November 20, 2017 | Workers' compensation

In a workers’ compensation case, the adjusters, lawyers, and judges will often use words and terminology that most people aren’t familiar with. “Whole body” and “scheduled member” are two such examples. This distinction is important to injured workers because it directly impacts the amount of type of compensation they are entitled to under the Workers’ Compensation Act.

Scheduled member injuries are compensated by measuring permanent impairment, ie the loss of use of the body part. Whole body injuries are compensated by measuring loss of earning capacity, ie the loss of access to the labor market.

A “scheduled member” injury is any injury to the parts of the body that are individually described by the Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Act, specifically, Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-121(3). That statute states “the following schedule of compensation is hereby established for injuries resulting in disability.” This is where the term “scheduled member” originated. The “scheduled” members identified in the statute are:

A “whole body” or “body as a whole” injury is any injury to the head, neck, or trunk of the body, as well as any mental injury such as depression or PTSD.

In determining whether an injury is to the whole body or a scheduled member, it is the “situs of the disability” that matters, not the location of the actual impact on the body. For example, if an employee breaks his or her ankle and is forced to use crutches, and using the crutches causes an injury and permanent disability to the employee’s lower back, then the injury is a whole body injury, not a scheduled member injury.

In addition, if an injured worker has two or more scheduled injuries arising out of the same accident, he or she may be entitled to a loss of earning capacity, but that decision is in the judge’s discretion.

Many times, an employer or insurance carrier will try to compensate a whole body as a scheduled member injury or ignore the situs of the disability in determining impairment or compensation. These results are unfair to the injured worker.

We are workers compensation attorneys, and we will answer your questions

If you are unsure if your injury is a scheduled member or whole body injury and you want answers, feel free to contact our office and discuss your questions with one of our workers’ compensation attorneys. We are here to help.

About the workers compensation attorneys

Justin High has been trying cases for over ten years. He has handled hundreds of cases in State and Federal Courts in Nebraska and Iowa. Justin has argued and won a variety of cases in the Nebraska Court of Appeals and Supreme Court. Outside the courtroom, Justin has presented at dozens of seminars educating clients and other attorneys on subjects like Electronic Discovery, Workers’ Compensation, and Personal Injury.

Frank Younes’s business acumen and expertise is highly regarded by those with whom he has worked. He provides insightful consultations and recommendations to his business clients, whether they are starting a new business, reorganizing their current business, buying or selling a business, or just seeking to increase their profitability and minimize liabilities.