What are Specific Loss Benefits?
Specific Loss Benefits are a kind of worker’s compensation benefit. As outlined in the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act, they are considered when a worker loses a particular bodily function or body part from a work-related injury or disease. These benefits compensate for both the loss itself and any other disability benefits that the worker may receive.
Specific loss benefits are considered only under extreme circumstances. The loss of the bodily function or part must be permanent in nature, and can even include amputation. When a claim for specific loss benefits is filed, the injured party must only have proof that they have suffered a permanent loss. They do not need to prove any monetary loss. In Pennsylvania, the level of benefits a person may be eligible for is calculated based on a predetermined number of weeks of compensation for each specific loss. For instance, loss of a thumb constitutes two-thirds of wages during one hundred weeks, loss of a hand constitutes two-thirds of wages over three hundred thirty-five weeks, and loss of vision in one eye constitutes two-thirds of wages over two hundred seventy-five weeks.
Because proof of monetary loss is not necessary to receive specific loss benefits, it is important that an injured party collects the proper medical information to prove the permanence and severity of their injuries. In certain circumstances, an injured party can receive both specific loss benefits and wage loss benefits. They are both ways that the legal system tries long-term health and well-being of injured parties.
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What’s the Difference Between Permanent and Temporary Disability?
If you’ve been hurt at work and are now undergoing the workers’ compensation benefits forms, you’ll likely see words like temporary disability benefits and permanent disability benefits. Ultimately, your medical improvement will determine the types of workers’ compensation coverage you qualify for. However, these two categories can make a great deal of difference in your compensation for your work-related injury.
In general, your workers’ comp claim can get you financial compensation for medical bills, loss of wages, and future earnings loss in the case of long-term disability.
Before you begin the process, contact a workers’ comp attorney who can guide you to ensure you get the financial benefits you are legally entitled to.
Understanding the Difference Between Temporary and Permanent Disability in Workers’ Comp Cases
The main difference between temporary and permanent disability is when the injured cannot work. […]
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Will My Employer Hold My Job While I Recover From a Work Injury?
Workers’ compensation benefits offer you a lot of things, like compensation for medical care, specific loss benefits, and payment of lost wages. But it doesn’t guarantee you’ll have a job to return to once your work-related injury or illness has recovered.
Pennsylvania is an at-will employment state, which means you can be let go from your position at any time, so long as it is not for a discriminatory reason. That would include filing for workers’ comp.
However, if your employer needs your job position to be active, for example, if you’re a full-time employee for a construction firm and are in the middle of a deadlined build, they have a right to replace you. But, when you return, they must offer you a suitable job replacement.
The only way to avoid at-will employment laws is to have stipulations in your employee contract or belong to the union. […]
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Can I File for Unemployment While Receiving Workers’ Compensation?
If you get injured at work, workers’ compensation may be an option for you. Often referred to as workers’ comp, this is a state-mandated insurance program that offers payment to those who have been hurt or experienced an occupational disease while at work. It’s an extremely common way for workers who have been injured on the job to cover medical expenses and make up for lost wages. But some workers may wonder: Can I collect both unemployment and workers’ comp benefits?
In Pennsylvania, workers’ comp payment areas include wage replacement benefits, death benefits, the coverage of medical expenses, specific loss benefits, and more. Private insurance companies can pay out workers’ compensation, the State Workers’ Insurance Fund, or self-insured employers, and most PA workers (with some exceptions) are guaranteed coverage by the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act. However, the system does require you to follow very specific rules in order to make a claim or receive your due successfully. […]
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