Colorado § 24-51-702 - Disability programs.

§ 24-51-702. Disability programs.

(1) The association shall provide for two types of disability programs for disabilities incurred on or before termination of employment:

(a) Short-term disability. A member who is found by the disability program administrator to be mentally or physically incapacitated from performance of the essential functions of the member's job with reasonable accommodation as required by federal law, but who is not totally and permanently incapacitated from regular and substantial gainful employment, shall be provided with reasonable income replacement, or rehabilitation or retraining services, or a combination thereof, under a program provided by the disability program administrator for a period specified in the rules adopted by the board. The cost of the program shall be funded by the association.

(b) Disability retirement. A member who is found by the disability program administrator to be totally and permanently mentally or physically incapacitated from regular and substantial gainful employment as of the date of termination of employment shall be placed on disability retirement, and the association shall provide to such person a benefit as calculated in section 24-51-704. The benefit shall be paid directly by the association. A member of the judicial division shall also be eligible for disability retirement upon the entry of an order of retirement pursuant to section 23 of article VI of the state constitution for a disability interfering with the performance of the member's duties that is, or is likely to become, of a permanent nature.

Source: L. 97: Entire part R&RE, p. 776, § 12, effective January 1, 1999.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former §§ 24-51-703, 24-51-704, and 24-51-705 as they existed prior to 1997.

ANNOTATION

Annotator's note. Since § 24-51-702 is similar to § 24-51-703 as it existed prior to its 1997 repeal and reenactment, relevant cases construing that provision have been included in the annotations to this section.

The offset to a claimant's temporary and permanent disability pension benefits should continue so long as the disability benefits continue and should not automatically terminate based upon claimant's achieving 65 years of age. State Penitentiary v. Toothaker, 832 P.2d 1009 (Colo. App. 1991).

Trooper's right to disability benefits fully vested at the time he fulfilled the statutory conditions not at time of injury. Knuckey v. Pub. Emp. Retirement Ass'n, 851 P.2d 178 (Colo. App. 1992).

An association rule stating that an employee is not considered disabled for the purpose of short-term disability benefits if the employee is medically able to perform any job in which the employee would earn at least seventy-five percent of his or her predisability earnings is not contrary to this section. The association's interpretation and implementation of the statute are reasonable. Lawless v. Standard Ins. Co., 2013 COA 153, 338 P.3d 398.