Survey of Rehabilitation and Return-to-Work Practices Among U.S. Disability Carriers

Abstract

[Excerpt] Disability insurance provides financial protection for workers who become disabled and are unable to perform their occupations. It is beneficial to both disabled employees and their employers to have their employees return to work as soon as they are able to do so. For disabled employees, benefits are typically 60% to 66 2/3% of their pre-disability income. For employers, an employee’s indefinite absence due to a disability involves the loss of productivity and the extra cost of training a new employee. In addition, the disabled employee often has on-the-job knowledge that may take a new employee many years to acquire. Many employees who receive disability benefits subsequently recover and return to work. Frequently, the cause of disablement is successfully treated with appropriate medical care, and the employees are able to return to their jobs with no additional assistance. However, for some claimants, the nature of their disability is severe enough to require extra support to facilitate their return.