A Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) Report: The Status of the Medicaid Infrastructure Grants Program as of 12/31/08

The Medicaid Infrastructure Grant (MIG) program provides funding to states for the development of infrastructure necessary to promote competitive employment for people with disabilities and reduce the obstacles they face as they attempt to find and/or maintain employment. It was authorized as part of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 (hereafter, the Ticket Act). Through the Medicaid Buy-In program, the Ticket Act also expanded Medicaid coverage by providing health care and related services to enhance employment options for certain categories of employed individuals with disabilities. The MIG program has been administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) since its inception in 2001. Its goals have become increasingly relevant for workers with disabilities during the current economic recession. The program will no longer award funding to states after fiscal year (FY) 2011.

The MIG program has three major goals: (1) protecting and enhancing health care, other benefits, and necessary employment supports; (2) maximizing employment for people with disabilities; and (3) expanding the states’ labor force by encouraging people with disabilities to work. More than $205 million of MIG funding was awarded between 2001 and 2008 to 49 states plus the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In 2008 and throughout all years of the program, states have used MIG funds to support planning and establishment of the Medicaid Buy-In program, personal assistance services (PAS), supported employment, transportation, benefits counseling and work incentives programs, employment training and education, employment networking, research and evaluation, outreach, and other infrastructure improvement activities.