When preparing, formulating, and submitting federal disability retirement benefits to the US Office of Personnel Management, the scariest part is often just getting started. Since there are several components to any successful federal disability retirement application, trying to address them all at once can be a daunting task and can ultimately lead to procrastination, delay, and inertia. Therefore, it is important to “start” systematically, doing things in sequential order and with a methodology that is logical, rational, and sensible.
First, remember that federal disability retirement is first and foremost a “medical issue.” Therefore, while obtaining statements from friends, family, or co-workers can be beneficial with peripheral persuasive effect, such supportive testimonials should never go to the heart of a federal disability retirement case. Yes, a statement of support from the supervisor can be helpful; and, yes, a statement from a co-worker that he or she witnessed the applicant’s decline and inability to perform certain essential job functions may provide some additional evidence in the matter. However, it should always be remembered that a claim for federal disability retirement is first and foremost a medical issue.
Having said the above, the first and obvious piece of the puzzle is having a support doctor. An “attending physician” does not mean that the treating physician is a technically competent medical provider (although, for the treatment of one’s medical condition, that obviously helps). It also doesn’t mean that the doctor needs to have good bedside manners (although, again, that’s always a plus with an attending physician). Rather, what having a supporting physician means is that the treating physician of the applicant for federal disability retirement is willing to provide a written statement confirming that the patient is no longer able to perform one or more of the essential elements of his or her life. work, and further, that the medical condition in question (which impedes the ability to perform all essential elements of the job) will last for a minimum of twelve months.
Second, once you’ve confirmed that you have a supporting doctor, then it’s time to start filling out the necessary forms. There will be two sets of standard government forms to fill out, and these forms can be easily downloaded simply by searching for them on the internet. The Request for Immediate Retirement form simply requires some basic information about the applicant, as well as choosing certain options, such as choosing a full or partial survivor annuity for the spouse. The more detailed form, which requires the identification of the medical conditions that comprise the basis of the Federal Disability Retirement claim, will require careful consideration and may need careful guidance, advice and crafting.
Third, there is always the pervasive question of whether an agency, whether it be the Department of Homeland Security, the US Postal Service, the Treasury Department, or a multitude of federal agencies, can accommodate a person’s medical condition. person. The term and concept, “accommodation”, which is usually known as the legal term of art. Art terms have specific and content-rich meanings, and the concept of accommodating a federal or postal employee in the context of a federal disability retirement application often requires a sophisticated level of understanding. To begin with, if a federal government agency for which the federal disability pension applicant works can reassign the employee to another position at the same salary or grade, and the employee can perform all essential elements of that “new” reassignment , then such action by the agency can potentially nullify the federal or postal employee’s application for disability retirement. Additionally, if the agency is able to provide an accommodation to the federal or postal employee, such that the accommodation enables the employee to perform all essential elements of the job, then such action by the agency may also potentially undermine a federal retirement application for disability.
Keep in mind, however, that in both cases (either reassignment or accommodation), the Federal or Postal employee must be able to perform all essential elements of the job as described and outlined in the official job description. The Court has held that a supervisor, or agency managers, cannot simply tell an employee with a wink and a nod that he or she does not have to perform “all” essential elements of the job. If that happened, that is, if the agency provided a “temporary light duty” or suspended some of the most demanding essential elements of a position, there would be nothing inherently wrong with such a move. In other words, an agency may informally try to accommodate a person’s medical conditions so that the person can continue to work in their position. At the same time, however, from a legal perspective, such informal accommodation does not constitute a legally sufficient accommodation, and at any time during such informal accommodations, the federal or postal employee could seek and become eligible for federal disability retirement benefits.
So, as an example, let’s say employee X was an auditor for a federal agency, and the job description required that employee travel to multiple contractor or vendor sites within a 250-mile radius to perform complex audits. . The auditor was required to have with him or her all the equipment necessary to conduct an effective audit, including a laptop, files, and other portable office equipment. Employee X hurts his back. The treating physician imposes certain physical restrictions, which turn out to be permanent restrictions: no lifting more than 10 pounds; not drive for more than 1 hour in a 4-hour period; no climbing stairs and other similar restrictions. The agency, because it considers employee X to be a valuable asset, only allows internal audits, in which vendors or contractors must report to employee X’s office. Since there are only certain contractors or vendors that can be audited this way, and although Employee X’s job description clearly states that travel to a supplier site is required; however, the Agency, deciding that Employee X’s value required informal accommodation, decided to lighten the workload and waive the requirements of the position.
Was employee X accommodated? Informally, yes; but such an accommodation is not legally sufficient, and employee X could still apply for federal disability retirement benefits and be eligible, assuming all other components necessary to qualify are also met.
Why is the Federal Agency’s action simply an informal arrangement and not legally sufficient? Think of it this way: A year later, there’s an executive shakeup at the agency and a “new sheriff” comes to town. That new sheriff eliminates all light or modified work, declaring to everyone, “Dadgummit, from this day on, everyone does the work they’re assigned to do, and no one evades the taxpayer.” Since there was never any “official” change in the job description, no protection was provided to Employee X. No statutory accommodations were provided and therefore the employee would have to comply with or apply for federal disability retirement benefits.
Ultimately, inertia and inaction are the main enemies of any advancement in a person’s life, career, or any goal-oriented endeavor. The Federal Disability Retirement is an annuity to which it must be proven, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the Federal or Postal employee is entitled, showing that all eligibility criteria have been met. But coordinating and accomplishing all the required steps in the administrative process of preparing, formulating, and submitting your federal disability retirement can be a daunting task unless you have a roadmap that reveals the right starting point, and the destination and means of travel in order. to get to the end point.
