Frequently Asked Questions
Short Term Disability ......................................................................................................... 2
What is my claim number? ....................................................................................................................... 2
How do I register for the online portal? ................................................................................................... 2
Can someone help me with the forms I got in my intro packet and with logging into the online portal?
.................................................................................................................................................................. 2
Where can I get more information about my benefits? ........................................................................... 2
I haven’t heard from anyone about whether my claim was approved or not. Why hasn’t anyone called
me? ........................................................................................................................................................... 2
Is direct deposit available? ....................................................................................................................... 2
I’m being treated by a new doctor. Do you need to know about that? .................................................. 2
What income should I report to Aetna? ................................................................................................... 2
Why were my first and second payments not the same amount? ........................................................... 3
My doctor says I should be out of work for a longer amount of time than my Short Term Disability
Benefits have been approved for. Why is that? ...................................................................................... 3
How long can I be on Short Term Disability? ............................................................................................ 3
How much can I get paid in Short Term Disability benefits? .................................................................... 3
I live in a state that has a state disability plan. How does that work with my Aetna Short Term
Disability claim? ........................................................................................................................................ 3
I signed a form to give Aetna access to my health information, but I won’t be going out of work after
all. I want to cancel the authorization. How can I do that? .................................................................... 3
I know I’ll need to be out of work, but not until later. Should I set up a claim now? How does that
work? ........................................................................................................................................................ 3
I noticed that some of my contact information is wrong in Aetna’s files (name, address, phone
number, date of birth, date of hire, etc). How can I get it corrected? .................................................... 4
Can I email my paperwork to you? ........................................................................................................... 4
I sent in my information. Did you get it? ................................................................................................. 4
This material is proprietary and confidential, and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the prior written permission of Aetna Life
Insurance Company. WorkAbility® is a registered trademark of Aetna Inc., related materials may not be used by recipients for purposes other
than those specified by Aetna in writing.
Short Term Disability
Please keep in mind, this is general information. Each situation is different. Make sure to read any
documentation we send you and use that for specifics.
What is my claim number?
o You can find information about any of your claims by selecting “View Claim Details”
How do I register for the online portal?
o You can sign by visiting https://www.aetnadisability.com, and selecting “Register Now”
Can someone help me with the forms I got in my intro packet and with logging
into the online portal?
o We’re here to help! You can ask a question by using the Contact Us link or by giving us a
call.
Where can I get more information about my benefits?
o You can find the dates you’ve been approved for, plus the dates and amounts of any
benefit checks by selecting “Payments”
I haven’t heard from anyone about whether my claim was approved or not.
Why hasn’t anyone called me?
o That means we’re still reviewing your claim. Your Disability Benefit Manager will call
you as soon as we’ve made a decision.
Is direct deposit available?
o Yes, it is! If your benefits are paid directly by us, then you can sign up for direct deposit
by selecting “Payment Options”. If your benefits are paid to you by your employer, then
you’ll need to talk to your employer about whether you can set up direct deposit for
your benefits.
I’m being treated by a new doctor. Do you need to know about that?
o You should always tell us if a new health care provider is treating you for the condition
that’s keeping you from working. You can let us know by using the online portal or by
giving us a call.
What income should I report to Aetna?
o You should let us know about any income you’re getting while you’re out of work.
Depending on where the income is from, sometimes it’ll reduce your disability benefits
and sometimes it won’t. We need to know about all of it, though, so we can make sure
we calculate the right benefit amount for you. If we find that your benefits were too
high, we’ll need to collect the extra from you later.
This material is proprietary and confidential, and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the prior written permission of Aetna Life
Insurance Company. WorkAbility® is a registered trademark of Aetna Inc., related materials may not be used by recipients for purposes other
than those specified by Aetna in writing.
Why were my first and second payments not the same amount?
o A lot of time, this happens because your first payment is for part of a month or week,
and your second payment is for a full month or week. There could also be a deduction,
tax, or offset that applies to one of your payments but not the other.
My doctor says I should be out of work for a longer amount of time than my
Short Term Disability Benefits have been approved for. Why is that?
o Your benefits can only be approved when we have medical information that shows why
you can’t work. Your doctor saying that you shouldn’t work isn’t enough for us to
approve benefits under your policy. If you need to be out of work longer than you’ve
been approved for, then your doctor should send us updated medical records that show
why you can’t work for that amount of time.
How long can I be on Short Term Disability?
o That depends on your policy.
How much can I get paid in Short Term Disability benefits?
o If you’re approved for Short Term Disability, your benefits will usually be a percentage
of what you earned while you were working. Your policy says what that percentage
would be (and some policies say that your benefits will be a flat rate). Those benefits
may also be reduced to account for other income you’re getting while you’re out of
work. For example, if you’re getting paid through Workers Comp that will affect how
much your disability benefits are. Your policy might also have a limit on how much your
benefits can be.
I live in a state that has a state disability plan. How does that work with my
Aetna Short Term Disability claim?
o That depends on whether we’re handling the state disability program for your employer
too (sometimes we do and sometimes we don’t). If we’re handing the state disability
program and your Short Term Disability policy, then we’ll be in touch with you about
both. If we aren’t handling the state disability program, then you’ll need to talk to your
employer about that. You may need to file a claim directly with the state.
I signed a form to give Aetna access to my health information, but I won’t be
going out of work after all. I want to cancel the authorization. How can I do
that?
o If you authorized us to have your information, you can cancel that authorization by
calling to let us know or by using the Contact Us link. You can also cancel your claim if
you won’t be going out of work at all.
I know I’ll need to be out of work, but not until later. Should I set up a claim
now? How does that work?
o If you know you’ll need to be out of work later, it’s a great idea to get your claim set up
in advance. 30 days early is plenty of notice in most cases. If you know exactly what day
you’ll need to start missing work, that’s great. If not, that’s ok too – you can give us an
estimate and let us know if it changes later.
This material is proprietary and confidential, and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the prior written permission of Aetna Life
Insurance Company. WorkAbility® is a registered trademark of Aetna Inc., related materials may not be used by recipients for purposes other
than those specified by Aetna in writing.
I noticed that some of my contact information is wrong in Aetna’s files (name,
address, phone number, date of birth, date of hire, etc). How can I get it
corrected?
o You can call us or use the Contact Us link to let us know. You should also tell your
employer. The contact information we have for you is probably from your employer, so
they’ll need to update their records too.
Can I email my paperwork to you?
o No, we can’t accept documents that are emailed to us. You can scan your paperwork
and submit it to us on the portal, though. Select “Upload Documents” and then follow
the directions. You could also send it to us by fax or mail. The fax number and mailing
address are listed on the forms we’ve sent you.
I sent in my information. Did you get it?
o If you fax us information or upload it on the portal, it usually takes about a day for it to
be attached to your claim. If you sent something to us today, you can check in
tomorrow to see if we got it.
