Do private disability benefits from New York Life affect EDD SDI income reporting?
I'm planning to file for CA state disability in a couple weeks (foot surgery, will be out 8-10 weeks), and I'm confused about how my work disability policy affects things. My employer provides private disability insurance through New York Life that pays 60% of my salary while I'm out. When I apply for EDD SDI, do I need to report these New York Life payments as income? Will it reduce my state benefit amount? The SDI application asks about "other income" and I don't want to mess anything up. Has anyone dealt with this situation before? I really need both payments to cover my bills while I'm recovering.
23 comments
Join the conversation
GalaxyGazer
Yes, you have to report it!!! I didn't know this when I was on disability last year and got hit with an overpayment notice for $2,800. They consider ANY disability income as offsetting your state SDI benefits. The EDD computer systems eventually catch up with you, even if they approve it initially.
0 coins
Nia Harris
•Oh no! That's what I was afraid of. Did you have to pay back the full amount? I was hoping I could receive both since I pay into both systems.
0 coins
Mateo Sanchez
The previous response isn't completely accurate. Private disability benefits CAN affect your SDI, but it depends on whether you paid the premiums or your employer did. If YOU paid the premiums with after-tax dollars, then the New York Life benefits don't count against your SDI. If your EMPLOYER paid the premiums (which is more common), then yes, you must report it and it will likely reduce your SDI benefits.
0 coins
Aisha Mahmood
•Yep this is right. i had simlair situation w/ Cigna disability thru my job. had to list it on SDI app. My HR told me employer pays the premium so it reduced my SDI payment. still got something from EDD but less than the max.
0 coins
Nia Harris
•Thank you! I just checked and my employer definitely pays the premiums as part of our benefits package. Sounds like I'll need to report it then. Do you know if I'll still get anything from EDD if the private policy pays 60% of my salary?
0 coins
Ethan Moore
I'm currently on disability leave for pregnancy and had the same question last month! Here's what I learned: SDI typically replaces about 60-70% of your income (up to the maximum weekly benefit amount of $1,824 in 2025). If your employer-paid New York Life policy also pays 60%, the two combined would exceed 100% of your normal wages - which isn't allowed under SDI regulations. In my case, my private disability paid 66.7% and EDD basically paid nothing except for a tiny amount. You need to report the private disability on your initial claim form in Section B - "Other Benefits" where it asks about other disability benefits.
0 coins
Nia Harris
•Thanks for the detailed info! That's disappointing, but at least now I know what to expect. Did you have any issues with the timing of payments? I'm worried about gaps between when each starts paying.
0 coins
Yuki Kobayashi
The important thing is to be truthful when you apply. EDD will perform a wage audit and will discover if you're receiving other disability benefits. Not reporting it could result in an overpayment determination and potentially penalties for withholding information. I've had to talk with EDD about this issue for numerous clients. When you file, you'll want to call EDD to explain your situation and understand exactly how the benefits will be coordinated. But good luck actually reaching someone - took me 3 days of calling last time.
0 coins
Carmen Vega
•OMG the calling thing is soooo frustrating! I tried for a week straight with my DI claim question and never got through. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/1X-mEsLtbmQ?si=1hcSq3KFtCr4oAmd Totally worth it to avoid the endless redial nightmare, especially for complicated questions like this that need a real person.
0 coins
QuantumQuester
im on sdi right now for back surgery and have hartford disabilty from work too. u need to know if ur policy is for SHORT term or LONG term disability bc they work diffrently with edd. my std policy had a 30 day waiting period but edd only has 7 days so i got edd for 3 weeks then hartford kicked in after that.
0 coins
Nia Harris
•That's a really good point I hadn't considered. I'll need to check if there's a waiting period difference. That might mean I can at least get full SDI for a short time before the private insurance starts.
0 coins
Mateo Sanchez
To answer your follow-up question, you likely will receive some SDI even with the private policy, but it will be reduced. The calculation is somewhat complex, but essentially: 1. EDD calculates your full SDI amount based on your base period wages 2. They subtract your New York Life payments from that amount 3. If there's any remainder, that's what you'll receive from EDD For example, if your weekly SDI benefit would normally be $1,300, but you receive $1,000 from New York Life, EDD would pay you the difference of $300 weekly. Also, check if your private policy has a "non-duplication of benefits" clause that may already account for SDI payments. Some private policies automatically reduce their payment by what you're eligible for from state disability.
0 coins
Nia Harris
•Thank you for explaining that so clearly! I'll check my policy for that non-duplication clause too. Looks like I'll be getting mostly private insurance with maybe a small top-up from EDD. Not what I hoped for, but at least I understand the system better now.
