Evaluation Design Options for the Long-Term Care Registered Apprenticeship Program

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy EVALUATION DESIGN OPTIONS FOR THE LONG-TERM CARE REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM September 2011 Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) is the principal advisor to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on policy development issues, and is responsible for major activities in the areas of legislative and budget development, strategic planning, policy research and evaluation, and economic analysis. ASPE develops or reviews issues from the viewpoint of the Secretary, providing a perspective that is broader in scope than the specific focus of the various operating agencies. ASPE also works closely with the HHS operating divisions. It assists these agencies in developing policies, and planning policy research, evaluation and data collection within broad HHS and administration initiatives. ASPE often serves a coordinating role for crosscutting policy and administrative activities. ASPE plans and conducts evaluations and research--both in-house and through support of projects by external researchers--of current and proposed programs and topics of particular interest to the Secretary, the Administration and the Congress. Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy The Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy (DALTCP), within ASPE, is responsible for the development, coordination, analysis, research and evaluation of HHS policies and programs which support the independence, health and long-term care of persons with disabilities--children, working aging adults, and older persons. DALTCP is also responsible for policy coordination and research to promote the economic and social well-being of the elderly. In particular, DALTCP addresses policies concerning: nursing home and community-based services, informal caregiving, the integration of acute and long-term care, Medicare post-acute services and home care, managed care for people with disabilities, long-term rehabilitation services, children’s disability, and linkages between employment and health policies. These activities are carried out through policy planning, policy and program analysis, regulatory reviews, formulation of legislative proposals, policy research, evaluation and data planning. This report was prepared through a contract #HHSP23337001T funded by an Interagency Agreement between HHS’s ASPE/DALTCP and the U.S. Department of Labor. For additional information about this subject, you can visit the DALTCP home page at http://aspe.hhs.gov/_/office_specific/daltcp.cfm or contact the ASPE Project Officer, Marie Squillace, at HHS/ASPE/DALTCP, Room 424E, H.H. Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201. Her e-mail address is: Marie.Squillace@hhs.gov. EVALUATION DESIGN OPTIONS FOR THE LONG-TERM CARE REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM Joshua M. Wiener, Ph.D. Wayne L. Anderson, Ph.D. RTI International Daniel Kuehn, M.P.P. Robert Lerman, Ph.D. Urban Institute September 2011 Prepared for Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Contract #HHSP23337001T The project has been funded in partnership between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration, Office of Apprenticeship under Task Order No. HHSP23337001T. The contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of HHS or DOL, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement of the same by the U.S. government. RTI International is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to RTI International, its board of governors, or its funders. The Urban Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan Research and educational organization established in Washington, D.C., in 1968. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. i TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................ iv 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1 2. BACKGROUND ON THE LONG-TERM CARE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM ......................................................