Law Office of Jeffrey A. Young

If it’s a prior work-related injury that’s aggravated, even the slightest aggravation is a new claim. If it’s a non-work-related prior injury that’s aggravated, it’s a little bit different in that you have to prove that the new injury is at least one of the “major factors” in your need for treatment or disability; it doesn’t have to be the “predominant cause”.

In order to be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits, the injury must occur on the job. For example, if a worker gets injured in a car accident on his or her way to work, those injuries probably aren’t covered through workers’ compensation. But if that worker gets into a motor vehicle accident on the job, such as during a delivery, things can be very different. In this situation, injuries sustained in an accident while “on the clock,” will likely be covered by workers’ compensation insurance. Workers’ compensation eligible injuries also include illnesses that relate to work. For instance, if a worker gets ill due to exposure to chemicals on the job, then that illness should be covered by workers’ compensation.

The state has what they call “vocational rehabilitation services”. You can meet with them and they can discuss with you what you’re entitled to. Essentially, they look to see whether or not you can go to a similar type of job. If you can’t do that, they look to see if you have transferable skills that can help you get to a different field and earn the same amount of money.

Generally, to be covered under workers’ compensation, you must be an employee who’s paid. There are some exceptions with volunteers in specific categories, so it’s important that you speak to a workers’ compensation specialist attorney in order to determine if, in fact, your injury while volunteering is covered.

Once you’ve notified your employer that you’re going to be out of work for at least five days, they have five business days to notify their insurance company. The insurance company then has 14 days to either pay or deny your case. If they do it within the 14 days, you’re in what they call a “pay-without-prejudice” period. What that means is, essentially, they can pay your claim for up to six months, potentially a year if you sign an extension, but they can cut your benefits off with just a week’s notice. If they don’t pay your claim within the 14 days, which they don’t in a lot of cases, then you need to file a claim with the Industrial Accidents and bring it before a judge for a decision on whether or not the benefits should be paid. It’s very important early on in your case to contact a qualified workers’ compensation attorney and make sure the process is proceeding the way it should.

Unfortunately, in Massachusetts, there’s nothing in the workers’ comp law or other statutes that prevents that. The employer is entitled to replace an injured employer if they’re out for an extended period of time. There is a preference in rehiring, so if that employee was eventually able to go back to that job and the employer was hiring, they would have to give that employee preference over anyone else that hasn’t worked for them prior.

The most common significant benefits have to do with medical and lost income payments. Medical payments go towards paying the medical costs for treating the worker’s work-related injuries. This includes paying for prescription medications and mileage reimbursement when traveling to and from treatment. As long as the medical treatment is reasonable and necessary, the workers’ compensation insurance company should continue to pay for the worker’s medical care.

The Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA) is a state agency that oversees the workers’ compensation program. They adjudicate disputed workers’ compensation claims. The DIA recommends that injured employees consult a qualified workers’ compensation lawyer because of how complicated these claims can be. However, the DIA cannot make referrals to lawyers.