How Much Does Short-Term Disability Pay In Georgia?

When disability strikes someone who works every day, they can become overwhelmed with anxiety about where they will find the money to pay their bills. Those with a long-term disability can turn to Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). But only people with impairments lasting a year or more are eligible for those programs.

What About Short-Term Disability Programs?

Neither the federal government nor the State of Georgia administers any disability programs for people who suffer short-term nonwork-related illnesses or injuries. Instead, anyone who wishes to have short-term disability insurance coverage must either purchase a short-term disability policy from a private insurance company or rely on a policy that may be available through their employer as a benefit.

Short-term disability insurance provides valuable payments to those unable to work for weeks or months. Generally, if someone’s physical or mental impairment is severe enough to keep them from working for more than a year, they would be eligible for one of the federal long-term disability programs mentioned above, SSDI or SSI.

Short-Term Disability Policy Terms in Georgia

The specific terms of a short-term disability insurance policy vary with respect to a number of key elements:

• What is the amount of the weekly short-term benefit payment?
• What qualifies as a disability?
• How long is the waiting period (exclusion period) before benefits payments begin?
• Is pregnancy covered?
• How long is the benefit period? (When will benefits stop?)
• How long is the waiting period for preexisting condition coverage?

How Much Does Short-Term Disability Pay?

Each short-term disability policy pays you a percentage of your normal weekly wages. The percentage is usually no more than 60% to 66% of those wages, but the percentage may be lower if your policy specifies that it pays a smaller percentage.

The percentage of normal wages paid by a short-term disability policy depends on the amount of the premium paid for the insurance by the policyholder. If someone buys a disability policy privately, their premium will fit their ability to pay and their need for coverage. When the disability policy is provided through an employer, workers should learn the details of their coverage and what percentage of their wage will be paid if they file a claim.

Remember, these short-term disability policies are intended to cover “nonwork-related” illness and injury. Work-related disability insurance is provided by your employer’s worker’s compensation insurance and perhaps by Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) if the length of disability last a year or longer.

What Qualifies as a Disability?

The terms of the short-term disability policy will specify what qualifies for benefit payments. Virtually all such policies apply the following rules to any benefits claim:

• The worker’s income loss begins after the policy’s effective date.
• The accident or illness causing the disability occurs while the policy is still in force.
• The condition or the cause of the accident or illness is not excluded in terms of the policy.
• Income is lost as a result of the policyholder’s disability.
• A physician must continue to oversee the insured’s medical condition.

The insurer who underwrites the policy will typically require access to the claimant’s medical records and seek regular certification from the claimant’s doctors that the impairment is disabling.

Pregnancy can be a covered disability as it progresses, but the short-term disability policy must be purchased and effective before the pregnancy begins. If the policy is obtained after the claimant becomes pregnant, the pregnancy will be excludable as a preexisting condition.

Waiting Periods Before Benefits Will Be Paid

Most short-term disability policies include either a 7-day waiting period or a 30-day waiting period from the beginning of the date the worker loses income until the policy pays benefits.

As with other important terms in the policy, the length of the waiting period is a factor that will affect the price of the policy’s premium. A policy with a shorter waiting period will usually come with a higher premium cost.

The waiting period is included to eliminate coverage for claims arising from extremely short illnesses or injury-related disability. For example, without at least a 7-day waiting period, a person might be able to claim benefits after missing only a couple of days because of a bad head cold.

Another common policy term relates to preexisting conditions. Someone who suffers from a preexisting condition may still purchase a short-term disability insurance policy. However, claims arising from a disability related to that preexisting condition are usually excluded for the first 12 months after the policy becomes effective.

How Long Can You Collect Benefit Payments from Short-Term Disability in Georgia?

Once you file a claim for benefits under a short-term disability policy in Georgia, how long will it continue to pay?

The length of your benefits coverage period is another negotiable term that can vary with the price of the policy you choose. While many policies will continue to pay for up to a year, many also have a maximum payment amount or a cap on how much you may collect in a given month.

For example, a policy may provide for payment of up to 60% of your normal wages during the course of your disability but not more than $5,000 in any single month.

Check with a Georgia Short-Term Disability Attorney for Answers to Your Questions

The Keener Law Firm is among the most experienced professional disability law firms in Georgia. We want to help you get the most from your disability policy when you are entitled to benefits. If you need help with a disability claim or you think you are receiving less than you are entitled to, contact The Keener Law Firm today.