Allegations of Disability Fraud Made Against NY’s Long Island Rail Road
New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo acting on a request made by the Governor David A. Paterson began investigating allegations of fraud in federal disability pension payments made to retirees of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR).
The probe comes on the heels of a published report that found "virtually every employee of the railroad applies for and receives disability payments soon after retirement," resulting in hundreds and millions of dollars in federal disability money. According to the report, the claim rate is significantly higher than the average for railroads in genera.
For example, from 2001 through 2007, the LIRR had 753 cases of disabilities resulting from arthritis and rheumatism, compared with 32 cases reported by Metro-North, another Metropolitan Transportation Authority-owned railroad, according to the report.
On Sunday, Gov. Paterson extended authority to investigate the matter to Mr. Cuomo, who said in a statement that his office will "aggressively investigate the issue."
"Although these payments were authorized by the federal government, the ramifications of this for the MTA and the taxpayers are severe," Gov. Paterson said in a statement.
The disability claims are paid by a Chicago-based federal agency, the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board.
The head of the Long Island Rail Road says the company has no role in the granting of federal disability pensions. In a statement, Helena Williams described the awards as "alarming and out of sync with our workplace safety records."
"The LIRR's on-the job injury rate has been in steady decline due to a sustained effort to make our workplace a safe environment," Ms. Williams said in a statement.
In addition, Ms. Williams said she has asked inspector generals from both the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board and the MTA, which owns the railroad, to review the matter. She noted the company is cooperating with the attorney general's investigation.
Published on September 23, 2008
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