Work & other Financials
Overview
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Short Term Disability - STD
Short Term Disability is just like it sounds, for the short term. If it is offered by the company (not all do) it will likely be good for around 6 months of time. Often it is based upon work hours even if you are a salaried employee. Further, there are different policies from company to company on when it takes affect, must sick time be used in part of in full first. Does it pay 100% (very unlikely) or some percentage of salary, or hourly. If hourly, it could be based upon the amount of hours logged over a designated period prior to illness.
In our case it was 70% of salary.
Here is the big thing, work it if you can! Meaning, my husband's policy had a provision that said if he returned to work for 2 weeks with at least 32 hours a week worked, the next time he went out the 6 month clock for STD would reset! And we did this! He was out for two months, then returned to work for 3 1/2 months. Then was out on STD for nearly 2 1/2 months before he died. (Also see FMLA and Health Insurance)
Check the worksheet tab for a list of questions that I asked or recommend you check out and go through with the HR department of the employer.
Long Term Disability - LTD
This is less common than STD. It is not a required offering of an employer, but it is great if you have it. LTD only takes affect after you have exhausted STD benefits. Depending on the policy it may last until the covered person dies. But often it is at a lower percentage of pay than even STD.
In our case it would have been 60%. My husband did not live long enough for this to become an issue for us but it was part of our plan.
Federal Medical Leave Act - FMLA
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Life Insurance
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Social Security Disability - SSDI
It seems natural to say, well if I am sick and can not work than I should apply for Social Security Disability, I have paid in, now I should take it out. BEWARE! Don't go so fast, even if you are in a similar situation to my husband, he had Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. This diagnosis automatically qualified him for Social Security Disability benefits. Sounds great, but we were advised by our attorney that he should not apply to SSDI because his employer could see this as a move that my husband would not be returning to work if he is considered permanently disabled and not returning to work. That means that they could terminate him and thus loose ALL FMLA protections, STD and LTD payments, which in our case were more than what would have been available under SSDI. Additionally, our employer sponsored portion of health insurance would have ceased and we would have been forced onto COBRA. Cobra is expensive!!
It is possible that we could have qualified for an alternative healthcare coverage, but that could have also meant:
new deductible
new doctors
New hospitals.
The important thing here is ask lots and lots of questions. Do it over email so that you have everything in writing and never, but never take anyone's verbal for it! Literally life is hanging in the balance! And you don't need anymore stress than you already have.
Go to the worksheets tab for help with what to ask.