Yes.  There is no duty under Iowa law to cooperate with a nurse who has been hired by the insurance company to tag along on your medical appointments.  Most doctors find these nurses to be incredibly irritating and they generally get in the way of doctor/patient communication.  Some of these nurses are professional and can actually help but the moment you sense that the nurse is working on an insurance company agenda, or is doing things to cast you in a bad light with your doctor, FIRE THEM.  Most of our clients are adults and have never needed a nurse to go to any doctor appointment since their mother quit going.  So why do you need a nurse now?  These nurses show up and claim they are there to help you.  Hold them to that promise and when they break that promise… FIRE THEM!

515-224-4400 or 1-800-890-4544

The answer to this question lies in the conflict between the insurance company and you as the injured person.  Insurance companies hate spending money and try to use doctors who will help them in that goal.  Cooperative doctors who are being paid by the insurance companies, whether you have a personal injury or a workers’ compensation claim, the insurance industry knows that delay tends to help it, and harm the injured person.  For that reason, we see unreasonable insurance delay in both types of cases.  A perfect example of delay arises in workers’ compensation when the insurance company drags its feet on authorizing medical care.  A worker might have a severe shoulder injury and even after seeing the company doctor you find out there is a several week delay to get an MRI, or a couple of months delay to get into see a surgeon.  By grinding the medical progress to a near halt the insurance company knows that some workers will simply give up and go away.  Don’t do this!

Although it’s very aggravating to have an insurance company playing the “delay” game with you, the only way you can protect your rights is to keep pushing for the medical care that you need.  It’s always a good idea to document your frustration over the delay with medical care in writing.  Send an e-mail or a fax to the employer or the work comp insurance company documenting your complaint.  It has to be done in writing.  This way there can be no claim that the insurance company didn’t understand the delay was working against you.  Individuals with these problems should call to discuss other options available.  There’s no charge for the phone call to our office as you can only make decisions about your case if you are armed with the correct information.

515-224-4400 or 1-800-890-4544

Today we are discussing the consequences of silly mistakes that clients make early in their case. What usually happens is that clients are sloppy in the telling of their story. They are vague on dates, or don’t give enough details about how they got hurt. What most clients don’t understand is that the stories you tell early in the case make all the difference later on.

Here’s an example: a worker is walking down the stairs, slips on water, and falls, injuring their leg. But when they tell the story to the insurance company they leave out the fact that the stair was wet. The insurance company is left with the impression that the worker fell “just walking down the stairs.” Later, when the injured worker tries to explain that there was water on the floor the insurance company accuses them of lying and changing the story to try to seek some advantage. Another area where we see silly mistakes are when clients are not being careful when they describe where they are hurt. Inevitably, the client leaves out the fact that they also hurt their knee when they have previously stated they hurt their foot, ankle, hip, and back.

If you are not accurate and careful when discussing issues in your case with the insurance company, your employer, or your doctors, you can create the wrong impression and set the stage for an unnecessary fight.

 I just got off the phone with the family of a worker who passed away a couple of years after being hurt at work.  The basic question was whether or not there was still any work comp case to be pursued.

As a general rule, the injured worker must be alive to collect future workers compensation benefits.  The simple answer is that upon death of an injured worker the future value of the case usually is extinguished… meaning nothing further can be recovered.  But this doesn’t end the discussion.  Questions that need to be asked are whether or not all of the past medical care and past weekly benefits have in fact been paid?  We would also want to know if they were paid at the correct weekly rate of compensation.

Other questions would involve the circumstances of the injury itself.  Sometimes a third-party might have been responsible for the original injury and that case might still be pursued.  With the death of the injured person that case may prove difficult, but discussion with a qualified attorney to help analyze these issues is always a good idea.  The relationship between a personal injury case and a work comp case is complex and requires careful consideration.  Give us a call, the call is free.

I just got off the phone with caller who wanted to know his options about a work-related back surgery.  He got hurt at work, no doubt.  He has been through the medical system and the doctors are telling him they are willing to do the surgery.  Even the insurance company is cooperating, and will authorize the surgery.  Now comes the hard part…

Should he do it?  What happens if he doesn’t do it right now?

The answer to these questions is that the worker gets to decide when the surgery takes place.  There is no rule that you have to have the surgery just because your medical condition warrants it.  One worker can live with an injury whereas another one cannot.  Everyone is different.  The case is the same whether you have surgery or not in the eyes of Iowa work comp law.

