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Calculating Last Day In Pay Status (LDIP) For A Federal Disability Annuitant When The Employee Has Accepted Donated Leave

April 18th, 2011

By: Elliott Andalman, Attorney At Law and Michelle Amick, Legal Intern
©2011

When the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approves an application for disability retirement, the annuitant is awarded retroactive benefits from the annuitant’s last day in pay status (LDIP). Whether you receive federal disability assistance as a FERS or CSRS disability annuitant, determining your last day in pay is an important decision and you need to know how donated leave affects the calculation of LDIP.

Donated leave is annual or sick leave that other employees have “donated” to a leave bank for use by employees with medical emergencies. Donated leave is normally posted in the pay period it is paid to you. Consequently, the last date that donated leave is received by you will be certified by the agency as your LDIP. This may be a problem because you could possibly lose months of past due disability annuity payments if you were on leave without pay prior to the receipt of the donated leave.

In order to avoid this problem, we recommend that retiring employees make sure to request that their donated leave is credited retroactively to the date that the employee exhausted his/her unused leave balances.  Agencies may be resistant to doing this, but you should insist. OPM does provide for this to be done.  See OPM, “Frequently Asked Questions About Leave,” available at www.opm.gov.

If you are a federal or postal employee contemplating filing or have already filed an application for federal disability assistance, then you should consult with an experienced attorney. At Andalman & Flynn, our team of legal professionals can assist and represent you to protect your rights and increase your chances of success with your disability retirement annuity claim.  Feel free to call us at 301-563-6685 or toll-free at 1-888-558-7871. You can also visit our website at www.andalmanflynn.com and complete one of our website contact forms so we can contact your for a consultation concerning your situation.

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Posted in Disability Law, Federal Disability Retirement, Long Term Disability

Spouse Insurance: Navigating Federal Health Insurance Regulations to Ensure Coverage after your Death

April 13th, 2011

By:  Elliott Andalman, Attorney at Law and Michelle Amick, Legal Intern
© 2011

For many federal employees, making arrangements to maintain health insurance for a surviving spouse after the death of the annuitant is a priority. There are many choices from which the retiring employee will have to select.

The requirements to maintain spouse insurance listed in federal health care regulations vary according to the federal system under which you are retiring.

  • Under CSRS, the minimum amount you can leave a survivor in order for them to maintain their health care is one dollar ($1.00) per month.  “Survivor Benefits Elections, Court-Ordered Benefits, and Children’s Benefits,” Retirement Information and Services, Office of Personnel Management, available at http://www.opm.gov/retire/faq/post/faq2.asp
  • Under FERS, the minimum election you can make to provide your survivor health insurance after your death is 25% of your un-reduced annuity.  “Survivor Benefits Elections, Court-Ordered Benefits, and Children’s Benefits,” Retirement Information and Services, Office of Personnel Management, available at http://www.opm.gov/retire/faq/post/faq2.asp

If you are a federal employee contemplating filing or have already filed an application for a disability retirement annuity, you should consult an experienced attorney.   At Andalman & Flynn, our team of legal professionals can assist and represent your rights and increase your chances of success with your disability retirement annuity claim.

If we can be of assistance to you, please call us at 301-563-6685 or toll-free at 1-888-558-7871.  You can also visit our website at www.andalmanflynn.com and complete one of our website contact forms so we can contact you for a consultation concerning your situation.

By:  Elliot Andalman, Andalman & Flynn- reply via email at eandalman@a-f.net and Michelle Amick- reply via email at mamick@a-f.net

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Posted in Disability Law, Federal Disability Retirement, Long Term Disability

Using Post-Separation Medical Records and Reports in Government Disability Retirement Cases to Satisfy OPM Regulations

April 6th, 2011

By, Elliott Andalman, Esq. & Michelle Amick

Due to the nature of many illnesses and how quickly sickness or injury can upend employment plans, federal and postal workers often obtain medical reports and records after their separation to support claims for disability retirement benefits. Of course, to win these types of claims you must prove that you became disabled on or before your last day of work. Unfortunately, OPM sometimes rejects medical reports and treatment records, particularly, if they are based on treatment that post-dates the separation from work.

Don’t accept OPM denial decisions based on OPM’s rejection of this type of evidence and don’t fail to submit medical evidence that you obtain after your separation.

O.P.M. regulation (C.F.R. § 831.1206(c)) and a recent Federal Circuit decision in Reilly v. O.P.M., 571 F.3d 1372 (Fed.Cir. 2009), require that post-separation medical evidence generally be considered by OPM disability retirement caseworkers. The Court noted that not only are non-contemporaneous medical records relevant to the determination of whether the onset of disability occurred on the date alleged, but also that all medical reports are inevitably rendered retrospectively and should not be disregarded simply because of this.

If you are in need of representation in the area of disability benefits, including FERS/CSRS disability retirement, Social Security Disability, Long Term Disability or Maryland State Disability Retirement, please do not hesitate to contact Elliott Andalman, and experienced disability retirement lawyer online or by calling 301-563-6685. Consultations are normally free.

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Posted in Disability Law, Federal Disability Retirement, Long Term Disability

Elliott Andalman Appointed to Represent NOSSCR

March 25th, 2011

Elliott Andalman was appointed to represent NOSSCR, the National Organization of Social Security Claimant Representatives, at a meeting on Thursday, March 10, 2011, called by the Social Security Administration’s Office of External Affairs to explore improvement of the online application process for disability, retirement and medicare benefits, including the possibility of developing Spanish versions of the applications.  It was chaired by Aviva Sufian, Associate Commissioner for External Affairs, and included approximately 15 organizations.  The Administration obtained input from the organizations present and will be moving forward with this project.

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Posted in Andalman & Flynn News, Disability Law, Federal Disability Retirement, Long Term Disability

Attorney Elliott Andalman’s article on ‘The Scope of Discovery in ERISA Actions Post-Glenn’ is Published in the Maryland Association for Justice Trial Reporter

January 28th, 2011

By, Elliott Andalman & Michelle Amick

Attorney Elliott Andalman, along with law clerk Michelle Amick, were honored to have their article on discovery in ERISA federal court appeals published in the Winter 2010 issue of the Trial Reporter published by the Maryland Association for Justice.

The article, titled “The Scope of Discovery in ERISA Actions Post-Glenn,” which was co-authored with Attorney Richard Neuworth, discusses the practical implications of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Metropolitan Life v. Glenn on the scope of discovery in ERISA actions.  The article reports that the current trend is towards allowing broader discovery in ERISA actions in order to ensure that Plan Administrators fulfill the fiduciary duties owed to employees in evaluating their claims for benefits, such as Long Term Disability (LTD) benefits and health insurance benefits.

View Elliott Andalman’s article

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Posted in Andalman & Flynn News, Disability Law, ERISA, Long Term Disability