From
The KDDK Advantage - February/March 2007
Workers
compensation is the legal vehicle by which employers
compensate employees who are injured on the job. Through
workers compensation an employee gives up the right to
sue an employer for damages such as pain and suffering,
but the employee gains a more relaxed standard for proving
he or she is entitled to compensation.
When a work-related injury
occurs, an employer will be obligated to pay for various
elements of damage which may include:
Related medical bills -
Temporary total disability
(a percentage of the injured employee’s wages for
the time he cannot work at all)
-
Temporary partial disability
(the difference between the pay for the work the
employee can perform and the
pay for the employee’s pre-injury position
-
Permanent partial impairment
(the permanent loss of physical ability of the employee
due to the work
related injury), and/or
Permanent total impairment (wage replacement
for the employee’s inability to return to any employment
due to the work related injury for up to 500 weeks).
In some cases, the employee may be
entitled to vocational rehabilitation and in the worst
scenarios,
the employee’s family would be entitled to death
benefits.
While the employer is obligated to
provide medical treatment for an injured employee, the
employer
also gains the right to direct the employee’s medical
treatment.
Should an employee disagree with or refuse the approved treatment, he or
she may be denied workers compensation rights. In such contested cases,
the Indiana
Workers’ Compensation Board would make the final determination regarding
the employer’s responsibility for medical treatment.
As of July 1, 2006,
the maximum an employer in Indiana could be liable to
pay for a work related injury is $300,000. This amount
will rise to
$310,000 on
July 1, 2007; $318,000 on July 1, 2008; and $325,000 on July 1, 2009.
Greg
Freyberger practices in the areas of workers compensation,
insurance coverage and defense, business law and litigation & trial
services. Call Greg with workers compensation questions
at gfreyberger@kddk.com or
812-423-3183.
Next topic: Steps to decrease workers
compensation expenses for employers.
Previous topic: Orignins of Workers compensations
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