Workers Comp?
Not sure if I would need to get a WC lawyer, I have never had it before. In October I fell at work, I hurt my shoulder, knee, wrist and ankle. I went to the doctors (the day it happened) they x-rayed everything that I was complaining about. Everything is good except for the shoulder. They were thinking I did something to my ac joint. The doctor gave me a cortisone shot (didn't even touch it), I did Physical Therapy (didn't help) They sent me to an Ortho who did an MRI, results came back that I have a partial rotator cuff tear. He said that I need surgery because it will get worse. My problem is they did not give me anytime off, not that I want time off, but I would like to be able to call off if it hurts and not get pointed (we get points if we call off) Everytime that I use my shoulder the pain is horrible. I was put on restrictions (not able to lift or push more than 20lbs.) but using my shoulder which I have to do for my job is very repetitive. I told work about the pain they gave me paperwork for FMLA The doctor does not do FMLA. The Ortho doctor is not my actual doctor until I have the surgery so I can't see if they do FMLA. My shoulders are very uneven. I do have vacation time but I don't feel that I should have to use my vacation for something that happened at work. I have already used 2 Emergency Vacation days because of the pain. I even got pointed for having surgery to remove cancer.
Worker compensation?
Workers Comp laws vary from state to state. Here is where all of the answers are: http://www.michigan.gov/wca Poke around the website, but also call them. Your First Question: The 66% thing has a very complicated answer. Benefits are never that simple. They take a lot of things into consideration - how much you make, tax filing status, dependents - just for starters. Your Second Question: If it's your fault, yes you are still eligible for Workers Comp benefits. Everybody makes mistakes. Pretty much the only way that you would not be eligible for benefits would be if you injured yourself intentionally, with the plan to receive Workers Comp benefits as a result. If there was a post-accident blood test done that showed drugs or alcohol, that might make you ineligible also. Your Third Question: Regarding the selection of doctors. That is another question for the State of Michigan. There is no quick answer to that. Workers Comp will only pay a doctor certain fixed amounts for different procedures - so a good number of doctors won't take patients whose bills are being paid by workers comp. They feel that workers comp does not pay enough. Your Fourth Question: Potentially, the claim could be open for the rest of your life. If someone was permanently disabled or needed medical treatment for the rest of their life as a result of work-related injury or illness, the claim would be open as long as they continued to receive money for lost wages and/or have their medical bills paid. The rest of your questions, including the other 50 you will have when you get the answers to these: Ask the State of Michigan. Here is another useful site: http://www.workerscompensation.com/regulations/reference/category.php?state=michigan&category=EE Talk to the State of Michigan. Do it, do it, do it. They make the rules and enforce the rules. The insurance companies have to do what the State tells them. The State calls the shots. So go to the source. We can all speculate on what could / should / would happen. None of that really matters. What the State of Michigan says is what matters. We don't call the shots or know everything either - but we can send you in the right direction. If you have any other questions, shoot me an email: roland_reardon@yahoo.com
Workers comp and M R I procedures- do u need approval from workers comp first, or can it just be scheduled??
my mother injured her knee at work and she has been out for a full week already, and the doctor is refusing to schedule the mri until workers comp approves it...I presonally hate the doctor, he attempted to schedule me for a procedure which would have caused a permanent disability so naturally i doubt him completely...also the admin. staff at my mother's job told her that M R I procedures no longer need pre-approval in NYS...what is the truth of the matter and who do we contact to get the MRI scheduled now!? she needs to get healed and get back to work, she lives paycheck to paycheck and this is really doing a ton of damage to her.
Illegal immigrant injured at work: Can he get workers’ comp?
Illegal worker. Some states, such as Arizona, California, Florida, Montana, Nevada, New York, Texas, and Utah, have laws that expressively cover illegal immigrants for workers' compensation. Other states, such as Idaho and Wyoming, exclude illegal immigrants from coverage. There are also states, such as Colorado, that have not yet dealt with the issue and have no specific law.Are You Eligible for Workers' Compensation Benefits?Stopping a Robbery. In order to be eligible for workers' compensation, the injury must arise out of employment and be in the course of employment. Basically, the action must be related to work or benefit the employer. Stopping a robbery is probably covered because it is an action for the benefit of the employer. In fact, most stores will tell their employees to not interfere with robbery attempts, because employers are typically liable for any injuries that occur.
Worker's Comp: what rules do they use to determine a settlement?
It's what you want to do. Normally in this case with your company closing you'll qualify for vocational rehab (VR). If you don't want to go to school and all that than you should consider settling VR. So what you will get is your permanent partial disability/impairment (PPD/PPI) plus your settlement of VR and your claim could end up in the high end. You need to ask yourself how much do your think the claim is worth? Do you want to go to school? If you go to school you'll get two years of temporary total disability (TTD) checks while your at school. After surgery how do your feel? Do you want to keep medicals open for the life of the claim? If you do than your settlement will be lowered, if you close it than your settlement will be higher but you'll be responsible for any medicals you seek later. Don't ask for $500,000 because that's just a waste of everybody's time. There is no thought in that amount. Because I'm not exactly sure what your injury is, I think it appears to be a shoulder injury, possible rotator cuff tear or a SLAP tear since you mentioned arm. If you settle the entire thing and you get a rating of 10% for the shoulder/arm...w/o medicare set asides...you might get about $40,000-$55,000 for the entire claim. This is based on experience, results may vary. Number is not considering medicare set asides that the insurance company will need to factor in. Good luck
What exactly is workers compensation?
Workers compensation should cover your medical expenses and a certain percentage of your salary only IF your doctor determines you cannot go back to work. Realistically, most physicians try to get you back to work as SOON as possible...even if on light duty because all the evidence shows that those who do NOT return to work in a timely manner have very poor outcomes. Yet, for some, it is necessary that they remain at home. If you are supposed to stay at home, you can only collect worker's compensation after a predetermined time....this may vary by state, but is one week where I live. In otherwords, you have to be off at least this amount of time before you can collect anything. Also, your compensation check is usually much less than your actual salary...60% in my state. It depends on the nature of your injury and opinion of the physician. Good luck for a speedy recovery
If I forget to clock in at work and get injured, does my employer still have to pay workers' compensation?
Clocking in is a technical process to record your work time and helps your employer to manage the complex tasks to have an accurate record of work hours performed.The clocking in, however, is not a mandatory condition for you delivering your work to the employer. In any circumstances when you offer your work and the work performance gets accepted by your employer the exchange of service against obligation of payments has happened.That is also the reason why you have the right to get missing or wrong time recording corrected.Just imagine the opposite case when you did not forget to time record but when the machine would have male functioned. The only issue in your case is that you have to prove that you were actually working but that should not be difficult as your colleagues can testify this fact.So the answer to your question is yes, you are covered.