Brick Must Pay Injured Officer's Health Insurance, Appellate Court Rules

Brick, NJ -- A Brick Township police officer who retired on disability after an injury suffered in the line of duty does not have to contribute to the cost of his health benefits, New Jersey appellate court has ruled.

Michael Spallina, a Brick Township patrolman, and Brick Township PBA Local 230 had appealed a judge's November 2014 ruling that Spallina was required to contribute to the cost of his health insurance under New Jersey's pension reform law, which took effect in June 2011..

Brick Township's attorneys argued the law required any employee who retired with fewer than 20 years of service to contribute to the cost of his or her health insurance, and the trial court judge agreed.

The appellate court judges disagreed, saying the state's pension laws contain specific exemptions for those who are forced to retire due to disability before they have met a years-of-service requirement.

Spallina, who joined the township's police force in 1994, had 19 years of service when his retirement on accidental disability was approved by the state Division of Pensions effective Oct. 1, 2012.

Spallina was injured in January 2011 while responding to a domestic dispute on Mantoloking road, according to a Patch report at the time. While trying to arrest a township man who had threatened to kill a woman, Spallino suffered a broken leg.

He was never able to return to work.

The appellate court ruled that Chapter 78 -- the pension reform law -- only applied to employees who retired under normal circumstances, not those forced to retire due to accidental disability, saying state law specifically defines different rules for those retiring due to a disability.

"This is why accidental disability retirees receive an 'enhanced benefit' of two-thirds of their salary at the time of the occurrence of the accident, whereas ordinary retirees receive one-half of their final salary if they retire at the earliest time," the appellate court said.

Spallina has sought to have Brick reimburse him for the health insurance contributions made since he retired due to disability; the appellate panel sent that back to the lower court to determine the amount.

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