Category Archives: Workers’ Comp Q & A

Medical Bills After an On-The-Job Injury – Do I Have to Pay Them?

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Rod Rehm

Today we have a guest post from Kit Case, our friend at the Causey Law Firm of Seattle, WA, which was founded by my good friend and fierce worker advocate Jay Causey. Workers compensation claims can affect how billing is handled when it comes to medical concerns. This article discusses Washington state law. Nebraska and Iowa law have essentially the same rules, but be sure to consult with a workers’ compensation attorney who is familiar with the laws in your state if you have questions or concerns.

Question: I’m Getting Medical Bills, but I have a Workers’ Compensation Claim – Do I have to Pay Them?

Answer: No! Well, maybe…

If the bill you have received is for a balance due, left over after payment from the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries claim for services rendered by a medical provider, then you do not have to pay the bill. Under RCW Title 51 and WAC Chapter 296-20 and all of its provisions, the medical provider is required to accept payment from the workers’ compensation claim for services rendered as payment in full, and is not allowed to seek from the claimant payment of any additional balance. To be more specific, if a charge is billed to the workers’ compensation claim for a particular service and payment is made by the claim for that service in such a way that a balance remains for that same service, the medical provider is not entitled to payment from the claimant for that difference.

In contrast, if authorization for a medical service is denied under the claim completely, you may, under those circumstances, be required to make payment for any denied services. If you also have private medical insurance, your medical provider may be able to receive payment for treatment services denied under the workers’ compensation claim by submitting a bill for his or her services to the private insurance carrier.

To find out what you should do if you have already paid a medical bill for an on-the-job injury, check back in soon for the next installment of this series.

In Nebraska, Who Chooses My Surgeon?

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Rod Rehm

If you are involved in a workers’ compensation situation, it is essential to know your rights, as they vary from state to state. Attorneys at Rehm, Bennett & Moore are licensed in both Nebraska and Iowa, and the workers’ compensations systems are very different between the two states. This video addresses what happens in Nebraska if a person needs surgery.

How To Select A Good Lawyer For Your Problem

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Rod Rehm

Selecting and hiring a good lawyer is critical in dealing with a legal problem. Lawyers are increasingly limiting the types of cases handled in an effort to provided better representation. The Internet is a common starting point for consumers to locate and select lawyers who have the right kind of knowledge and experience for their problem. I recommend the following steps for selecting a lawyer.

1. Check with family, friends, neighbors, or others whom you trust and respect to learn if they know of a lawyer or law firm who they would recommend for the kind of problem you are dealing with. This approach is the traditional way to find a professional and often leads to a good attorney-client relationship with satisfactory results.

2. Consult a general-practice lawyer you know and ask for recommendations. This approach gives you the advantage of having someone who knows area lawyers help you find the right mixture of knowledge and expertise.

3. Internet searches will turn up a large variety of lawyers who handle the kind of problem you are experiencing. Read several of the websites with a careful eye for the following:

a. Is the firm A-rated by the leading peer-rating organization Martindale and Hubbell? The ratings are very good indicators of how the firm is regarded because they come from judges and other lawyers who work with the firm.

b. Do the members of the firm appear to be actively involved in organizations dealing with your kind of problem? Are the lawyers officers or board members of such groups? Have the lawyers been speakers at seminars? This kind of activity shows the lawyers are interested in improving and protecting the law for people with your kind of problem and respected by other lawyers and judges. Here are some examples of law organizations. For employment matters, see the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA). For workers’ compensation organizations, see the Workers’ Injury Law and Advocacy Group. For other personal-injury matters, see the American Association for Justice. For general trial-attorney needs, see the American Board of Trial Advocates.

c. Do the lawyers from a firm belong to any organizations indicating that they have been honored or selected for membership based on knowledge and experience?

d. Do the lawyers appear to belong the bar associations in their area? Have they served on any committees, sections, or governing bodies?

4. Go to Martindale and Hubbell and use the lawyer search. You can search for lawyers by city, state, and specialty. Lawyers are rated as follows. AV® Preeminent™ is the highest rating, followed by BV® Distinguished™ then Distinguished. We recommend only A-rated lawyers if they are available. One way to get the best of the best is to limit the search by checking the box “Featured Peer Review Rated.” The website is very user friendly.

5. Contact the lawyer or lawyers you focus on, and talk to the lawyer. Learn how the lawyer interacts with clients. The following are some questions that might be helpful: Do you feel comfortable talking with the lawyer? Are they Internet users? Will you have a specific team of people working with you? How do they charge? Can you have Skype conferences or do they have other face-to-face conferencing options through the Internet? Will retainer documents be required and available for review before an appointment?

These suggestions provide a framework on how to locate and evaluate an attorney to help you. The references we refer to are industry standards, so they not subject to as much manipulation as other online approaches, such as reviews, testimonials, or video recommendations on lawyers’ websites.

Falling Asleep On The Job: Insufficient Sleep Is A Compensable Condition

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Rod Rehm

There can be consequences to not getting enough sleep. For many, working patterns vary. Examples include truckers or those who do shift work. Throw in shifts that switch from night to day every few weeks, and it can be even harder to get enough sleep. But as our colleague Jon Gelman of New Jersey shows us in today’s guest post, sleep is essential for health and well-being. And not enough sleep is a compensable condition.

The National Sleep Foundation recommends that U.S. adults receive, on average, 7–9 hours of sleep per night; however, 37.1% of adults report regularly sleeping <7 hours per night. Persons reporting sleeping <7 hours on average during a 24-hour interval are more likely to report unintentionally falling asleep during the day at least 1 day out of the preceding 30 days (46.2% compared with 33.2%) and nodding off or falling asleep at the wheel during the previous 30 days (7.3% compared with 3.0%). Frequent insufficient sleep (14 or more days in the past 30 days) also has been associated with self-reported anxiety, depressive symptoms, and frequent mental and physical distress (4).

