1. Presenting 2014 SOAR Outcomes and SOAR Superstars! Please stay on the line. The webinar will begin shortly. AUDIO: Toll Free Number: +1-855-749-4750 Passcode: 664 450 837 Contact ssodergren@prainc.com if you experience technical difficultiesssodergren@prainc.com

2. Presenting 2014 SOAR Outcomes and SOAR Superstars! 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. Welcome! PAMELA FISCHER,PH.D., SOCIAL SCIENCE ANALYST SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION CENTER FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES HOMELESS SERVICES BRANCH

4. Webinar Instructions  Muting  Recording availability  Downloading documents  Evaluation  Question instructions

5. Agenda 2014 SOAR Outcomes Report  Kristin Lupfer, LMSW, Project Director, SOAR TA Center, SOAR Superstars!  Marilyn Hampton, Quality Assurance Coordinator/State PATH Contact/SOAR State Team Lead, Department of Mental Health/Division of Behavioral Health Services, Little Rock, AR  Douglas Wallace, Housing & Homeless Specialist/State PATH Contact/SOAR State Team Lead, Community Services & Programs Commission, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Service, Topeka, KS  Carl Falconer, Director of Community Engagement/SOAR Local Lead, LSF Health Systems, Jacksonville, FL  Trisha Hinson, M.Ed.,Director /State Path Contact/SOAR State Team Lead, Mississippi Department of Mental Health/ Housing and Community Living, Jackson, MS  Sherry Holloway, Project Specialist/CABHI Administrator/SOAR Local Lead, Mississippi Housing for Recovery, Brandon, MS Questions and Answers, SOAR Technical Assistance Center

6. Poll Question #1 How do you fund your SOAR program? A. Government programs, e.g.) federal, state, county, local B. Private/Non-Profit, e.g.) hospitals, foundations, grants C. Blend of government and private, non-profit funding D. Not currently funded

7. 2014 SOAR Outcomes KRISTIN LUPFER, PROJECT DIRECTOR SAMHSA SOAR TA CENTER POLICY RESEARCH ASSOCIATES, INC.

8. 49 states and the District of Columbia reporting Sharing and celebrating successes together Supporting sustainability and expansion efforts You Made This Possible

9. Changing Lives Since 2005 FY 2014Cumulative Approvals 3,81822,863 Decisions 5,90535,124 Approval rate 65%

10. Efficient and Effective Processing Time 94 days vs. 110 days Consultative Exams 14 percent vs. 41 percent

11. Appeals FY 2014Cumulative Approvals 4343,406 Decisions 7876,164 Approval rate 55% Decided in an average of 119 days vs. 365+ days

12. Top Approval Rates

13. The TOP Ten!

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

15. Show Me The Money SSI brought over $227 million into the economies of participating states and localities 10 states report $1.65 million in Medicaid reimbursement, or an average of $10,465 per person General assistance reimbursement was on average, $1,217 per person approved for SSI

16. Ending Veteran Homelessness SOAR worked closely with the Veterans Administration, state and local Veteran initiatives to ensure those eligible for SSA benefits were able to apply Twenty nine states reported assisting Veterans with their disability applications Approximately 320 Veterans were helped with their applications using SOAR in 2014 As of June 2014, half of the 319 Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) provider organizations reported using SOAR as part of their outreach to Veterans

17. Justice Involved Persons Jail in-reach and collaboration with parole and probation to coordinate services Jail diversion programs Pre-release projects in conjunction with county jails Training in state departments of corrections Two programs, (Miami, FL and Ossining, NY) reported a 90 percent approval rate on 147 decisions in an average of 25 days

18. Working Together PATH ◦Dedicated benefits specialists on PATH teams ◦SOAR training for PATH outreach and case management staff ◦State PATH contacts serve as SOAR coordinators and trainers Employment ◦Seven states began new collaborations in 2014: (Alaska, Arkansas, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia)

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

20. Arkansas MARILYN HAMPTON, SOAR STATE TEAM LEAD DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES, DIVISION OF BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES

21. Beginning SOAR in Arkansas  SOAR TA Center Train the Trainer Program  In State Technical Assistance  Program Focus

22. Continuous Improvement  Change in Program Focus  Collaborations with SSA and DDS  Coaching and Support  SOAR Online Course and Leadership Academy

23. Next Steps  Mandatory SOAR Training  Statewide SOAR Coverage

24. Contact Information Marilyn Hampton Quality Assurance Coordinator/State PATH Contact/SOAR State Lead Department of Human Services Division of Behavioral Health Services Central Administration Building 305 South Palm Street Little Rock, AR 72205-4096 Phone: (501) 686-9036 Fax: (501)686-9182 Email: marilyn.hampton@dhs.arkansas.govmarilyn.hampton@dhs.arkansas.gov

25. Kansas DOUGLAS WALLACE, SOAR STATE TEAM LEAD KANSAS DEPARTMENT FOR AGING & DISABILITY SERVICES

26. SOAR in Kansas  SOAR started in Kansas in 2009  The SOAR State lead is with the Kansas Department for Aging & Disability Services  SOAR is closely tied to the Kansas PATH program  Kansas’s success can be attributed to three reasons  Relationships/collaborations  Quality of applications  Shared vision for SOAR in Kansas

