation of the Ticket to Work Program. Within those states, over half of the beneficiaries in the I&R/Problem Solving group and nearly 40 percent in the intensive benefit support group indicated that they had responded to Ticket to Work communication from SSA as a reason for seeking services from the BPAO Program. The Ticket was indicated as a potential provision to over two thirds of I&R/Problem Solving beneficiaries and nearly 60 percent of those who received intensive benefit support. Across both service levels, nearly a third of beneficiaries indicated their intent to use the Ticket to Work Program to seek a new or supplemental job.

In February 2002, SSA distributed tickets in the following States: Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont, Wisconsin. The graph below shows the BPAO intakes Per Month in the Round 1 Ticket States from February 2002 to October 2002.

It seems apparent that the Ticket to Work had an impact on the BPAO Program in at least two ways.

• First, the Ticket program creates a considerable demand for BPAO, accounting for over one fifth of all beneficiaries accessing BPAO services.
• Second, large numbers of beneficiaries in these states are indicating a desire to use the Ticket to obtain a new or supplemental job, requiring the BPAO to provide Intensive Benefit Support services.