The other day I was chatting with my boss who is also a close colleague. We oversee our department and as we regularly do, we were discussing a personnel issue. This one involved the loss of a person in our department who is close to obtaining long-term disability due to an auto-immune disease. The loss of this person as an employee necessitates finding a replacement and we’re in the process of conducting a search. I assumed that in this case the person was seeking Social Security Disability from the federal government but my boss told me that our employer has a long-term disability insurance policy. I casually mentioned that with my RA I could probably obtain long-term disability. He looks at me, grins, and jokingly says, “Yes, I know that and that’s why I’m hesitant to give you much information about the policy!” This conversation set me off on a hunt to find information about the policy and requirements.
One of the first reactions many RA patients have when receiving a diagnosis is about their work future. My reaction was colored by an experience with a neighbor years ago. He had a severe case of RA before the days of biological treatments. By the time I met him, he had not been working for at least 10 years. He eventually passed away in his early 60s due to heart problems caused by the RA. I still have vivid memories of his badly damaged joints and difficulty managing simple life tasks.
Rheumatoid arthritis has a great impact on quality of life.[i][ii] It is reported that more than 50% of RA patients become work disabled during the first ten years of the disease.[iii] The advent of biological treatments in the last 15 years dramatically impacted some patients.[iv] However, not all respond to biological treatments. In 2005, a group of researchers from Finland conducted a study of RA patients and their ability to work.[v] Between 23-54% of RA patients who had not achieved remission status as measured by the ACR criteria had permanent work disability. They concluded that “failure to achieve an ACR20 response carries a high risk for work disability.”
Yes, I regularly miss days of work due to symptoms and side effects. And yes, my history with biological treatments is not exactly a success story. But I try not to dwell on the possibility of disability. My motto is “work while the sun is shining.” If my symptoms get to the point where I can no longer work, it’s good to know that I have insurance coverage and ultimately, government coverage.
Creative Commons Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/toofarnorth/2640275433/
I’m glad your company has a good plan, should it be necessary in the future. Hopefully it won’t be, though.
The last time I walked was when I was 14 and I got my first power wheelchair at 16. I have a weird dual identity as both someone with RA and someone with a disability. I have had jobs over the years and the one that worked the best (before my current one) was a position in the human rights and employment equity field. That’s when I was introduced to the concept of accommodations for my disability, such as working from home, shorter work hours (I worked 80%, with a prorated salary), adaptive equipment, etc. An awful lot of people with RA don’t know that they are entitled to receive accommodations under the ADA. Usually, accommodations are fairly easy and don’t cost a lot. The Job Accommodation Network website (run by the government) has lists of suggestions for accommodating different types of his abilities and medical conditions and includes arthritis (www.jan.org). It can mean the difference between continuing to work and not.
My apologies for going on and on — this is one of my soapboxes. I try to spread the word wherever I can to make sure that people know they are protected by the law.
Lene, thanks for the tip on the JAN. I found the website http://www.dol.gov/odep/resources/JAN.htm. I appreciate the knowledege of those who have gone before.
Hi Andrew, it’s good to know you have a safety net … and I hope you never need it!!
I hope that I don’t need it but I’ve quit trying to make predictions when it comes to RA!