27. Collaborations/Relationships  One of the biggest keys to our success is our relationship with DDS, SSA and the SOAR TA Center  SOAR case workers, SOAR local leads and the SOAR State Lead have frequent contact with DDS, SSA and Abigail Lemon (SOAR TA Center Liaison). These relationships have led to positive outcomes with our SOAR cases.  SOAR case workers are able to overcome challenges and barriers through communication with SSA and DDS  Since 2009, the SOAR State Lead in partnership with the SOAR local leads and other stakeholders has promoted SOAR throughout Kansas

28. Shared Vision  DDS and SSA have been part of the development of SOAR in Kansas since 2009  SOAR Statewide Steering Committee  Goals for Kansas  Certification of SOAR case workers  Expansion of SOAR to other populations  Increase the number of SOAR case workers

29. Quality of Applications  SOAR case workers use all of the critical components of SOAR  SOAR case workers are encouraged to follow the SOAR application process  Open communication from DDS and SSA if they see quality issues  The SOAR Statewide Steering Committee discusses barriers and challenges with SOAR in Kansas, including any quality issues  The SOAR Statewide Steering Committee is developing a progressive process to address ongoing quality issues with SOAR applications

30. Contact Information Douglas Wallace Housing & Homeless Specialist/State PATH Contact/SOAR State Lead Community Services & Programs Commission Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services 503 S Kansas Avenue Topeka, KS 66603-3404 Phone: 785 296-0620 Fax : 785-296-0256 Email: Doug.Wallace@kdads.ks.govDoug.Wallace@kdads.ks.gov

31. Poll Question #2 Which SOAR critical component(s) implemented by AR & KS will you focus more of your resources? A. Strong collaborations with SSA, DDS and other key stakeholders B. Provide and access technical assistance and support to SOAR case managers C. Focus on submitting quality applications D. Hold regular steering committee meetings E. All of the above

32. Florida CARL FALCONER, SOAR LOCAL LEAD LUTHERAN SERVICES FLORIDA HEALTH SYSTEMS

33. LSF Health Systems (Lutheran Services Florida) LSFHS is the Managing Entity for 23 counties in Northeast Florida  Our role is to contract out $93 million in State Substance Abuse and Mental Health Funding to ensure a safety net of services are in place for non-insured people in need of SA/MH services  As part of our contract with the State of Florida, the State has tasked us to implement the SOAR model in our Region

34. Where We Started On July 1, 2014 (start of Florida’s Fiscal Year)  0 SOAR Dedicated Staff in our Region  16 Total Cases Started -12 Approvals - 4 Denials  2 providers entered data from 1 county  0 Data in OAT (None!)

35. Things We Tried To Get It Started  SOAR Dedicated staff  Pilot – Prison with Re-Entry Service Provider  Challenge Grant  Supportive Services for Veterans Families (SSVF)  SSA Presentations  Legislative delegation presentations  4 Different Steering Committees  2- SOAR Training Cohorts

36. Where We Are Now  10 SOAR Dedicated Processors in our Region  92 Total Cases Started  26 Approvals  16 Denials  18 providers entering data from 6 counties.  Only using data in OAT!

37. Lessons Learned  Funding sources need to write SOAR resources into contracts/RFP’s  Leaders need to be trained and actually using SOAR  OAT utilization persistence!  Reach out to other systems you may not have thought about before (VA, DOE, DJJ, DOJ, etc.)  Next step: Utilizing Peer specialists

38. Contact Information Carl W. Falconer SOAR Local Lead Lutheran Services Florida Health Systems Jacksonville, Florida (904)900-1075 cfalconer@lsfnet.org

39. MISSISSIPPI TRISHA HINSON, SOAR STATE LEAD AND SHERRY HOLLOWAY, SOAR LOCAL LEAD

40. Mississippi SOAR Beginnings and Goals  Mississippi developed a state SOAR plan in 2012  Identified need to incorporate SOAR into Mississippi’s mental health system  Key component of plan was implementation of SOAR in the State psychiatric hospitals  SOAR training conducted and MS State Hospital identified as initial site for addition of SOAR to Social Services

41. Mississippi SOAR Beginnings and Goals  In 2014, MS Department of Mental Health received a SAMHSA CABHI-States grant award  Part of the Mississippi CABHI plan includes implementation of SOAR into the state’s comprehensive mental health community services plan  One of our CABHI staff is Sherry Holloway who is also one of our most successful SOAR users in Mississippi

42. SOAR Implementation: State Psychiatric Hospitals  Collaboration with Field Office of Social Security and Disability Determination Local Offices  Initial SSDI/SSI Claims  Denial/Reconsideration/Hearing Level Claims  Follow- up while hospitalized  Follow- up when discharged  Approval/Denials- Corresponding with Individuals post decision

43. THINK RECOVERY

44. Contact Information Trisha Hinson Director of Housing and Community Living/PATH Contact/SOAR State Lead 239 North Lamar 1101 Robert E Lee Building Jackson, MS 39201 (601) 359-6291 Trisha.Hinson@dmh.state.ms.us Sherry Holloway Project Specialist/SOAR Local Lead Mississippi Housing for Recovery/CABHI Sherry.Holloway@dmh.state.ms.us

45. 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.

46. For More Information on SOAR Visit our website: http://soarworks.prainc.com SAMHSA SOAR TA Center 345 Delaware Avenue Delmar, New York 12054 (518) 439 – 7415 soar@prainc.com www.facebook.com/soarworks @SOARWorks