43:16A-8 - Medical exam; report of medical board; restoration to active service

43:16A-8  Medical exam; report of medical board; restoration to active service.

8. (1) Upon the receipt by the retirement system of a written application for a disability retirement allowance, the system shall refer the application to the medical board, which shall designate a physician or physicians to examine the applicant and the report of the medical board shall be considered by the board of trustees in acting upon such application.

(2)Any beneficiary under the age of 55 years who has been retired on a disability retirement allowance under this act, on his request shall, or upon the request of the retirement system may, be given a medical examination and he shall submit to any examination by a physician or physicians designated by the medical board once a year for at least a period of five years following his retirement in order to determine whether or not the disability which existed at the time he was retired has vanished or has materially diminished.  If the report of the medical board shall show that such beneficiary is able to perform either his former duty or any other available duty in the department which his employer is willing to assign to him, the beneficiary shall report for duty; such a beneficiary shall not suffer any loss of benefits while he awaits his restoration to active service.  If the beneficiary fails to submit to any such medical examination or fails to return to duty within 10 days after being ordered so to do, or within such further time as may be allowed by the board of trustees for valid reason, as the case may be, the pension shall be discontinued during such default.

(3)(Deleted by amendment.)

(4)If a disability beneficiary is restored to active service, his retirement allowance and the right to any death benefit as a result of his former membership, shall be canceled until he again retires.

Such person shall be reenrolled in the retirement system and shall contribute thereto at a rate based on his age at the time of prior enrollment. Such person shall be treated as an active member for determining disability or death benefits while in service.

Upon subsequent retirement of such member, he shall receive a retirement allowance based on all his service as a member computed in accordance with applicable provisions of this act, but the total retirement allowance upon subsequent retirement shall not be a greater proportion of his average final compensation or final compensation, whichever is applicable, than the proportion to which he would have been entitled had be remained in service during the period of his prior retirement.  Any death benefit to which such member shall be eligible shall be based on his latest retirement.

L.1944,c.255,s.8;  amended 1964, c.241, s.5; 1967, c.250, s.8; 1968, c.452; 1971, c.172; 1971, c.175, s.5; 1971, c.217, s.9; 1999, c.428, s.4.