Unfortunately, you may have been involved in a catastrophic accident that has left you seriously physically injured. In the aftermath, you may have to take a considerable time off work, with the date you can return being far out or otherwise unknown. And so, during this time, you may wonder whether you qualify for long-term disability (LTD) insurance benefits, Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, both, or neither. With all that being said, please continue reading to learn the difference between a long-term injury and a disability, and how one of the experienced attorneys at The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur, who handles physical disability SSDI benefits in New Jersey, can help determine your eligibility status from here.
What is the difference between LTD insurance and SSDI benefits?
First of all, you must understand that while LTD insurance and SSDI benefits have the common goal of providing financial support to individuals who cannot work, they operate under very different rules and regulations.
On the one hand, LTD is typically a private policy through your employer, or something you may have purchased individually. This essentially acts as an income replacement if your physical injury prevents you from working for an extended period, likely after your short-term disability benefits end. Specifically, this income replacement is often calculated as 50 to 70 percent of your pre-disability wages.
On the other hand, SSDI is a federal government benefit administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA). These benefits are designated for those who have paid into the Social Security system through payroll taxes. And then, these same individuals must be unable to engage in substantial gainful employment activity (SGA) due to a disability that is expected to last at least 12 months or result in death.
For benefits eligibility, what’s the difference between a long-term injury and disability?
Now that you understand the differences in these programs, you must learn their contrasting eligibility requirements. That is, since LTD is a private policy, you may qualify if you can prove you are unable to perform your “own occupation” (i.e., the specific job you held before becoming disabled) for a long period of time.
Then, since SSDI is a federal benefits program, you may have to establish that you cannot execute any type of substantial work in the national economy. To reiterate, this is based on the SGA threshold. This means that your medically-determined disability prevents you from earning more than $1,690 per month, or $2,830 per month if you are legally blind, in any occupation.
Arguably, it may be easier to receive LTD insurance than SSDI benefits. However, there are some cases in which individuals get approved for both. If you are one of those people, you must prepare for the possibility that your employer will offset your LTD payments by the amount you receive from the SSDI program.
There is no shame in asking for help, especially when you are dealing with something as serious as a legal matter that could affect your physical, emotional, and financial well-being. So please retain legal assistance from one of the skilled attorneys at The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur, who handles physical disability SSDI benefits in New Jersey. We will happily lend a hand.
