Long Term Disability

Video Transcript

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[CAROL] My name is Carol Nickerson and I am
a Case Manager in Medical Leaves Administration.

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I am here to talk to you about long term disability.
Cornell's long term disability

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plan is fully insured and administered by New York Life.
As case managers our role

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is to assist with the application process and
to serve as the main point of contact

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for employees applying for long term
disability coverage. To be eligible for

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long term disability benefits an employee must
be in a benefits eligible position,

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they must be on a medical leave, whether that
be short term disability or workers' compensation,

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for at least 180 days and finally the medical disability
must be approved by New York Life. While

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an employee is on a medical leave. A case
manager will reach out if it appears that

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the leave may continue for up to, or beyond six months,

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this conversation provides an opportunity to discuss

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a potential return to work plan, in conjunction with
determining if it is time to begin the

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application process for long term disability.
The application is typically submitted approximately

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three to four months after the start of a
leave. This is to allow enough time for New

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York Life to obtain necessary medical documentation.

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If long term disability is approved, New York Life

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will provide up to 60% of the base annual salary
on a monthly basis. This is taxable income

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and there are other benefits that could reduce this
payment, for example workers' compensation

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or social security. Additionally certain Cornell benefits
can continue if long-term disability is approved.

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Please do not hesitate to contact
Medical Leaves Administration if you would

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like more information regarding long term disability benefits

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you may call our main number at
607-255-1177 or email us at wcds@cornell.edu.

The Cornell Long-Term Disability (LTD) Plan (administered by CIGNA) provides an important financial safety net to eligible employees unable to work because of debilitating illness or injury.

Endowed employees are enrolled in long-term disability coverage automatically. Contract College employees pay a nominal fee. See eligibility requirements below for additional details.

LTD benefits continue as long as you remain disabled or until the maximum benefit period has been reached at your social security normal retirement age (SSNRA). For employees who are age 60 or over at the time the disability begins, the maximum benefit period is the later of the employee’s SSNRA or 5 years from the date the employee became disabled.

Salary

The LTD plan pays a monthly benefit equal to 60% of your regular monthly income at the time of disability and up to a maximum monthly benefit of $20,000. The paid benefit is reducedby any amount of money you receive from the following:

Workers’ compensation
Federal social security disability
Retirement
No-fault auto insurance lost wage benefits
Employer salary continuation

Benefits

You are also eligible to participate in health, retirement, and other benefits at a cost1. What you are eligible for depends on whether you have endowed or Contract College benefits. Not sure? Click here to find out.

