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Anyone who gets injured at their workplace has the legal right to file a claim to obtain compensation for their injuries as long as it is a no-fault accident. A third party must cause these accidents, and the victim must not have been able to prevent them.
Several things can cause these injuries, but they are most common among construction and mass production workers. The money these injured workers get for their workplace injuries is called compensation, and the following article will dive further into its details.
How to File a Workers Compensation Claim
In order to get workers' comp, the injured worker must file a claim to their employer's insurance company. They can do this by following these simple steps.
Reporting the Injury. The first step the injured employee must take is to report their job injury or illness as soon as they get it. This will allow the employer to provide a written notice and setting deadlines for the reports. Some injuries will require to be immediately treated, while others may develop over time and will likely need ongoing medical treatment and medical evaluation.
Filing the Paperwork. After the worker has notified their employer about their injuries, they must file all the paperwork with the important information about their injuries and for how long they should not go to work according to the treatment guidelines. These forms must be submitted to the state's compensation board to approve and select the benefits the employee will have.
Filing the Claim. Once all the paperwork is done, the employer must file a claim to their insurance company backed up by a medical report. The injury must also be reported to the state's workers division, which will vary from state to state.
Approving or Denying the Claim. If the insurer approves the claim, they will contact the employee and offer a compensation amount, which the employee can choose to accept or negotiate for a lump sum. On the other hand, if the claim is denied, the employee can either request a reconsideration or file a formal appeal.
Returning to Work. After taking care of their injuries and fully recovering, the employee must return to work by providing written notice to their employer and the insurance company. In some companies, the employee will have to go through a return-to-work program to get used to their new duties.
What Is Workers Compensation Court
A workers comp court is a jurisdiction of judges holding workers' comp hearings and ensuring that all workers get the benefits they deserve for their injuries. All accidents must be reported to this court to keep track of all the cases in the state.
List of Workers Compensation Benefits
When employees get hurt at work, they are entitled to several benefits, which will be discussed in the following list.
Medical Coverage
This is the most commonly expected benefit that all workers should get after getting their workers' compensation insurance.
It is supposed to cover the entire medical care and medical expenses. Workers will receive this benefit until they've reached maximum medical improvement from their work-related injuries.
Managed Care
In some cases, after a workplace injury, the employee will receive managed care plans that consist of one of several medical treatments that are adequately regulated under the insurance company's policies.
Disability
These benefits will determine how much of their regular pay the employer will receive while being disabled. Furthermore, these disabilities can be classified into the following categories.
Temporary total disability usually gets two-thirds of the worker's weekly wage until they recover.
Temporary partial disability cases will usually get reassigned to a different job but will also earn two-thirds of the weekly wage of their previous job.
Permanent total disability cases will get two-thirds of their average weekly wage for the rest of their life or until retirement age.
Permanent partial disability cases are eligible for a certain number of weeks in which they will get two-thirds of their average weekly wage while they work at a different position.
According to workers' compensation laws, all employers and independent contractors must carry workers' compensation insurance to make sure their employees who get injured at work and get a work-related injury can receive workers' compensation benefits for their lost wages.
Otherwise, they may file a personal injury claim or other workers' compensation claims that will award them disability compensation. It is also useful to create a good attorney-client relationship with the best workers compensation lawyer in Columbus chosen by the injured employees. This way, they can get a good arrangement with their own health insurance and pursue medical treatment through their workers' comp benefits. Having a good lawyer also helps find answers to common questions such as what is a 20% impairment rating or if one can travel out of country while on workers comp.