Impacting Entry into Evidence-Based Supported Employment : A Population-Based Empirical Analysis of a Statewide Public Mental Health Program in Maryland

Access to evidence-based supported employment (SE) services for persons with serious mental illness is limited in the U.S., despite evidence such services are effective and could benefit more persons. Major barriers to SE expansion are overlapping and limited funding streams, and interagency coordination problems. An important recent initiative in one state (Maryland) addressed both types of barriers. This longitudinal analysis of SE take-up probabilities for population-based cohorts of Medicaid recipients, during 2002-2010, provided tentative evidence of initiative impacts (particularly during the recession downturn), and evidence of effects for a schizophrenia diagnosis, prior work-history, health and demographic characteristics, and geographic accessibility