A worker should think about the ramifications of postponing the surgery.  Maybe it’s better to get a needed surgery now, than run the risk that something crazy will happen in the future that will cause the work comp company to withdraw the permission for surgery.  But again, maybe nothing will happen in the future and the worker can get the surgery when they are convinced it’s in their interest.  These are important decisions that ultimately only the worker can decide and this is a typical question we get in the office all the time.

So, if you’re unsure what to do, give us a call and let’s discuss it.

Today I got a request that our work comp client resign from the employment as part of an otherwise favorable settlement of a work comp case.

This is an awkward situation.  Clients hire us to handle their work comp case.  However, some employers insist upon settlements that involve resigning the employment.  This is close to improper conduct by the employer, but in reality it happens all the time.  They want you to resign, and they will pay money on the work comp case to do it.

Is it a good idea?  That is the real dilemma.  Sometimes the worker wants to leave so the resignation makes sense.  But other times there is no desire to leave.  These situations require a lot of strategy and planning.  I wish there was a simple answer to the resignation question but each case is so complex that they have to be handled slowly and carefully.  Call to discuss any specific problems you might be having.

We were recently working on a case for a client and the question came up as to whether or not they could claim a $2.75 shift differential for working at night. This is the pay you get for working odd hours, or late at night. The reason this is important is that shift differential pay increases the hourly rate of compensation for the worker. That hourly rate is critical to determining how much weekly workers compensation pay you receive.

For many years a worker could not claim a shift differential increase in pay as part of their hourly pay. It was viewed more as a bonus, and even though it was earned for every hour worked, the system did not allow those dollars to be included in the calculation. This was changed a few years ago and now shift differential is an important part of making sure you are paid the correct amount.

Determining the correct weekly rate of compensation for Iowa Workers’ Compensation is a very important step in determining the value of your case. If there are mistakes in the hourly rate of pay, those mistakes will amplify the problem with the value of the case. This is why we work so carefully to make sure we understand how you were paid and how that pay affects your weekly rate of compensation.

As we watch the “Occupy Wall Street” protest movement grows throughout the United States we see the faces of concerned citizens who protest for many reasons. One important issue that many people share in common is… Jobs.  Our country faces tremendous challenges as we transition away from the fossil fuel economy and move towards an alternative energy world.

The fundamental question of needing to work, filters all the way down to the Iowa Work Comp level as well.  In our cases, clients struggle with the need to successfully rehabilitate injuries versus the need to put food on the table for their family.  Many clients are faced with hard choices such as:  do I continue to let the doctor keep me off work while I rehabilitate my injury or do I cut short my medical treatment in an effort to get a clean release so that I can go back to my old job or find new work?

Wow!  This is a tough problem and one that should be carefully considered before making a definitive step either way.  Some clients cut short their needed medical care hoping that they will find a job.  But, when they terminate their medical care they find that jobs aren’t there.  And once the insurance company stopped paying for injury–related medical care, it will almost never starts again.  These problems need to be carefully considered and fully discussed with your attorney.

The internet is a fabulous tool when used with other sources of information!

Unfortunately, many of these sites have incomplete and inaccurate information. Some things are simple mistakes, but others like addresses or the type of work a firm handles can be wrong, misleading and are unacceptable!

Our advice to you is to make a call to the business you are researching, if you have any questions regarding the information you have seen online and to verify its’ address if you plan to visit their location.

The call to us is free…1-800-890-4544!   Our local number is 515-224-4400.

9/11 reflections…

With the passing of another 9/11/01 anniversary now is the time to think about some of the legal issues surrounding that terrible event.  Last week we did an office outing at a Des Moines firefighter’s fundraiser.  This was in conjunction with the 9/11/01 anniversary.  The picture on the top of our blog post is of our staff and friends competing with the local fire department to see if we could out pull them.  Guess what?  Firefighters can pull faster than lawyers and secretaries!  Who knew?

It was a fun event, and we were happy to participate.  What is not so happy are the problems faced by the volunteers who participated in the rescue and salvage operation at Ground Zero.  Proving once again that our Congress can’t agree on anything, it still will not provide benefits to those people who risk their health to try to save lives after the buildings collapsed.  This is shameful and reflects poorly on us as a society.

In Iowa, volunteer firefighters and volunteer police officers are covered by our Workers’ Compensation act.  But even this is tricky as so few people know the volunteers are covered their many injuries go uncompensated.  Even worse, when a volunteer dies in the line of duty sometimes the family goes uncompensated because no one understands they are covered… even though they were not paid wages.  What a tragedy.