Human Resource Blog

NJ Short Term Disability and Work-related Injuries

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How often must an employee see their doctor to be “disabled” in

New Jersey? Does the

New Jersey mandatory short-term disability program cover work-related injuries or permanent disabilities?

An employee must be under at doctor’s “continued care” for an illness or injury that makes them completely unable to work, under the New Jersey TDB program. By state law, the worker may be required to see an impartial, third-party doctor to verify that the worker is genuinely disabled. Failing to keep an appointment with the third-party doctor may result in cancellation of all benefits.

The New Jersey Temporary Disability Benefits covers everyone who works for a New Jersey employer that is covered by the state’s unemployment system. Employees with a short-term disability receive 2/3 of their average weekly earnings, for a maximum of 26 weeks.

Normally the request for verification by an independent doctor is filed by the employer. In some cases, they may be filed by the Disability office, in response to an anonymous tip. This law exists so that doctors can’t conspire with their patients to file bogus disability claims and split the payments. 

There is no set number of required office visits for TDB. As long as an employee is under a “doctor’s continued care”. How often the employee must see their physician, and what their treatment is, will be determined by the doctor. Periodically, the TDB office will send forms that must be updated by the physician showing that the individual is still under care, and still has a temporary disability.

Of course, any disability due to a work-related illness or injury is covered under workers’ compensation, not TDB.  If a worker’s claim for workers’ comp is contested or denied, then the worker may be eligible for TDB during the appeal process. If the worker wins the appeal, TDB will be reimbursed by the employer’s workers’ comp insurance provider.

In New Jersey as in other states, permanent disabilities are covered under Disability Payments from the Social Security Administration, not the New Jersey TDB program.