The Long-Term Disability Plan provides financial protection for employees and their families in the event of a long-term disability. An employee may apply for long-term disability benefits if unable to work for more than 90 consecutive days while recovering from a physical or mental illness or injury.

The Long-Term Disability Plan was designed with ease of administration for employers and employees. Our partner, Lincoln Financial Group, reviews and makes a determination on all disability applications and handles administrative responsibilities for you, including payments and an ongoing review of benefits to verify continued disability. 

Amount of benefits 

Generally, the monthly long-term disability benefit equals 60 percent of the employee’s effective salary when he or she becomes disabled, up to the IRS maximum.

Disability benefits are reduced by disability payments received from other sources, such as workers’ compensation and Social Security. The minimum monthly benefit the employee will receive from the Long-Term Disability Plan is $50.

Once the long-term disability is approved, payments begin after the employee is disabled for 90 consecutive days, or when any severance payments end, whichever is later.

Eligibility

You may offer this benefit to employees working at least 20 hours per week who are not in the Death and Disability Plan (which includes a long-term disability benefit).

The Long-Term Disability Plan has a 12-month preexisting exclusion. This means, if the employee becomes disabled during the first 12 months that coverage is effective and the disability is due to a condition that was diagnosed or treated (including taking any medication) during the 12 months immediately before coverage started, no long-term disability benefits will be payable. 

Cost/contributions

For the Long-Term Disability Plan, the cost is $0.35 per $100 of monthly salary. For example, if the employee's annual salary is $40,000, the cost of the coverage is $11.67 per month, for a total of $140 per year.*

You as the employer pay the full cost of the Long-Term Disability Plan; the employee may not contribute. Because you pay the full cost of coverage, any Long-Term Disability Plan benefits received are taxable when paid to the employee. 

*Actual cost may be more or less due to rounding.

Offer with Temporary Disability Plan

The Temporary Disability Plan provides financial protection for up to 90 days for employees with a short-term mental or physical illness or injury. When offered together with the Long-Term Disability Plan, employees have comprehensive financial protection plus a seamless administrative experience if they transition from one plan to the other.

Interested in offering the Long-Term Disability Plan? Here's what to do next.

For current employers

If you currently offer benefits through the Benefits Plan of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), you may elect this benefit when you update your Employer Agreement on Benefits Connect for the following year. Employer Agreements are usually available for updating July through October.

For new employers

If you do not currently offer benefits through the Benefits Plan and would like to learn more about its features and how the Board of Pensions serves employers, call our Employer Services team at 800-773-7752 (800-PRESPLAN) (TTY: 711) to discuss how we can best meet your and your employees' needs.

About Lincoln Financial Group

Lincoln Financial Group provides advice and solutions that help empower people to take charge of their financial lives with confidence and optimism. More than 17 million customers trust Lincoln's retirement, insurance, and wealth protection expertise to help address their lifestyle, savings and income goals, as well as to guard against long-term care expenses.