Short Term Disability Leaves

Contact Information

Contact Lincoln Financial Group

Lincoln Financial
800-213-1531
Your Account: https://www.lincolnfinancial.com/public/individuals

Contact Dartmouth

Email:  Disability@Dartmouth.edu
Phone: 603-646-6825
Fax: 603-646-1510

Short Term Disability Policy

Please click here  to review the full Leave of Absence (LOA) Policy, which includes additional information not found on this website.

About the Benefit

In the event you are unable to work due to a disability, or are pregnant and having a baby, a claim for short-term disability plan can be initiated by contacting Lincoln Financial Group at 1-800-213-1531, to speak with an intake specialist or on their website at Lincoln Financial Group.

For additional claims filing information, please see the Initiating a Short Term Disability claim information available below.

For additional information about eligibility and enrollment in the plan, please visit our Short Term Disability Benefits webpage.

Important Information

Below is some important information to review prior to filing a claim:

• Elimination period:  The number of consecutive work days the employee would need to be totally disabled before the STD benefit would begin to pay.
  • Regular, benefits eligible, employees must be absent from work for the required elimination period based on employment classification; Exempt, Non-Exempt, SEIU.
• Date of disability: The first day the employee is unable to perform the duties of their job due to illness or injury. In the event an employee works one half of their normal work day, the "date of disability" would begin on the following day.
• Date of benefit: The first day an employee would be eligible to receive STD pay replacement, following the required elimination period.
• Claim Approval: STD benefit pay replacement will not begin until the STD claim has been approved by Lincoln Financial Group. In the event the claim has not been approved, by the end of the "elimination period", the employee may elect to use available accrued time to supplement their pay or take the time unpaid. Once the claim is approved, the employee will receive retroactive STD pay and receive credit for any accrued time off used.
• Retroactive applications:  Short-term disability applications submitted to Lincoln Financial after the employee has returned to work, will be denied.

Amount of Coverage

Disability benefits are determined by your employment status of Non-Exempt (Non-Union), Exempt and SEIU as outlined below:

Non-Exempt

• Week 1: Elimination period of five days and employees are required to use available personal and or vacation time. If no time available, then the time is unpaid.
• Weeks 2-8: paid at 100% by STD benefit
• Weeks 9-26: paid at 60% by STD benefit*

Exempt, Research Associate B's and C's

• Weeks 1 & 2: Elimination period of 10 days, paid at 100% by the department.
• Weeks 3-8: Paid at 100% by STD benefit
• Weeks 9-26: Paid at 60% by STD benefit*

Faculty Members

Please refer to the faculty handbook

SEIU Employees

The duration of benefits depends on the number of continuous years of service as of the last day worked prior to disability.

• Elimination Period:  Benefits begin to pay on the sixth consecutive day of absence.
• Those with 90 days to one year of service receive two weeks* of 100% salary replacement.
• Those employees who went out on Short Term Disability leave prior to 7/1/24:
  • and have one to two years of service, receive six-weeks of 100% salary replacement.
  • and have two or more years of service, receive 100% salary replacement for the first eight weeks* and 60% for weeks nine through 26.
• Those employees who go out on Short Term Disability leave on or after 7/1/24:
  • and have one or more years of service, receive 100% salary replacement for the first eight-weeks* and 60% for weeks nine through 26.

*Please refer to your union contract for more information about this benefit.

Initiating a Short Term Disability Claim

Register on the MyLincoln Portal (Lincoln Financial Group) Employee Portal:

• When registering for the first time, you will be prompted to create a username and password.
• You will be asked to enter a "Company Code". Enter Dartmouth for the Company Code, then click on the "Validate" button.

To complete your claim, you will need the following information:

• Last day worked
• First day absent from work
• Anticipated return to work date
• Reason you are out of work
• Medical Provider's:
  
  • Name
  • Address
  • Phone Number
  • Fax Number

Other key points:

• You should plan to file your claim before you begin your leave and no more than 30 days prior to the leave.
• Disability benefits will only be paid upon approval notification of the claim, by Lincoln Financial Group.