Achieve Employment Goals While Maintaining Vital Government Benefits

Achieve Employment Goals While Maintaining Vital Government Benefits

Achieva Family Trust has offered important information for years to individuals throughout Pennsylvania regarding the value of employment and earning money while at the same time maintaining life-sustaining government benefits. Benefits Counseling (BC) is a service that is now available to people in Community HealthChoices (CHC) and the Intellectual and Developmental Disability (I/DD) “waiver” programs. This past year, Achieva Family Trust’s BC service saw its first client through the I/DD waiver program. Michael came to Achieva when his job was terminated after 28 years of employment during the state’s COVID-19 stay-at-home directive. Due to his pension plan with his employer, Michael suddenly had resources that exceeded what was permitted to maintain his much-needed waiver services. The Family Trust team was able to advise Gwen (Michael’s sister and advocate) early in March to help him apply for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) to regain a monthly income. This took many months during the pandemic, with communication challenges and long waits for responses and letters from the Social Security Administration. However, with perseverance by all involved, Michael officially received SSDI based on his work history by the end of the year.

Achieva’s Employment Benefits team will continue to follow Michael’s progress. He wants to continue working on a part-time basis once he can receive the COVID vaccine. The BC service will be important when Michael returns to work since any new income could impact his SSDI benefits. The Family Trust team can track and monitor Michael’s benefits so he can maximize his SSDI and work income. With the help of the BC service, Michael will be working soon and enjoying all the opportunities and positive outcomes competitive-integrated work provides.

Contact Achieva Family Trust’s Employment Benefits Counseling team at 412.995.5000 x565 with any questions regarding employment and its impact on government benefits or visit achievafamilytrust.org for more information.