For people who suffer injuries while in the scope of their employment, the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission provides several benefits designed to help them make ends meet as they recover. Employers in Maryland are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance in practically all employment situations, which means you most likely have coverage if you are an employee.
The workers’ compensation process can be complex and confusing, though. Insurance companies and employers, who often deny valid claims, make this process more difficult. To manage your claim effectively, allow our knowledgeable and tenacious Bel Air, Maryland workers’ compensation attorneys of Portner & Shure, P.A. to represent and guide you from the start.
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Development of Workers’ Compensation
Injured workers historically had limited options when seeking compensation for their injuries because they had to sue their employer for compensation. Winning these lawsuits was often difficult if not impossible due to the power and resource imbalance. Workers’ compensation changed this issue by allowing workers to seek benefits in a no-fault system, which means neither they nor their employers could be blamed for a workplace accident.
There are two basic requirements for a workers’ comp claim to be valid:
- Claimant was hurt accidentally or due to a mistake.
- Injury was suffered in the scope of their employment.
Benefits of Workers’ Compensation Claims
Several benefits are provided by workers’ compensation for injured workers. One benefit is that the insurance carrier must pay for both medical treatment and rehabilitation costs. Injured workers are permitted to choose their own treating doctors in Maryland, too. If a dispute occurs between the employee and the workers’ compensation insurance carrier regarding whether additional treatment is necessary, each party has the right to seek an independent medical evaluation (IME) and raise this issue at a workers’ compensation hearing.
The other benefits available under Workers’ Compensation include:
- Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits: This benefit is available for injured workers who are unable to return to work and currently undergoing medical treatment. This benefit pays 2/3rds of an injured worker’s average weekly wage. To qualify, a medical doctor must certify that the injured worker is unable to perform their prior duties.
- Temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits: This benefit is available for injured workers who can return to work at a reduced capacity. This benefit pays half of the difference between an injured worker’s prior average weekly wage and their current reduced income.
- Vocational rehabilitation training: This benefit provides job training to injured workers who reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) but who are unable to work due to medical restrictions or because their employer cannot accommodate their medical needs. This benefit also pays 2/3rds of an injured worker’s average weekly wage.
- Permanency award: A permanent disability award is available for injured workers who reach maximum medical improvement but remain permanently disabled. If an injured worker’s disability rating is higher than 50% and if they are unable to obtain suitable employment, lifetime benefits are available.
Common Defenses Used by Insurers
Employers and insurance companies often deny claims on the basis that it did not occur within the scope of employment. They also like to claim that the employee was intoxicated or engaging in willful misconduct. Willful misconduct precludes an employee from making a workers’ compensation claim if it is shown that they recklessly and intentionally violated a workplace rule that then resulted in their injury. Intoxication precludes an employee from making a workers’ compensation claim if it is shown that they were intoxicated and the time of their injury and that their intoxication resulted in their injury.
Get the Services of Portner & Shure, P.A.
Our Bel Air workers’ compensation attorneys at Portner & Shure, P.A. have been successfully representing claimants before the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission for more than 30 years. The results we have obtained on behalf of our clients have changed their lives for the better. We want to provide you with outstanding legal guidance to make your life easier, too!
