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.

 As attorneys, our thoughts turn to who is responsible for these situations.  It certainly can no longer be said that massive storms are a surprise.  Everyone knew there was a huge crowd waiting at the Indiana Fairgrounds for this concert and lots of people knew a significant storm was approaching that area.  With the advent of Doppler radar, the movement of the storm can be tracked at the street level. 

 Who had the obligation to warn?  Who made the decision to erect the stage?  Who made this decision to let the crowd stay there when the dark clouds approached?  Like taking down a large tree, was there any consideration made to what would happen if the stage did collapse and in what way it should be engineered to fall?  Why did it fall into the crowd?

 The answer to these questions can lead to difficult investigation and will require careful consideration as to what approach should be taken.

 The Iowa Work Comp Commissioner requires the ratings be given pursuant to the fifth edition of the “AMA Guides.”  Workers need to be alert for this problem and make sure that their rating is given pursuant to the fifth edition.

 What happens is that the insurance industry will ask the doctor to rate an injury based on the sixth edition of the AMA guides.  These guides are put together by a committee of doctors and insurance people sitting around the table at a high-priced resort and quibbling about how much money injured workers get.  Then the committee issues a new set of Guides, and claims that this “new and improved” version of the Guides is more fair than the previous version of the Guides.  The trend has been that each successive edition of the AMA Guides results in a lowering of the impairment ratings.  What was a 10% rating to the body in the AMA third edition can now be 5 – 8% rating to the body in the AMA sixth edition.  By lowering the number the worker receives for the exact same injury from the doctor’s rating you lower the amount of money the worker receives.  So it makes a difference which guide is used.

 Here in Iowa a committee of lawyers, insurance company representatives, and employer representatives has determined that the Fifth edition of the AMA Guide is the best measurement of disabilities that can be rated.  The Commissioner has demonstrated leadership in this area by stating that impairment should be given based on the fifth edition of the AMA Guides.  Make sure that is happening in your case.  Otherwise give us a call.

Clients need to understand that “elections have consequences.”  In 2011 we are seeing that prove true in many areas including workers’ compensation cases.  In the last election the voters of Iowa bought into the “Tea Party” philosophy and voted out democratic majorities in the legislature and voted out the democratic governor.  In large part the defeat of the democrats was driven by the ongoing economic problems at the time of the election.

One consequence of the republican victory for the Governor’s office is that the new governor gets to pick his own team to head the various agencies.  The division of Worker’s Compensation is not such an agency.  The Commissioner of the work comp division serves a full six-year term specifically to avoid the influence of politics in the selection process.  But politics is a rough-and-tumble game and the current Republican governor is trying to force out Commissioner Chris Godfrey.  So far the governor has not provided any good reasons to remove the Commissioner which leaves everyone speculating that only bad reasons are behind the move to oust the current Commissioner.  Because the governor can’t actually replace the current Commissioner he instead cut the salary of the Commissioner by more than $36,000 and is trying to starve him out. 

Commissioner Godfrey has been even-handed in his official activity during his years as Commissioner.  The Iowa Association of Business and Industry does not object to him.  Likewise, the legislature in Iowa has unanimously confirmed him in the past.  He also received top marks in the review performed by the state government.  This makes no difference to our governor.  He has an agenda and he’s going to carry it out to the fullest degree.

So if you are reading this, and you have a workers’ compensation case in this state, think twice the next time you walk into the voting booth.  On the other hand, if your only goal is to weaken the rights of injured workers then … Congratulations!