Benefits
	Contract College	Endowed
Health Insurance	You are billed for the full employee and employer share of your health coverage directly from the New York State Department of Civil Service. Once you are on “long term disability” status, Empire Plan enrollees may be eligible for a waiver of premium benefit if your medical leave of absence is not work-related. If the Empire Plan waiver is approved, your health insurance is provided to you at no cost for up to one year.	You are billed for the employee contribution toward the cost of your health coverage by PayFlex while you receive long term disability income benefits from CIGNA.
Dental Insurance	Your state administered dental coverage is automatically terminated once you are placed on a leave without pay status. If you wish to continue your dental coverage while on leave without pay, you need to complete a PS-404, section 12 “Leave Without Pay” and select the box “I wish to continue coverage while I am on authorized leave. I understand that I will be billed for this coverage.” You are responsible for paying the full cost of the premiums for dental coverage while on leave. You will be billed directly from the New York State Department of Civil Service.	You are billed for the employee contribution toward the cost of your dental coverage by PayFlex while you receive long term disability income benefits from Cigna.
Vision Insurance	NY State does not provide vision insurance.	You are billed for the employee contribution toward the cost of your vision coverage by PayFlex while you receive long term disability income benefits from Cigna.
LTD Return to Work	LTD with Concurrent Job: If you return to work in a non-benefits eligible position and then move into a benefits eligible position, the benefits will continue in LTD status with the NY State Department of Civil Service. The health insurance premiums will not be deducted from the secondary job salary in Workday. If LTD Ends: When you return to payroll in a regular full-time benefits eligible position, billing by the NY State Department of Civil Service will end. If coverage was cancelled while on LTD, you may re-enroll in the health/dental plans within 30 days of returning to payroll. Contact the HR Services and Transitions Center at (607) 255-3936 for further assistance.	LTD with Concurrent Job: If you return to work in a non-benefits eligible position and then move into a benefits eligible position, the health, dental and vision benefits will continue in LTD status with PayFlex. The health, dental and vision benefits will not be deducted from the secondary job salary in Workday. If LTD Ends: When you return to payroll in a regular full-time benefits eligible position, billing with PayFlex will end. If coverage was cancelled while on LTD, you may re-enroll in the health, dental and vision benefits within 60 days of returning to payroll. Contact the HR Services and Transitions Center at (607) 255-3936 for further assistance.
Life Insurance	Your Basic Life Insurance Plan will continue at no cost to you. For your Group Universal Life (GUL) Plan, CIGNA, which also insures the University’s life insurance plans, will ask you to complete a “Waiver of Premium” form at the time you make application for an income benefit under the Long-Term Disability Plan. If you qualify for the Waiver of Premium status, the premiums for the GUL coverage on you, the employee, will be waived at the time of your LTD approval and while you continue on disability. If you carry dependent or spousal coverage under your GUL Plan, you will be billed if you wish to continue coverage while on LTD. Should you be denied for Waiver of Premium but wish to continue your Group Universal Life coverage, you will be direct billed for the premiums.	Your Basic Life Insurance Plan will continue at no cost to you. For your Group Universal Life (GUL) Plan, CIGNA, which also insures the University’s life insurance plans, will ask you to complete a “Waiver of Premium” form at the time you make application for an income benefit under the Long-Term Disability Plan. If you qualify for the Waiver of Premium status, the premiums for the GUL coverage on you, the employee, will be waived at the time of your LTD approval and while you continue on disability. If you carry dependent or spousal coverage under your GUL Plan, you will be billed if you wish to continue coverage while on LTD. Should you be denied for Waiver of Premium but wish to continue your Group Universal Life coverage, you will be direct billed for the premiums.
Retirement	Individuals who are vested in NYSERS must separately qualify for disability retirement status under their respective retirement plan. Disability retirement benefits generally continue for life. NYSERS – If approved, you receive a benefit based on the years of service credited to your retirement at the time you become disabled. You do not accrue additional NYSERS service credit while you receive LTD benefits. ORP – If you are a participant in the Optional Retirement Plan (ORP at the time you became disabled), Cornell will continue the employer contribution based on your tier level and pay when you became disabled. The contribution will be made to an account for you in the endowed CURP plan.	If you are a participant in the endowed retirement plan (CURP) at the time you become disabled, Cornell continues to contribute 10% of the budgeted annual salary you received when you became disabled.

Eligibility

You must meet all of the following criteria:

Be scheduled to work a minimum of 1,000 hours or more per calendar year, or have actually worked at least 1,000 hours or more in the year immediately prior, to be eligible under this plan. All current employees working more than half-time who meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to participate in this program immediately. All current half-time employees who meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to participate after completing three (3) years of active service.
Have participated in 180 days of short-term disability or workers’ compensation.
Have a medical disability approved by CIGNA. Approval is based on the medical information received from your treating physicians to support your disability claim.
1. First 12 months: You are unable to perform all of your regular job duties, solely due to injury or sickness, and you are unable to earn more than 80% of your indexed covered earning.
2. After 12 months: You are unable to perform all the material duties of any occupation you may reasonably become qualified based on education, training or experience.

Additional New York State Benefits

Contract College employees who are members of the Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS) or the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and have the proper number of years of service may be eligible to receive a disability and/or death benefit from FERS or CSRS. Contact the Cooperative Extension Finance and Personnel Office at (607) 255-2292 for information.

How to Apply

While you are on short-term disability leave or workers’ compensation, and it appears your disability will continue up to or beyond six (6) months, Medical Leaves Administration will contact you to begin the application process. If you would like to begin the process sooner, you may also choose to contact Medical Leaves Administration at (607) 255-1177.

This web page is a simplified summary of your benefits. The complete terms of the long-term disability program are contained in the official plan document*, which will govern in case of discrepancy.

*please contact Medical Leaves Administration if assistance is required with document accessibility.

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