DH and I are going to start TTC early next year, so I signed up short-term disability coverage today. For those of you that claimed short-term disability, how long after the birth of your LO did you start receiving your disability checks? I tried asking the rep over the phone, but she wasn't the brightest bulb in the box, so I don't think she really understood what I was asking. I know this could vary from state to state (I live in TX), but I'm just curious.
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I live in TX too! I think it depends on how soon you and your employer submit the paperwork but it should be as soon as your paid leave runs out. So, for me, I started receiving it two weeks after I had my baby.
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I'm also in Texas, and my employer's plan has a two week wait period. I was unable to collect under our plan because I was continuing to get paid because of the amount of sick and vacation time I had built up. Also, check to see what the wait period is for submitting a claim. I'm not sure what it is here (I signed up at time of hire 5 years ago), but I know a co-worker was recently denied due to getting the coverage and then getting pregnant within a short period later.
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My OB sent my paperwork in immediately after I sent it to them. I think I had my check within the month after I sent it in. They sent me a lump sum check. (whoohooo!)
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@MamaG: Yeah, there is a 9-month exclusion period, so I wouldn't be able to collect disability if I gave birth within 9 months of the date my policy begins. (I assume they do this so that women can't sign up for disability coverage after already becoming pregnant.)
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Is there someone else in HR you can talk to? It all depends on your employers plan. For me, we have to wait 5 days before short term disability kicks in but then I received my short term disability pay right away just like a normal paycheck.
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@lisa1783: I am a little hesitant to talk to our HR person because I don't want to draw attention to the fact that I may become pregnant soon. I am hoping to get a promotion in the next 6 months, and I just don't want to hurt my chances by talking about maternity leave and pregnancy.
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@lawbee11: I dont think it will raise any red flags in that sense. Especially if its open enrollment for you. For me, I went to HR and said I have some questions about this particular benefit. I asked just general questions, and threw in a couple pregnancy related ones in too. Its perfectly normal to want clarification. Questions like pay out don't have to be pregnancy specific. For me it wasn't worth it because it kicks in after I run out of PTO and I have been saving it like a mad woman so I will hopefully have about 10 weeks by that time, so I will never see the STD Benefits kick in.
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Just called to set mine up for LO's arrival in November. They told me it will take 5 to 7 days after I call in actual dates of labor and delivery (I'm going to work til last possible day)... and then after that it should processed relatively quickly. The first two paychecks will still be from my employer, then 1 from st disability provider, then 4 weeks of FMLA; then 2 weeks rolled over vacation at which point I will be back on normal payroll.
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Mine had a one week waiting period and then I got a check each week for five weeks. Six weeks of STD pay is a misnomer, I learned, because you aren't paid for the first week's waiting period. During that time I took a week of paid vacation from work. After the six weeks were up I took unpaid leave.
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Resurrecting an older post : )
I'm a little fuzzy on the concept of short term disability. I've read (and see above) some of you signed up for it before you conceived, and others didn't and signed up after they knew they were pregnant? Do you know if it varies by state or should I be fine if we are 6 weeks along and I don't think I have short term disability yet? I was planning on telling HR and my company around 10-11 weeks, but now I'm thinking I need to make sure its planned out well so I don't (for lack of better word) screw myself over after we give birth because I was too late to the game.
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@Mrs. Lovejoy: I just started learning about this, so I could be wrong, but my understanding is that benefits will be denied if you are already pregnant when you sign up for short-term disability. This may vary by state. I live in TX, and benefits will be denied if you give birth within 9 months of signing up. I assume this is common in most states because otherwise women would only sign up during pregnancy, and the companies would probably lose money.
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@lawbee11: Hm.. in that case, I wouldn't really have to worry about it! I wish we were at a point we could tell people, because I know a co-worker who had a surprise pregnancy, and I know she got 60% of her pay for 6 weeks (which I thought would have been through STD). Just wish I could ask her about it nonchalantly and not give it away we are KU!
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@Mrs. Lovejoy is short term disability a company provided/paid benefit? The company I'm currently working for is the FIRST I have worked for where this is not the case. Many companies provide this as part of their benefit package at no cost to the employee. In which case there isn't really a signing up process.
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@Mrs. Lovejoy: People do sign up for STD other than for maternity leave (my DH has short-term disability, too), so maybe she just happened to have it already? Do you know if you are offered STD through work? You could always ask for the name of the company that offers it and just call and check. I don't think asking for that info from HR would tip them off to the fact that you're pregnant.
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@lawbee11: That is a great idea! Our benefits policy just changed, so it wouldn't be too odd of a time to ask! Thank you so much
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@MamaG: My company provides short-term disability, but I still had to register for it (I had to call and they asked questions about my medical history).
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I got mine just like any paycheck; the only difference was that it said the source was "STD Insurance" instead of "Wages"
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@MamaG: That is a great question! I didn't know that was an option. Unfortunately, we are a new smaller company (but still more than 50 EEs) and we have so little documentation about our benefits. I'll have to do some hunting to figure that out, but it's worth a shot!
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I didnt apply for short term disability until about a month after a I had the baby it took about 3 weeks or so for me to start receiving the money
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