Workers' Compensation Settlements
An employee who suffers a work-related injury can receive medical treatment without cost under the Workers' Compensation Act. An experienced lawyer for medical benefits of work-related injuries can guide you through the process and explain your options to you.
The law firm of JH & Associates has provided representation to workers in need of help for more than 20 years. Workers' compensation cases can be complex and mired in paperwork and red tape. Our clients trust us to defend their rights and ensure they get paid the full and fair amount they are owed.
An injured employee is required to treat with one of the physicians posted by the employer for a period of 90 days after the initial visit. If the injured employee chooses to treat with a non-posted physician, these bills need not be paid by the employer and its insurance company.
After the passage of 90 days, an injured employee is free to obtain a medical doctor other than those posted by the employer. You are strongly encouraged to seek medical providers other than the employer's physicians after the passage of 90 days. An employee's private physician can commonly be a stronger advocate for the injured employee, while the posted employer's physicians are likely to take the side of the employer against the employee when disputes about disability arise.
In order to win in any workers' compensation case, the employee usually must have a medical expert to support the claim of injury or disability.
When medical payments are made pursuant to the Workers' Compensation Act, a medical provider cannot bill the injured employee for any additional sums for the services provided. The amount paid for a medical service under workers' compensation (113 percent of Medicare listed amount) must be accepted as full payment pursuant to the Act.
An employer is required to pay work-related medical bills within 21 days of the submission of the bills. If a workers' compensation claim is not accepted, medical bills need not to be paid. When a claim is denied, the employee's major medical carrier must pay the bills until the case is litigated. An employer can contest the appropriateness of the medical bills in an existing claim by filing a utilization review petition. In this petition a review organization examines the bills and determines whether the price charged by the medical provider is a reasonable amount.
The payment of medical bills alone is not enough to cause a case to be accepted as a workers' compensation claim. Example: An employer can pay a number of medical bills over the period of a few months and then deny liability as a workers' compensation injury.
If a workers' compensation claim is not accepted, medical bills will not be paid. When a claim is denied, the employee's major medical carrier should pay the bills until the case is litigated. If you have further questions, we encourage you to contact a workers' comp insurance attorney at our firm immediately.
Contact Our Firm
If you need a Pittsburgh workers' compensation settlements lawyer, contact JH & Associates at 866-285-0142 to schedule a free consultation. We maintain a 24-hour answering service for the convenience of our clients.
