CONTINUATION OF YOUR FERS DISABILITY ANNUITY

Federal employees, here’s something you should be aware of. Even after your disability claim has been approved, and after you have been receiving your disability retirement annuity, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) still may require additional medical reviews from you to determine whether or not you have recovered from your disabling condition. This means that you may need to provide the OPM with updated medical documentation from your treating physician, or OPM may require you to have an annual physical examination, or both. Additionally, you will be responsible for all of the expenses related to your medical reviews.

Just as disability filing deadlines can affect the outcome of your claim, so too can your response or lack of it to the OPM’s request affect your benefits. You must respond. Failure to do so may result in a suspension of your disability annuity. Your disability payments will cease until it is proven that you continue to be disabled, creating a great deal of stress in your personal life. It’s best to avoid this and pay attention to any and all requests from the OPM.

Based upon the results and analysis of your medical review, the OPM may find that you have recovered from your disability. In that event, your disability annuity will be discontinued one (1) year from the date of your medical exam or review, or your annuity will discontinue when and if you return to the federal work-force – which ever comes first.

If and when you recover from your disability, you may be eligible for priority referral under the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan for Displaced Employees. Of course, there is no guarantee that you will be able to return to your former job position or that there will be another job position available for you. It simply means that all Federal agencies will consider you for positions you are qualified for. However, to benefit from this policy, you must apply directly to the agency (or agencies) with the specific job vacancy you are interested in. It is important to remain proactive through this entire process.

It also is wise to seek the advice of an attorney who focuses on FERS/CSRS disability law. He or she can help you to file a claim, obtain your annuity, and respond to the OPM when you need to. As with most government programs, the FERS/CSRS disability claims process can be cumbersome. An attorney knowledgeable in FERS/CSRS disability law knows the deadlines, the procedures, and can help to alleviate the stress so that you can concentrate on recovering.

FERS & CSRS Disability Eligibility

For federal employees and civil servants seeking to make a disability claim under the CSRS/FERS disability retirement systems, sometimes just knowing whether you are eligible to make such a claim can be confusing and complicated. And although the terms defined in the CSRS/FERS Disability Manuals are meant to help you determine disability eligibility, sorting through those definitions can be annoying at best, and impossible at worst, especially when you are struggling to deal with an illness or injury.

So, let's examine some of those terms and put them into relevant context; what do they all mean?

For instance, according to the OPM CSRS/FERS Disability Manual on Disability Retirement, one of the criterion for filing a claim states that you must have a deficiency in service with respect to performance, attendance, or conduct, or, in absence of any actual service deficiency, a showing that the medical condition is incompatible with either useful service or retention in the position. Translated, this means that if you are disabled and want to file a claim, you must prove that your disability adversely affects your work. For example, because you are disabled you cannot do your job as well, or you are having to take too much time off and cannot keep up with the work load. Or, your disability, whether physical or psychological, has a negative impact on your overall behavior.

Regardless of whether your job performance already is negatively affected or whether it will be in the future, you always should go to your doctor and obtain detailed medical documentation.

The CSRS/FERS Disability Manual also states that your medical condition is defined as a health impairment from disease or injury, including psychiatric disease. This seems straightforward, however, there may be some gray areas. For example, a person may have been diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes as a child, and may have been able to manage the disease for many years. Then, at some point, the diabetes becomes much more complicated, and begins to interfere with everyday job performance. When filing for a CSRS/FERS disability claim, the claimant will have to show medical documentation that his diabetes, which he has lived with almost a lifetime, now results in a deficiency in service. You cannot assume that OPM, because they were informed about your pre-existing illness, will simply approve your claim.

According to OPM, you also must prove a relationship between the service deficiency and the medical condition. That is, simply having a medical condition is not enough. The medical condition must cause or contribute to the deficiency in service. And, you must present medical documentation that your disability will continue for at least one full year.

The last two items on the eligibility list deal with accommodation. When you are filing for disability, you have to prove that your employer cannot accommodate your medical condition in the workplace. (The inability of the employing agency to reasonably accommodate the employee's medical condition.) For example, a person with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome might need a reduction in hours. Or, someone with severe allergies might require a dust-free environment. While it sometimes is possible for employers to accommodate these special medical needs, much depends upon the type of work done in the facility, the physical characteristics of the building, the size of the staff, etc. If your employer is unable to accommodate your disability, you then are eligible to file a disability claim.

Finally, when you file a CSRS/FERS disability claim, your employer may be able to reassign you in order to accommodate your disability needs. (The agency's consideration of the employee for reassignment to any vacant position within the employing agency, and commuting area, at the same grade or pay level for which the employee is qualified.) If this is not a reasonable possibility, you are eligible for disability retirement. Conversely, if your employer is able to accommodate your reassignment, and you turn it down, that can adversely affect your disability claim.

Most important, if you are considering filing a CSRS/FERS disability claim, make certain you have read through your CSRS/FERS Disability Retirement Manual, have all of your medical documentation in order, and consult with an attorney knowledgeable in CSRS/FERS disability law.

At our firm, DeHaan Busse LLP, we focus on federal and civil employee disability law, and are available for a free legal evaluation.

You can contact us at: info@fersdisability.net