State Disability Insurance Benefits
State disability insurance benefits are also called temporary
disability insurance benefits and short-term disability insurance
benefits.
That's because they provide workers with partial wage replacement
for disabling, nonoccupational illnesses and injuries that aren't expected
to last for long.
 Workers'
compensation insurance typically covers both short- and long-term,
disabling, occupational illnesses and injuries. Occupational
illnesses and injuries occur in the course of employment.
At this writing, only the five states listed below and the Commonwealth
of Puerto Rico provide
or require employers to provide short-term disability insurance benefits.
The name of each state disability insurance program is included.
All
of the state disability insurance programs listed above pay maternity
disability insurance benefits for pregnancy,
childbirth and related disabling medical conditions. At this writing,
only California pays benefits for paternity leave (father). The Federal Family
and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) covers paternity leave for eligible
fathers, but it doesn't make sick pay mandatory.
If your state is listed above, then your employee rights might entitle
you to collect state disability insurance benefits, even if you're unemployed
at the time your disabling, nonoccupational illness or injury occurs. However,
your employee rights likely do not entitle you to collect state disability
insurance benefits and unemployment
benefits at the same time.
If you disagree with a determination made about you after you've filed
a claim for benefits from state disability insurance, then your employee
rights entitle you to appeal the determination, file a lawsuit in court
or both.
If you are to appear in a hearing before an appeals board or administrative
law judge, then it might be a good idea to have an attorney represent
you. (The same goes for filing a lawsuit in court.) In fact, the appeals
board or judge might recommend it. Many attorneys specialize
in representing people who appeal state benefit denials and might take
such cases on contingency.
If your state doesn't have a disability insurance program, then your employer
might provide one among its employee
benefits for free or at group rates. (Check with your employer's human
resources department or equivalent.) If neither your employer nor state
provides disability insurance, then you might consider purchasing it on
your own to protect your wages.
In the absence of state disability insurance, your work state might at
least offer free "back-to-work"
assistance programs, such as food stamps, vocational rehabilitation, job-searching
help, work aids and self-employment
assistance.
State back-to-work disability assistance programs are typically administered
by divisions of state labor departments,
such as unemployment offices. Alternately
or additionally, state workers' compensation
boards or welfare-related offices might administer same.
If
you've been unable to work for at least a year due to a disabling illness
or injury, then you might qualify for Social
Security disability benefits.
See also Disability.gov,
a Federal Government Web site designed to help disabled people.
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