Eligibility

You may be entitled to a performance of duty disability benefit if you are found permanently disabled as a result of the performance of your duties, regardless of the amount of service credit you may have, because you:

• Are injured while performing your job by, or as a result of, an act of any inmate or person confined in an institution under the jurisdiction of the New York State Department of Correctional Services or Office of Mental Health; or
• Contract HIV (where there may have been exposure to bodily fluids of an inmate that may have involved transmission of this disease), tuberculosis or hepatitis as a result of performing your job; or
• Contract heart disease and, on entry into service, you passed a physical examination that failed to reveal any evidence of heart disease. It is presumed that the heart disease was contracted in the performance of duty unless disproved by competent evidence to the contrary. If you apply for disability benefits under the heart disease presumption, you must be employed on the date you file.

The Benefit

If approved, the benefit would be a lifetime pension equal to three-quarters (75 percent) of your FAS, plus an annuity based on any annuity savings contributions you may have made.

You must apply for Workers’ Compensation if you are eligible. The benefit is reduced by the total amount of Workers’ Compensation benefits that you receive or are entitled to receive.

You must also select an option for the payment of your disability benefits.

Filing

You, your employer or someone authorized with your power of attorney may file your application for performance of duty disability retirement. The application must be filed while you are still in service or within two years of your discontinuance from service. When filing for this benefit, “in service” is defined as while you are:

• Being paid on the payroll;
• On an authorized medical leave of absence for up to two years (which may be extended for an additional two years); or
• Receiving Workers’ Compensation or other similar employer-funded benefits for up to two years since last being paid on the payroll, as long as you have not resigned or been terminated from employment while receiving these benefits.

If you are eligible, applications for ordinary disability, performance of duty disability, accidental disability, and regular service retirement benefits may be filed simultaneously.