How Long Will I Receive Weekly Workers’ Compensation Benefits for My Decatur Workplace Injury? Understanding Maximum Weekly Benefits and Catastrophic Workplace Injuries
When a person is injured at work in Decatur and files for workers’ compensation benefits, they may wonder exactly how long they can expect to receive compensation for their injuries. Georgia workers’ compensation benefits, which most Decatur workers are entitled to, with some exceptions, are important for injured workers to maintain financial stability while they are disabled from work, and help them get back on their feet. How long a worker can expect to receive weekly workers’ compensation benefits, if their claim is approved, depends on a number of factors. One of those factors is whether the workplace injury in question was catastrophic.
Maximum Weekly Benefits and Catastrophic Workplace Injuries
How long a person may be entitled to receive weekly workers’ compensation benefits payments in Decatur depends, among other factors, on whether the workplace accident was “catastrophic” in nature. Georgia workers’ compensation laws provide a definition in the context of workers’ compensation for the meaning of “catastrophic” injury. Under Georgia workers’ compensation laws, a “catastrophic injury” includes a “spinal cord injury involving severe paralysis of an arm, a leg, or the trunk”; “amputation of an arm, a hand, a foot, or a leg involving the effective loss of the use of that appendage; a “severe brain or closed head injury”; “second or third degree burns over 25 percent of the body as a whole or third degree burns to 5 percent or more of the face or hands”; “total or industrial blindness”;’ or “any other injury of a nature and severity that prevents the employee from being able to perform his or her prior work and any work available in substantial numbers within the national economy for which such employee is otherwise qualified….” In sum, though there are a number of criteria under Georgia workers’ compensation laws for determining whether a workplace injury is “catastrophic” under the law, it is essentially a very serious injury that may involve permanent disability and long-term medical treatment.
When a Decatur worker has suffered a catastrophic workplace injury and has been approved to receive workers’ compensation benefits, they may be entitled to lifetime weekly workers’ compensation benefits. However, if the injury is not catastrophic, the maximum amount of time that a Decatur worker can expect to receive workers’ compensation benefits in Decatur is up to 400 weeks.
Help with Your Decatur Workers’ Compensation Claim
If you were injured on the job in Decatur, it is important to speak with an experienced Decatur workers’ compensation lawyer as soon as possible about your rights and options when it comes to Georgia workers’ compensation benefits. The experienced Decatur workers’ compensation lawyers at the O’Connell Law Firm offer a free and confidential consultation to learn about your workplace injury case and to see if they can help fight to get your workers’ compensation benefits due. Contact the experienced Decatur workers’ compensation lawyers at the O’Connell Law Firm and speak to an experienced lawyer about your rights and options for free.