0 coins
GalaxyGazer
I just want to say that the whole disability system is RIGGED. We pay into SDI every paycheck but then when we actually need it, they find ways to deny or reduce benefits. And the private insurance companies are even WORSE with their endless paperwork and medical reviews. The system assumes everyone is committing fraud when most of us are just trying to survive while we're sick or injured.
0 coins
Ethan Moore
•I understand the frustration, but it's actually designed to prevent people from making more money on disability than when they're working. The intent is wage replacement, not wage increase. But I agree the coordination between different benefits could be much clearer!
0 coins
Nia Harris
Thank you everyone for all the helpful responses! I'm going to gather all my New York Life policy details and be fully transparent on my SDI application. I'll check about the waiting periods too since that might affect the timing. Sounds like I'll probably get reduced SDI benefits, but that's better than an overpayment notice later. Really appreciate all the insights!
0 coins
Joshua Wood
Smart move being transparent from the start! One thing I'd add - make sure to keep detailed records of all your disability payments from New York Life (pay stubs, benefit statements, etc.) because EDD may ask for documentation during their review process. Also, if your foot surgery recovery takes longer than expected and you need to extend your leave, you'll need to update both your private insurer AND EDD about the extended timeline. The coordination can get tricky if your recovery period changes. Good luck with your surgery and recovery!
0 coins
Kingston Bellamy
•This is such great advice about keeping detailed records! I'm new to all this disability stuff and honestly feeling pretty overwhelmed by all the coordination required. It sounds like there's a lot of potential for things to get messy if the timelines don't align perfectly. I'm definitely going to start a folder to track everything from both insurance companies. Thanks for mentioning the extension possibility too - I hadn't even thought about what happens if my recovery takes longer than the initial 8-10 weeks my doctor estimated.
0 coins
Amara Eze
Just wanted to share my recent experience since it might help! I had shoulder surgery in December and dealt with the exact same situation - employer-paid disability through MetLife plus SDI. Here's what I learned: 1) The coordination happens automatically once you report it, but there can be delays. My first SDI payment was the full amount because they hadn't processed the private insurance info yet, then they adjusted it retroactively. 2) Keep copies of EVERYTHING - I mean every form, every payment stub, every phone call log. When questions came up later, having documentation saved me hours of back-and-forth. 3) Don't stress too much about the "exact" coordination formula - EDD's system handles most of it once you provide the right info upfront. The key is just being honest from day one like you're planning to do. Your foot surgery recovery will go smoother knowing you handled the paperwork correctly!
0 coins
Gianni Serpent
•This is really reassuring to hear from someone who just went through the same thing! The retroactive adjustment part is especially helpful to know about - I was worried about getting the wrong amount initially and then having to figure out how to fix it. It sounds like EDD's system is actually pretty good at sorting it out once they have all the information. I'm definitely going to follow your advice about documenting everything. Did you end up getting any overpayment issues when they did the retroactive adjustment, or did they handle that smoothly? And how long did it take for them to process the private insurance coordination? I'm trying to plan my finances around the timing of when payments might start and change.
0 coins
Natasha Kuznetsova
•@Amara Eze Thanks for sharing your experience! As someone who s'currently dealing with a similar coordination issue I (have Guardian disability through work plus SDI for a knee injury ,)I m'curious about the retroactive adjustment process. Did EDD send you a notice explaining the adjustment, or did you just see the payment amount change? I m'in week 3 of my claim and still getting the full SDI amount, but I know the coordination will kick in eventually. Also wondering if the private insurer MetLife (in your case communicates) directly with EDD or if you had to facilitate that connection somehow?
0 coins
Jacinda Yu
•@Amara Eze This is incredibly helpful! I m'actually scheduled for foot surgery next week and have been stressing about this exact coordination issue with my employer s'disability plan. Your point about the retroactive adjustment is particularly reassuring - I was worried I d'somehow mess up the initial application and create problems later. Quick question: when the retroactive adjustment happened, did you have to pay anything back to EDD, or did they just reduce future payments to account for the overage? I m'trying to budget for any potential surprises during my recovery period. Also, did your private insurer MetLife (require) any additional paperwork once SDI was involved, or was it pretty seamless on their end too?
0 coins
Chloe Robinson
•@Amara Eze Your experience is so helpful! I m'actually dealing with a similar situation right now - I have a work-provided disability policy and just started my SDI claim for a back injury. I m'in that nerve-wracking phase where I m'getting full SDI payments but know the coordination hasn t'kicked in yet. Did EDD give you any advance notice before they did the retroactive adjustment, or did it just show up as a different payment amount one week? I m'trying to avoid spending money I might have to pay back later. Also wondering - when they did the adjustment, was it a gradual reduction over several payments or did they take a big chunk all at once to balance things out? Thanks for sharing your real-world experience with this process!
0 coins