If you have been injured while working for your employer, Bowman & Associates will fight for you to obtain the full range of workers’ compensation benefits owed to you. Workplace injuries can include on-the-job injuries due to a specific event like a slip and fall as well as injuries that occur over time due to repetitive physical activities, such as carpal tunnel syndrome and back and leg problems. Workplace injuries can also include work-related illnesses such as hypertension, heart disease, breathing problems, or conditions related to exposure to toxic chemicals or fumes. Bowman & Associates will represent your rights and needs however your workplace injury came about.

California law requires employers to carry Workers’ Compensation insurance, unless they are specifically qualified to insure themselves. The insurance carried by the vast majority of employers may cover medical expenses, lost wages during disability from your injury, and compensation for your temporary or permanent disability. As most people know, seeking adequate coverage from an insurance company is rarely a simple or easy process. Determining what benefits and compensation you are entitled to can give rise to complex issues which may lead to disputes between you, your employer and your employer’s insurer. To navigate this process, you will need a tireless advocate for your rights to make sure you receive appropriate compensation and medical care for your injuries.

Types of Injuries and Reporting Requirements

There are three basic types of injuries in the California Workers’ Compensation system.

Specific Injuries are injuries that occur as a result of a specific event. Examples include when a worker falls off a ladder or lifts a heavy object and injures his or her spine.

Cumulative Trauma injuries are those that occur over time. A classic example is carpal tunnel syndrome, an injury to the wrist area that can occur from keyboarding over an extended period of time.

Sequella Injuries are those that occur as a result of the original injury. An example would be depression that subsequently occurs as the result of a severe back injury. Another example would be an injury to the back as a result of a fall the injured worker experiences while on crutches for an industrially related knee injury… < Read More >

Medical Treatment

California Workers’ Compensation Law provides that the injured worker is entitled to all reasonable and necessary medical care to cure or relieve the effects of the industrial injury. However, recent changes to the workers’ compensation laws have significantly limited the type and scope of that medical care.

Beginning January 1, 2005, employers have the option of setting up “medical provider networks,” referred to as MPNs, for the purpose of providing medical care for work-related injuries. If the employer or insurance company does set up such a network, the injured worker must choose a physician from within that network. No longer can an injured worker simply choose his or her own treating physician… < Read More >

Light Duty Work

Often an injured worker’s primary treating physician will opine that the injured worker is capable of some type of modified or light duty work. In this instance it is important for the injured worker to advise his or her employer of the work restrictions. If the employer can accommodate the work restrictions then the injured worker can proceed to work in the modified capacity. If the employer cannot accommodate the work restrictions then the injured worker may be eligible for temporary disability… < Read More >

Temporary Disability

Temporary disability is paid at two-thirds of your salary up to a maximum of $916.00 per week as of 2008 with cost of living adjustments. Please again note that the temporary disability rate is two-thirds of your salary up to the stated maximum. Unfortunately, the injured worker does not get the maximum simply because he or she is disabled. The determining factors include the injured worker’s average weekly wage and date of injury.

Temporary disability is paid until the injured worker either reaches a “permanent and stationary” (P&S) status or the worker returns to work. However, except in rare instances, temporary disability cannot be paid for more than 104 weeks for any injury after April 19, 2004. Permanent and stationary is defined in workers’ compensation law as the point of maximum medical improvement… < Read More >

Permanent Disability

Once a primary treating physician or medical legal evaluator (Please link to medical legal evaluations) has determined that the “healing phase” of an injury is complete, an injured worker is then said to have reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). The term Permanent and Stationary (P&S) has also been used to describe the end of the healing phase of a work injury.

When an injured worker has reached MMI he or she can then be evaluated for permanent disability. Permanent disability (PD) is expressed in a percentage – from 0% permanent disability to 100% permanent disability. Zero percent permanent disability indicates that the injured worker is completely healed. It is as if the work injury never occurred. One hundred percent permanent disability, also called total permanent disability, indicates that the injured worker has very severe permanent disability and will never again… < Read More >

Medical Legal Evaluations

A medical legal evaluation is conducted by either a Panel Qualified Medical-Legal Evaluator (Panel QME) which is available to both represented and unrepresented injured workers, or is conducted by an Agreed Medical-Legal Evaluator (AME) which is available only to injured workers represented by an attorney.

A medical legal evaluator is not a treating physician for the claim but rather is a physician who offers medical legal opinions on issues such as temporary disability, permanent disability and need for medical treatment… < Read More >

Settlements

There are two basic ways a workers’ compensation case is settled: Stipulation and Award; and Compromise and Release.

When an injured worker settles his or her case by Stipulation and Award, the permanent disability is generally paid out every two weeks and the injured worker can continue to receive medical care paid by the workers’ compensation insurance company. Additionally, the injured worker can reopen his or her case for new and further disability within five years of the date of the original injury… < Read More >

Attorney’s Fees

When an injured worker retains counsel for workers’ compensation benefits, there are no attorney retainers to be paid in advance. Instead, attorney’s fees are approved by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board at the time the case settled by either Stipulation and Award or Compromise and Release with consideration given to the responsibility assumed by the attorney, the care exercised in representing the injured worker, the time involved, and results obtained… < Read More >

Workplace issues can also involve a third party if someone other than your employer was partially or completely responsible for causing your injury. Bowman & Associates has a great deal of experience in personal injury actions. Combining this experience with our Workers’ Compensation practice, we will ensure that whatever the circumstances, you are properly compensated and cared for your work-related injuries.

If you or a loved one have been injured at work, contact an experienced workers’ compensation attorney in Sacramento today for your free initial consultation.