To learn about whether young adults with intellectual disabilities in the vocational rehabilitation (VR) program are getting work experience, we examined the age at application of people with intellectual disabilities who exited the VR program in 2012.
Data Note Archive
In FY2012, an estimated 605,680 individuals received day or employment supports from state IDD program agencies. This number grew from 457,405 in FY1999. The estimated number of individuals in integrated employment services increased from 108,680 in FY1999 to 111,670 in FY2012. State investment continues to emphasize facility-based and non-work services, rather than integrated employment services.
Beginning in FY2013, the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities requested that each Project of National Significance include the five primary territories of the United States in data collection and analysis efforts. The five territories included in this analysis are American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.
Engaging in employment at a young age is critical for workforce participation later in adulthood. This Data Note compares, for youth ages 16–21, the employment rates of those who have cognitive disabilities with the employment rates of their peers without disabilities.
People with intellectual disabilities (ID) aspire to gainful employment1. To assist them with this goal, state vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies offer employment services based upon Individualized Plans for Employment (IPEs). A commonly used measure of outcomes is the rehabilitation rate, defined as the percentage of individuals exiting the program who have achieved an employment outcome after receiving services with an IPE. This indicator does not consider that not all eligible consumers progress to receive services after an IPE is developed. This occurs for a variety of individual, service, and systems reasons. Reviewing data for eligible consumers who do not receive services provides a more complete picture of the experiences of individuals who engage with and exit the VR system.
Rehabilitation Engagement of Young Adults with Intellectual Disabilities
Since Fiscal Year 1988, the Institute for Community Inclusion has administered the National Survey of Day and Employment Programs for People with Developmental Disabilities to state Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IDD) Agencies. The work is funded by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities and is designed to describe the nature of day and employment services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) provides guidance and technical assistance to decision makers at all levels of government on the design, structure, content, and use of mental health information systems. The goal is to improve the quality of mental health programs and service delivery. CMHS operates the only program in the nation that focuses on the development of data standards that provide the basis for uniform, comparable, high-quality statistics on mental health services. This makes it a model in the health care statistics field. Data is stored in the Uniform Reporting System Output Tables.
In 2002, about six children aged eight years per every 1000 people in the general population received a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The corresponding figure in 2008 was about 11 children, a 78% increase in just six years.
A excerpt from the 2011 statedata book
Data Source: The National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS-2)
Data Source: 2010 Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) 911
In FY2010, an estimated 566,188 individuals received day or employment supports from state intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) agencies. This number grew from 458,650 in FY1999, a 23.4 percent increase. The estimated number of individuals supported in integrated employment services increased from 108,296 in FY1999 to 113,937 in FY2010, a 5.2% increase. State investment in supports continues to emphasize facility-based and non-work services rather than integrated employment services. Figure 1 shows the trends in the percentage of people served in integrated employment and facility-based and non-work settings between FY2004 and FY2010.
VR Outcome Trends and the Recent Decline in Employment for VR Customers with Intellectual Disabilities
The National Survey of State Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Day and Employment Services is a longitudinal study commissioned by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities to analyze trends in community-based day and employment services between FY1988 and FY2009 for individuals with IDD and closely related conditions.
Data over the past ten years from 17 states1 demonstrate that the percentage of individuals reported by state IDD agencies that have received facility-based work services declined from 36.0% in FY1999 to 26.4% in FY2009.
Integrated employment is a critical goal because it leads to greater economic self-sufficiency, social inclusion, and personal satisfaction. Unfortunately, high schools do not always include integrated employment as a primary goal in the transition plans of students with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Moreover, in some cases sheltered employment is listed as the primary goal. As Table 1 demonstrates, only 53% of students with intellectual or developmental disabilities had integrated employment listed as a primary goal in their transition plans, and 10% had sheltered employment listed as a primary goal.
The National Survey of State Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Day and Employment Services is a longitudinal study commissioned by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities to analyze community-based day and employment service trends between FY1988 and FY2009 for individuals with IDD and closely related conditions.
The Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 established a nationwide system of public employment services, known as the Employment Service. Via the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, the Employment Service was made part of the One-Stop Career Center service-delivery system. Wagner-Peyser is a primary source of funding for these centers, which make employment services available to all people, including those with disabilities. There are currently 1,800+ comprehensive One-Stop Career Centers throughout the United States, as well as satellite and affiliate centers.
Setting expectations and goals in high school is key for a successful transition into adulthood. Postsecondary education is a particularly important goal because higher levels of educational attainment are associated with increased quality of life, including better employment outcomes. Unfortunately, the transition plans of students with autism do not often include postsecondary education as a goal.