As we sit at the doorstep to 2018, I want to provide you the top five posts from my blog this year in Workers Compensation. These posts I chose due to traffic and due to the information we provide to injured workers across Pennsylvania. If you missed them, well, link to them here.
Unfortunately for me, often times I am meeting a new client, it is because they are in pain and have suffered a significant injury on the job. I can certainly say, I spend all efforts necessary to protect my client’s rights and benefits under the PA Workers Compensation Act, and fight hard to get my clients a fair and reasonable settlement. Besides the legal aspect of the cases, I have met a lot of good people in 2017 that work hard, very hard. They do not want to be out of work. They do not want to be in pain. They do not necessarily want a settlement and have to resign their job. They are not taking advantage of medicine or the ‘system’. They simply want to get better and get back to work. Unfortunately, many times, they are not able to go back to the job they were hurt at due to limitations. So that is my rant to end 2017 — before judging an injured worker, think about it. I’m not real certain you would want to walk in their shoes.
That being said, here are our Top Five Pennsylvania Workers Compensation posts of 2017
1. Pennsylvania Supreme Court strikes down IRE provisions in Workers Compensation Act
In 2017. the Pennsylvania Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision in the Pennsylvania Workers Compensation world. The Court struck down the Impairment Rating Provisions of the Act, which served as an avenue to limit an injured workers benefits. Read the article and protect your rights.
2. In Pennsylvania, Preexisting conditions are not a bar for workers compensation benefits
This article dives in pre-existing conditions. Often times, an injured worker may have a previous injury at the same location, arthritis, etc… They are also told by employers across Pennsylvania that they can’t file a claim because the condition is pre-existing. WRONG! Read the article and protect your rights.
3. Injury Description is important in Workers Compensation
Your work injury, even if accepted, is usually just accepted as either a strain/sprain or a contusion. The description of injury can lead to medical treatment being denied. Many workers compensation cases in Pennsylvania are litigated over this very thing, injury description. Why? Because medical treatment is expensive. Read the article and protect your rights.
4. Understaffing at Pennsylvania Nursing Homes cause work injuries
It’s a common thread in many nursing home injuries that I see in Pennsylvania. Injuries could have been avoided by more staffing, better automation, and better safety protocols. Instead, the injured workers, like Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), are the ones that pay the heavy price in cost cutting maneuvers. Read the article and protect your rights.
5. Concussions aren’t just in sports, but in the workplace too
They don’t just happen in football. They happen all too often in the workplace. Not all recover from concussions at the same rate. Read the article and protect your rights.