A Collaboration between the UCLID Center and the Greensburg,
PA Bureau of Disability Determination (BDD)
Project Description: The United States Congress passed
a law in August 1996 that changes the way children qualify
for supplemental security income (SSI) disability benefits.
To qualify for SSI benefits, a child must have "marked
and severe functional limitations," resulting from mental
or physical problems or from a combination of problems. Because
children are still developing, it is more difficult to determine
their disability status than to establish the status of adults.
The Children's SSI Project is one component of a national
collaboration between the Social Security Administration
(SSA) and the Association of
University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD). The goal of the project is to improve the determination
of disability in children eligible for SSI. The UCLID Center
has formed a local partnership with the Greensburg Bureau
of Disability Determination (BDD), the local branch of the
SSA that determines eligibility for SSI for adults and children
with disabilities. The UCLID/DDS collaboration focuses on
eligibility for SSI in children with disabilities.
The 2004-2005 UCLID/DDS collaboration plan involves five
core activities:
1. Conduct Case Reviews
The Bureau of Disability Determination (BDD) at Greensburg
and the UCLID Center will schedule recurring meetings to
review challenging cases. UCLID’s multidisciplinary
team members and unit supervisors from BDD appropriate
to the case will attend these meetings. In addition, the
UCLID Center will be available for quick consultations
about individual cases.
2. Provide Specific Trainings
It was determined that the BDD staff could benefit from trainings
on speech and language evaluations and developmental testing.
These trainings are additionally available for distance
learning materials.
3. Expand Outreach Activities
The UCLID Center will organize several outreach seminars
to targeted groups in the community to increase knowledge
of SSI.
4. Add to List of Consultative Examiners
BDD expressed a continued need to increase the number of
consultative examiners it draws from in key disciplines.
UCLID will explore several methods of adding quality examiners
to this list.
5. Track Evaluation of Collaboration
Both collaborators are interested in developing a tool for
evaluation of the continuation phase of the SSI project.
