One could write an entire book on work-related accidents and worker’s compensation. We’re going to provide a high-level overview of this subject while providing information on how you can learn more if you’re in a workplace accident.
An Introduction to Worker’s Compensation
Worker’s compensation is a system designed to cover the medical bills, lost wages and other losses caused by on-the-job injuries. The entire system exists because so many people fell into poverty after the main breadwinner was disabled or killed on the job. Worker’s compensation insurance is mandatory for almost all employers. The employer pays into this system, while employees who take advantage of it give up the right to sue the employer for those damages.
You personally shouldn’t have to pay into the worker’s compensation system the way you pay health insurance premiums or pay Social Security taxes with every paycheck. However, you might have to pay for legal assistance if dealing with the worker’s compensation system.
How Worker’s Compensation Intersects with Other Areas of Your Life
Worker’s Compensation is separate from the Social Security Disability Income system. If you spend long enough on worker’s comp, then you become eligible for SSDI. Worker’s compensation should cover work-related injuries. If you go to the doctor and find out that it is work-related, you can get compensated for those medical bills from worker’s comp. The idea is that it is unfair to force people to pay for the injuries caused by their job. Yet it can be hard to determine the root cause of that wrist pain, back pain or chronic cough. That means you may go to two doctors finding out what is wrong, or you may visit the Emergency Room after a serious injury without any though about worker’s comp. Then you have to work out liability and get reimbursed by the employer’s worker’s compensation insurer.
If you have been injured at work, you need income coming in as soon as possible as well as assistance with medical bills. A Portland workers compensation attorney can help you file the necessary claims for reimbursement and the paperwork required to start the weekly worker’s compensation payments. A worker’s compensation attorney can help you file the necessary claims for reimbursement and the paperwork required to start the weekly worker’s compensation payments.
The Role of Worker’s Compensation Attorneys
Worker’s compensation law is its own legal specialty. This is why you should hire a work injury lawyer instead of a personal injury attorney if you’re injured on the job. A worker’s compensation attorney can also help you navigate the complex worker’s compensation process. All you’ve to do is go now on their website and see their experience, case history, among other things to evaluate how they help you in the best way possible. For example, you may be forced to visit a worker’s compensation doctor for assessment or a second opinion. If you fail to do the exam or refuse to provide the necessary documentation, you’re left with full responsibility for all of the legal bills. Employers often try to force people on restricted duty to return to their full job or push people to return to work too soon. They do this to reduce what they’re paying in worker’s compensation. An attorney can get the documentation you need to prove that you need more time to rest. And they can provide advice to employers who don’t know what to do with someone on restricted duty. Or you may need an attorney’s help to fight for full reimbursement for medical bills or lost wages.
