Being out of work due to serious injury, illness, or other disability can take a financial toll.
To help, JHU offers—free of charge for all full-time benefits-eligible faculty, staff, and LiUNA bargaining unit members—long-term disability insurance that pays out a portion of income when disability makes work impossible over a long period of time.
For shorter-term coverage, we offer the ability to purchase short-term disability insurance that can close the gap between sick leave and long-term disability pay. Both types of insurance are offered through Lincoln Financial.
Lincoln Financial Group
Both long- and short-term disability are administered by Lincoln Financial.
Manage your claims in MyLincolnPortal (company code JHUEE), or call 888-246-4483.
Here’s how to start a claim with Lincoln.
Short-Term Disability
Short-term disability insurance (STD) provides income protection if you are unable to work due to illness, injury, or other disability (including pregnancy and childbirth).
Eligibility and enrollment
Full-time faculty, staff, and LIUNA bargaining unit employees have the opportunity to purchase short-term disability insurance upon hire or becoming newly benefits eligible. You may elect or drop short-term disability coverage during annual enrollment or with a qualifying life event.
About the program
Short-Term Disability benefits begin after the 14th consecutive day of illness and continue for up to 11 weeks provided you remain disabled and unable to work. The plan will pay 60% of your weekly base earnings, not to exceed $2,500 per week, for an eligible absence. Accrued sick and vacation leave must be used to supplement Short-Term Disability. Your benefits may be reduced if you are receiving other disability benefits such as Workers’ Compensation or Social Security.
View the policies for more information:
How to request
If you need to report a short-term disability, there are several steps you need to follow:
- Contact your manager.
- Call Lincoln Financial at 1-888-246-4483 or go to MyLincolnPortal (register using company code JHUEE).
- For more information, refer to Reporting a Short-Term Disability Claim (flyer).
If you have questions regarding your leave of absence and FMLA, please contact your central or departmental HR office.
Notice regarding pregnancy and childbirth
To be eligible for birth recovery leave, faculty, staff, and bargaining unit members must have been continuously employed in a full- or part-time position for at least one year.
Birth recovery leave begins after the birth has taken place and does not cover pre-birth leave should your physician require that you be placed on restricted work, bed rest, or other pregnancy-related limitation before delivery.
For coverage, you may want to consider electing short term disability during annual enrollment.
Long-Term Disability
The university automatically provides long-term disability insurance (LTD). You do not need to enroll in this coverage—it’s a 100% university-paid benefit.
Eligibility
To be eligible, you must have:
- Completed one year of continuous full-time service at the university, or
- Joined the university within three months of leaving another employer where you were covered under a similar plan for at least one year. You must submit documentation of this previous coverage.
About the program
Long-term disability benefits begin after 90 consecutive days of absence and continues as shown in the chart below. The plan will pay 60% of your monthly base earnings, not to exceed $10,000 per month, for an eligible absence.
| Maximum Duration of Benefit | |
|---|---|
| Age when disabled: | Benefits payable: |
| Prior to age 60 | To age 65 |
| Ages 60-64 | 60 months |
| Ages 65-67 | To age 70 |
| Ages 68 and over | 24 months |
Plan benefits may be paid after you have been unable to work for 90 days or when short-term disability coverage expires, whichever occurs later. Accumulated vacation leave can be used to supplement the long-term disability benefit. This must be requested in writing.
If your date of disability was prior to July 1, 2020, the plan will pay an extra 10% benefit to a TIAA Retirement Plan account as long as you receive disability benefits. This retirement contribution will not reduce your monthly disability income. If your date of disability was on or after July 1, 2020, the 10% retirement plan contribution will not be included in your long-term disability benefits.
View the policies for more information:
View an Overview of Benefits for Long-Term Disability Participants to understand what happens to your benefits while you are on LTD.
How to request
If you need to request a long-term disability claim, you will need to:
- Contact your manager.
- Call Lincoln Financial at 1-888-246-4483 or go to MyLincolnPortal (register using company code JHUEE).
- For more information, refer to Reporting a Long-Term Disability Claim (flyer).
If you have questions regarding your leave of absence and FMLA, please contact your central or departmental HR office.