Section 18-68 Disability benefits.

(a) A covered firefighter employee who contract s a disease or sustain s accidental injuries resulting in disability while in the actual discharge and performance of the duties of the employee’s covered employment at some definite time and place, or a covered firefighter employee having completed one continuous year or more of covered employment who contract s a disease or sustain s accidental injuries resulting in disability at any time, shall be entitled to the disability benefit set out in this section. The covered firefighter employee shall be entitled to the disability benefit only while the disease or injury renders the employee unfit for the regular duties of the employee’s covered employment.

Upon the termination of the disability, payment of the benefit shall cease; provided, however, that no disability shall be deemed to have terminated so long as the covered firefighter employee is unable to return to the employee’s former regular duties as a firefighter solely because of the disability or a residual effect thereof. Upon termination of a disability, no right of automatic reemployment exists. Reemployment shall be governed by the provisions of the city's personnel code. If a formerly disabled employee ceases to be disabled and is again available for employment with the city, the board or the administrator shall immediately notify the city human resources department of that availability. With the permission of the employee, medical records of the board shall be forwarded which document that availability.

(b) A covered firefighter employee, disabled as provided for in subsection (a), is eligible to receive a disability benefit equal to fifty (50) per cent of the employee's highest average salary plus ten (10) per cent of that salary for each unmarried child under the age of eighteen (18), who was a dependent of the employee both at the time the employee became entitled to receive disability benefits and during the period for which the benefit is payable, to an amount not to exceed ninety (90) per cent of the employee's highest average salary. Such benefit shall be payable monthly.

(c) When a person receiving the disability benefit is eligible for the retirement benefit due to age or service, the person shall receive the greater of (a) the disability benefit being received, or (b) the age or service benefit. Eligibility for retirement due to service shall be based on years of active service plus years of service accrued while on disability retirement up to a maximum of twenty (20) years or actual years of service, whichever is greater. The age or service benefit shall be based on salary at the time of termination of employment and years of active service plus years of service accrued while on disability retirement up to a maximum of twenty (20) years or actual years of service, whichever is greater.

( d ) After the approval of any disability benefit, the administrator shall, from time to time review the disability of a retiree to determine whether or not the disability continues to exist. Reexamination shall take place at least once each year unless the board shall determine otherwise. The administrator may require any retiree receiving a disability benefit to undergo a medical examination to review the status of the disability. The administrator may request the retiree to undergo an examination with a doctor of the retiree’s choosing and at the retiree’s expense or may require a medical examination with a doctor of the administrator's choosing at the expense of the firefighters’ retirement fund .

(1) Any retiree refusing to submit to a medical examination after ten (10) days' written notice from the administrator shall waive and forfeit all rights to benefit s from the date of the notice until such time as the retiree submits to the required examination. If such refusal continues for one calendar year from the date of notice, all rights to any benefits shall immediately cease and the retiree’s benefits shall escheat to the ~~FRF~~ firefighters’ retirement fund .

(2) If the reexamination shows that the disability no longer exists, the right to benefits for disability shall immediately cease. A hearing on the continuance of the disability may be had before the administrator upon the retiree’s written request made within ten (10) days of the administrator's notification.