Missouri § 104.410 - Disability benefits, who entitled, eligibility — how calculated — eligibility requirements — disabled, a normal retiree, when — termination of disability, effect — members of general assembly and statewide elected officials, accrual of service.

§ 104.410. Disability benefits, who entitled, eligibility — how calculated — eligibility requirements — disabled, a normal retiree, when — termination of disability, effect — members of general assembly and statewide elected officials, accrual of service.

1.  Any uniformed member of the water patrol who shall be affirmatively found by the board to be wholly and permanently incapable of holding any position of gainful employment as a result of injuries or illness incurred in the performance of the member's duties shall be entitled to receive disability benefits in an amount equal to one-half of the compensation that the employee was receiving at the time of the occurrence of the injury entitling the employee to such disability benefits.  Any disability benefit payable pursuant to this subsection shall be decreased by any amount paid to such uniformed member of the water patrol by reason of the workers' compensation laws of this state.  After termination of payment under workers' compensation, however, any such reduction and disability benefits shall be restored.

2.  The board of trustees may require a medical examination of any uniformed member of the water patrol who is receiving disability benefits pursuant to this section at any time by a designated physician, and disability benefits shall be discontinued if the board finds that such member is able to perform the duties of the member's former position, or if such member refuses to submit to such an examination.

3.  The disability benefits described in this section shall not be paid to any uniformed member of the water patrol who has retained or regained more than fifty percent of the member's earning capacity.  If any uniformed member of the water patrol who has been receiving disability benefits again becomes an employee, the member's disability benefits shall be discontinued, the member's prior period of creditable service shall be restored, and any subsequent determination of benefits due the member or the member's survivors shall be based on the sum of the member's creditable service accrued to the date the member's disability benefits commenced and the period of creditable service after the member's return to employment.

4.  Any uniformed member of the water patrol receiving benefits pursuant to the provisions of this section for five or more years immediately prior to attainment of age fifty-five shall be considered a normal retirant at age fifty-five, and may elect, within thirty days preceding the attainment of age fifty-five, option 1 of section 104.395, but only for the member's spouse who was the member's spouse for two or more years prior to the member's attainment of age fifty-five.

5.  Any member who is receiving disability benefits as of December 31, 1985, or any member who is disabled on December 31, 1985, and would have been entitled to receive disability benefits pursuant to this section as the provisions of this section existed immediately prior to September 28, 1985, shall be eligible to receive or shall continue to receive benefits in accordance with such prior provisions of this section until the member again becomes an employee; however, all employees of the department of conservation who are disabled shall receive benefits pursuant only to this section or section 104.518, whichever is applicable, and shall not be eligible for benefits under any other plan or program purchased or provided after September 28, 1985.

6.  Any member who qualifies for disability benefits pursuant to subsection 1 of this section or pursuant to the provisions of section 104.518, or under a long-term disability program provided by the member's employing department as a consequence of employment by the department, shall continue to accrue creditable service based on the member's rate of pay immediately prior to the date the member became disabled in accordance with sections 104.370, 104.371, 104.374 and 104.615, until the date the member's retirement benefit goes into pay status, the disability benefits cease being paid to the member, or the member is no longer disabled, whichever comes first.  Persons covered by the provisions of sections 476.515 to 476.565 or sections 287.812 to 287.855, who qualify for disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of section 104.518, at the date the person becomes disabled, shall continue to accrue creditable service based on the person's rate of pay immediately prior to the date the person becomes disabled until the date the person's retirement benefit goes into pay status, the disability benefits cease being paid to the person or the person is no longer disabled, whichever comes first.  Members or persons continuing to accrue creditable service pursuant to this subsection shall be entitled to continue their life insurance coverage subject to the provisions of the life insurance plan administered by the board pursuant to section 104.517.  The rate of pay for purposes of calculating retirement benefits for a member or person described in this subsection who becomes disabled and retires on or after August 28, 1999, shall be the member's or person's regular monthly compensation received at the time of disablement, increased thereafter for any increases in the consumer price index.  Such increases in the member's monthly pay shall be made annually beginning twelve months after disablement and shall be equal to eighty percent of the increase in the consumer price index during the calendar year prior to the adjustment, but not more than five percent of the member's monthly pay immediately before the increase.  Such accruals shall continue until the earliest of:  receipt of an early retirement annuity, attainment of normal retirement eligibility or termination of disability benefits.

7.  A member or person who continues to be disabled as provided in subsection 6 of this section until the member's normal retirement age shall be eligible to retire on the first day of the month next following the member's or person's final payment pursuant to section 104.518 or, if applicable, subsection 1 of this section.  A member or person who retires pursuant to this subsection shall receive the greater of the normal annuity or the minimum annuity, if applicable, determined pursuant to sections 104.370, 104.371, 104.374 and 104.615, and section 287.820, and section 476.530 as if the member or person had continued in the active employ of the employer until the member's or person's retirement benefit goes into pay status, the disability benefits cease being paid to the member or person, or the member or person is no longer disabled, whichever comes first and the member's or person's compensation for such period had been the member's or person's rate of pay immediately preceding the date the member or person became disabled.

8.  If a member who has been disabled becomes an employee again and if the member was disabled during the entire period of the member's absence, then the member shall resume active participation as of the date of reemployment.  Such a member shall receive creditable service for the entire period the member was disabled as provided in subsection 6 of this section.

9.  If a member ceases to be disabled and if the member does not return to work as provided in subsection 8 of this section, the member's rights to further benefits shall be determined in accordance with sections 104.335, 104.380, 104.400, 104.420 and 104.615 as though the member had withdrawn from service as of the date the member ceased to be disabled, as determined by the system.

10.  Members of the general assembly who are accruing service under subsection 6 of this section shall continue to accrue service until the earliest of attainment of normal retirement age eligibility, termination of disability benefits, or the end of the member's constitutionally mandated limit on service as a member of the general assembly for the chamber in which the member was serving at the time of disablement.

11.  Statewide elected officials who are accruing service under subsection 6 of this section shall continue to accrue service until the earliest of attainment of normal retirement age eligibility, termination of disability benefits, or the end of the statewide elected official's constitutionally mandated limit on service as a statewide elected official for the office in which the statewide elected official was serving at the time of disablement.

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(L. 1957 p. 706 § 20, A.L. 1961 p. 543, A.L. 1973 S.B. 53, A.L. 1980 H.B. 983, A.L. 1981 H.B. 835, et al., A.L. 1984 H.B. 1370, A.L. 1985 H.B. 790, A.L. 1986 H.B. 1496, A.L. 1988 H.B. 1643 & 1399, A.L. 1994 S.B. 772, A.L. 1995 H.B. 416, et al., A.L. 1997 H.B. 356, A.L. 1999 S.B. 308 & 314, A.L. 2023 S.B. 20 merged with S.B. 75)

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