Even short term sleep duration is linked with:

Increased risk of motor vehicle accidents
Increase in body mass index – a greater likelihood of obesity due to an increased appetite caused by sleep deprivation
Increased risk of diabetes and heart problems
Increased risk for psychiatric conditions including depression and substance abuse
Decreased ability to pay attention, react to signals or remember new information

Such findings suggest the need for greater awareness of the importance of sufficient sleep. Further information about factors relevant to optimal sleep can be obtained from the National Sleep Foundation and CDC.

Seasonal Workers’ Work Comp Is Paid Differently in Nebraska

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Brody Ockander

Workers’ receive slightly different workers’ compensation benefits if injured on a seasonal job.

Jobs that can only be carried out during certain seasons of the year are considered seasonal in nature. In these situations, a seasonal worker who is injured on the job is paid differently than a continuous worker in Nebraska workers’ compensation. Instead of being paid 2/3 of his/her average weekly wages based on the 26 weeks before the injury, work comp benefits for a seasonal employee are paid based on one-fiftieth of the total wages earned from all occupations during the year immediately before the accident (see § 48-126).

However, if calculating a seasonal worker’s wages that way does not fairly represent the seasonal worker’s actual wages, then the period for the wage calculation “shall be extended so far as to give a basis for the fair ascertainment of his or her average weekly earnings.”

The difference in calculation could make a huge difference in actual workers’ compensation benefits for a seasonal worker, but it’s not always easy to determine what is and is not considered “seasonal.” In Nebraska, “seasonal” means that the job can only be carried out during certain seasons but does not include jobs that can be carried out during the entire year. For example, road construction labor can be considered seasonal unless the job requires working in the winter months, manufacturing road materials and repairing equipment. In other words, determining what is seasonal is very fact-intensive. Therefore, if you are injured at work and your job might be considered seasonal, it would be best for you to contact a lawyer to ensure that you are being paid fairly at the seasonal worker rate rather than 2/3 of your average weekly wage.

If You Get Hurt While Violating A Safety Rule, Can You Still Get Workers’ Comp?

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Rod Rehm

Question: I was injured at work while violating a safety rule. Am I still covered under workers’ compensation?

Answer: Yes, probably

Even you were hurt while violating a safety rule, you are probably still covered by workers’ comp. This is true whether you violated the rule by accident or intentionally.

However, your claim may be denied if your employer can demonstrated that:

You have prior repeated violations of safety rules.
You have been disciplined in the past for a safety rule violation.

Even in this case, you may still be covered, depending on the circumstances. But let’s face it, nobody wants to get hurt, so follow the safety rules at all times to stay as safe as possible on the job!

Can Facebook Affect Your Workers’ Compensation Claim?

Posted on November 14, 2011 by Brody Ockander

Follow a few rules of thumb to stay safe on Facebook.

More than likely, you’re on Facebook if you are reading this. If you are not, the chances are very good that you know a close friend or family member who is on Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter.

Most of us never think twice about what we post on these social media sites. However, depending on the privacy settings of your profile, anyone may be able to see the status update on your wall, the photo of you at a wedding, or whatever job you are currently in. That “anyone” could be the defense lawyer or insurance adjuster if you are currently involved in a Workers’ Compensation action.

Depending on your privacy settings, anyone may be able to see the status update on your wall, the photo of you at a wedding, or whatever job you are currently in.

“What do I have to hide?” you ask. Well, often times these status updates, photos, or wall postings may be misunderstood or taken out of context. For example, a status update stating “Just got done mowing the lawn” might not look very good to someone that is off work for a back injury, and it would be hard to explain that even though you mowed the lawn, it took you two pain pills to do so and caused you extreme suffering later that night that you couldn’t even sleep the price you paid in mowing that lawn.

Here’s what you can do to avoid some pitfalls from Facebook:

Adjust your privacy settings so that only your “friends” can see your status, wall, and photos. Continue reading →

Should I report my work injury? I don’t want to get fired!

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Brody Ockander

In Nebraska, being fired for reporting your injury is against the law.

Many Nebraskan workers that have been injured on the job have probably had similar thoughts given today’s economy. However, there are protections for injured workers from getting fired for reporting a workers’ compensation injury. In fact, if you are fired for reporting a work injury, you may be entitled to damages as a result of your termination.

Nebraska is an “at will” employment state. In other words, you may be fired for any reason unless you have an employment contract or you are fired in a discriminatory or retaliatory manner.

You may also be able to recover damages from your employer for being fired for retaliation from your employer.

For example, most people know that you cannot be fired on the basis of: Race, Religion, Ethnicity, Disability, Age, or Gender. If you are fired for these reasons, there are Federal and State laws to allow you to sue your employer.

On the other hand, not everyone knows that you may also be able to recover damages from your employer for being fired for retaliation from your employer. Continue reading →

Workers' Compensation Watch

Published by Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm

Published by:

Category Archives: Workers’ Comp Q & A

Medical Bills After an On-The-Job Injury – Do I Have to Pay Them?

In Nebraska, Who Chooses My Surgeon?

How To Select A Good Lawyer For Your Problem

Falling Asleep On The Job: Insufficient Sleep Is A Compensable Condition

Seasonal Workers’ Work Comp Is Paid Differently in Nebraska

If You Get Hurt While Violating A Safety Rule, Can You Still Get Workers’ Comp?

Should I report my work injury? I don’t want to get fired!

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: