NYSLERS

I just had two applications for ordinary disability retirement approved by NYSLERS. The claims involved claimants with completely different medical conditions and occupations, but in each case I required the claimant’s to undergo comprehensive vocational evaluations. 

Over the years, I noticed that when NYSLERS rejected Article 15 Disability Retirement applications there was no nexus between the supporting medical evidence that I submitted and the physical and mental occupational demands of the claimant’s job. The general purpose of a vocational evaluation is to assess the employment capabilities of an individual using skill, situational, standardized and functional assessments. When filing Article 15 Disability Retirement application, the vocational evaluation enhances NYSLERS’ ability to understand how a claimant’s medical condition affects their ability to perform the material and substantial duties of their job. 

In short, the vocational evaluation seems to mitigate much of the guessing game that can take place when the focus is only the medical evidence.