October 25, 2022 | Workers' compensation

Have you been injured at work? Have you developed a health condition related to your work? Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to provide workers with compensation for damages they suffer as a result of work related illnesses or injuries. These benefits are designed to help reduce the financial burden that workers face when they suffer a work-related illness or injury.

The state of Nebraska requires businesses with employees to carry workers’ compensation insurance. If you have been injured at work or suffered a work-related illness, you could be eligible to recover workers’ compensation benefits. Below, we discuss how workers can benefit from workers’ compensation insurance.

What Does Workmen’s Compensation Cover?

If you are an employee and were injured while carrying out work-related tasks or developed a work-related illness, you can recover workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits cover:

1. Medical expenses

One of the biggest challenges that workers face after suffering a work-related injury or illness is paying their medical expenses. Depending on the nature of your injury or illness, you may be faced with huge medical bills. If you have suffered an injury or illness that requires extensive treatment, your medical bills will not only be large but also keep piling up.

Workers’ compensation insurance provides coverage for medical expenses. You can therefore access the treatment you need without worrying about the costs. These benefits will cover the cost of medical treatment, visits to your doctor, transport costs to get to doctor’s appointments, specialist appointments, prescription medication and other related medical expenses. This will greatly ease your economic burden.

2. Missed wages

If you are seriously injured at work or have suffered a serious work-related illness, you may not be able to return to work immediately. You will probably need to take some time to recover from your illness or injury. This can cause financial strain especially for those who are paid a daily or weekly wage. You may miss out on your income for the recovery period.

Workmen’s compensation helps to ensure that you are provided for financially during your recovery period. Workers can recover benefits that cover the wages that they would have earned during the period that they were away from work. Workers’ compensation pays a percentage of the workers’ average weekly wages.

3. Long term care

There are instances where workers suffer severe work-related injuries or illnesses. These injuries or illnesses may require long term treatment. For example, a worker may suffer a repetitive stress injury that requires multiple visits to a physical therapist even after a surgical procedure to correct the problem. Workers’ compensation insurance will not only cover the cost of the surgical procedure but also of the physical therapy until the worker achieves maximum medical improvement. Worker’s compensation will also cover any future medical procedures related to your injuries.

Many workers fail to consider future medical expenses when making their workers’ compensation claim. They therefore miss out on the opportunity to receive the financial assistance they need to cover their medical expenses for the treatment of the injury or illness in the future. This is one of the reasons you should consult with an experienced attorney prior to filing your claim. An experienced attorney will evaluate your case and determine the best approach to take in order to maximize your compensation.

4. Funeral expenses

There are instances where workers die as a result of work-related injuries or illnesses. When these unfortunate occasions occur, the workers’ loved ones are entitled to benefits that cover the costs of the funeral. This will greatly reduce the economic burden of paying for the funeral on the family.

It should be noted that the deceased employee’s beneficiaries are also entitled to seek other benefits available from worker’s compensation insurance including medical expenses for the period when their loved one was alive.

5. Disability benefits

Workers may suffer work-related injuries or illnesses that result in permanent or temporary disabilities. Workers’ compensation will provide these employees with financial support through disability benefits. These benefits cover medical expenses as well as a percentage of the worker’s lost wages.

Are You Covered by Workmen’s Compensation?

In Omaha, workers’ compensation applied to most employees. However, it does not apply to independent contractors. The Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Act requires most employers to have worker’s compensation insurance. The act ensures that employees that are injured while working can receive benefits. However, the act does not apply to federal employers.

Under the Act injured workers may recover workers’ compensation benefits if:

• They have suffered a work-related injury or illness
• The work-related injury or illness occurred in Nebraska
• The employee was hired in Nebraska and the employer is doing business or the employee was performing work-related tasks in Nebraska.

Do you want to make a claim for workers’ compensation? Contact our law firm to consult with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney in Omaha.

Workmen’s Compensation Omaha