A Medical Leave may be requested should an employee not be eligible for Family Medical Leave or need additional time after exhaustion of a Family Medical Leave for additional treatment or recovery from the employee's serious health condition.
Each request for a Medical Leave requires the submission of a "Health Care Provider Certification" form. Medical Leaves may be paid or unpaid based upon the employee's available accrued time. If an employee elects to be paid for his/her own illness, he/she must use sick time. Whichever type of paid leave you select initially must be exhausted before you are eligible to use a different type of paid leave. (Example: If you elect to use sick time for Medical Leave, you must exhaust all your sick time before you are eligible to substitute vacation time.) Accrual of sick and vacation time will continue while the employee remains in a paid status but will cease when the employee enters into an unpaid status. If the employee elects to take the leave paid or unpaid, once this designation is selected, it cannot be changed after the leave has commenced. If an employee has compensatory time accumulated and chooses to apply it during a leave, he/she must designate that compensatory (comp) time before going on a leave.
While on approved Medical Leave, an employee may not perform any duties for MCCCD, and any additional service contracts will be canceled. An employee who is granted Medical Leave will return to the position which he/she held, prior to the commencement of the leave. Prior to returning to duty, the employee must present a fit for duty certification to the supervisor and to the Compensation Department. To re-qualify for a medical leave, an employee must have returned to work and completed a minimum of six months of active employment.
Benefit Coverage during a leave:
The District will continue to pay the flexible benefits for the insurance coverage selected by the employee based upon the following schedule:
| Years of Service | Premium Payment |
|---|---|
| 0 to 5 | 6 months* |
| Over 5 | 12 months* |
| Over 10 | 18 months* |
| *includes FMLA | |
Flex Credit payments will be determined as of the initial leave of absence date and will continue to be provided for the length of time as stipulated in the policy manuals when the COBRA continuation is implemented.
COBRA continuation eligibility for employees on a medical leave of absence will begin on the fourth month of their leave of absence. (This excludes intermittent leave.) Flex credits will continue to be provided for the length of time as stipulated in the policy manuals when COBRA continuation coverage is implemented.
After the exhaustion of District paid flex credits, an employee may continue their COBRA eligible coverage for the remainder of their COBRA continuation period as designated by federal law. The employee is responsible for the premium payment plus a 2% administration fee while continuing coverage through COBRA. Non-COBRA eligible benefits will be terminated after the exhaustion of the District paid Flex Credits. The Employee should contact their Benefit Specialist should they wish to continue payments at that time.
Medical Protective Service Date (MPSD) - Regular Governing Board approved employees have job protection during leaves due to health reasons.
What is Medical Protective Service Date (MPSD)?
Your MPSD is the last day Maricopa Community Colleges (MCCCD) may be obligated
to hold/protect your employment position.
How is MPSD calculated?
MCCCD gives you 3 months of federally mandated leave as per the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). However, MCCCD also provides you with an
additional 9 or 15 months medical leave option dependent upon your length of service with MCCCD. Specifically, you are eligible for an
additional 9 months with up to 10 years of service, and an additional 15 months with 10 or more years of service.
What is Employee Relations' role?
Employee Relations will begin working with an employee who is out on a Medical Leave approximately 60 days prior to the employee's MPSD.
During this timeframe, Employee Relations will discuss the employee's intentions with their position, provide an opportunity to submit a
request for an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation and offer assistance with facilitating questions related to the employee's
MCCCD medical insurance.