Baltimore Workers’ Comp Lawyers

How Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers Help You Get Benefits

Steve Heisler knows the workers’ comp system and the best ways to get you benefits.

Despite the fact that workers’ compensation laws are designed to provide benefits if you have been injured doing job-related tasks, employers and insurance companies are often quick to deny or contest benefits. They may try tactics such as denying that the injury or illness occurred at work or as a result of working conditions, in order to avoid having to pay.Workers’ comp claims are paid only if everything is filed correctly and the employer or insurance carrier agrees that the injury or illness is work-related. If the employer or insurance carrier disputes the claim, no cash benefits are paid until the workers’ compensation law judge decides who is right.This is where an experienced work injury attorney can help. Steve Heisler will examine your case carefully and work with you to prove your case. Our legal team will handle all paperwork to ensure that everything is done correctly from the start and will make appeals if your claim has already been denied.  We can help by:

1. Making sure all forms are filled out correctly and on time
2. Investigating your case to determine what happened and to identify eyewitnesses and first responders
3. Gathering evidence to help prove your claim, such as photographs and videos from surveillance cameras
4. Obtaining all relevant work and medical records, doctors’ and accident reports, and records of previous claims against your employer
5. Protecting you from aggressive insurance adjusters and negotiating with insurance companies for a fair settlement
6. Appealing any denials and representing you at any hearings with the Workers’ Compensation Board
7. Building and preparing your case should it go to trial
8. Filing a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit in cases where it is warranted.

Steve Heisler understands the  Maryland Workers’ Compensation Act  law and its nuances, can help prove your eligibility and avoid having your claim denied or invalidated, and can ensure that you receive the best possible settlement and the benefits you deserve. Call us today at (410) 625-4878.

Benefit Amounts Our Baltimore Worker’s Compensation Lawyer Can Help You Receive

There are a wide range of benefits available, depending on your situation.

Our Baltimore workers’ compensation lawyers will help you receive pay for lost wages in situations where you sustained an injury that is work-related. In addition to your lost wages, you may also be entitled to additional coverage for expenses such as medical bills and for help getting back to work. The amounts you receive are set according to a formula that considers your wages, the type of injury, and factors such as whether your disability will be temporary or permanent.The Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission does not make benefit payments to injured workers. Your employer’s insurance carrier or self-insured employers themselves are responsible for paying benefits. The following are the types of compensation and payments:

• Temporary Partial Disability — Workers who are not totally disabled and can perform limited or part-time duties at a reduced pay rate may be able to receive temporary partial disability benefits of 50 percent of the difference between the wage the worker was earning before the disability and the wage being earned while temporarily partially disabled. This payment cannot exceed 50 percent of Maryland’s average weekly wage.
• Temporary Total Disability — Workers with injuries that prevent them from returning to work at all during a certain period of time, known as the “healing period,” may get benefits to replace the income the worker has lost equal to two-thirds of their average weekly wage up to the maximum Maryland weekly wage. No payments can be less than $50.

For disability of 14 days or less, compensation is for all but the first three days following the date of the disability. For disability of more than 14 days, compensation is for all days missed from work.Workers will also receive payments for hospital, nursing or other medical services; funeral expenses; and medicine.  Benefits continue until the worker can return to work in some capacity or has reached maximum medical improvement, even if not in the same condition as before the injury.Once you reach Maximum Medical Improvement (You’ve gotten as good as your going to get medically), you may be eligible for permanent benefits.

• Permanent Partial Disability — This is for workers with a permanent impairment that is not totally disabling, such as loss of a thumb. Minimum weekly compensation is $50 unless the average weekly wage is less than $50, in which case compensation is equal to the average weekly wage at the time of the accident. Benefits continue for a set period of time according to Maryland statutes.
• Permanent Total Disability — These benefits may be granted for workers who have lost or lost use of both arms, eyes, feet, hands or legs or a combination of an arm, hand, foot, leg or eye. Compensation is equal to two-thirds of the worker’s average weekly wage, not to exceed the Maryland average weekly wage and cannot be less than $25.

Payments are subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment and can be reduced if the worker is also receiving social security disability benefits.

Our Workers’ Compensation Attorney May Be Able to Get Additional Types of Compensation for Work Injuries

Steve Heisler can help injured workers receive additional workers’ comp benefits that may include:

• Medical, hospital, rehabilitative treatment, and medical equipment and prosthetic benefits
• Wage reimbursement for wages lost from time spent for:
  • Being examined by a medical professional as requested by the employer or insurer
  • Traveling to and from the Commission for a hearing.
• Vocational Rehabilitation for disability that prevents performing work previously qualified for. Training can last up to 24 months and can include:
  • Occupational assessment and training
  • Career training, development and placement
  • Development and monitoring of a vocational rehabilitation plan.

Our Work Injury Attorney May Help You Get Benefits Beyond Workers’ Compensation

Our work injury attorney can help if you can file a lawsuit for more benefits that workers’ comp provides.

Workers’ compensation is supposed to eliminate the need for lengthy and costly civil lawsuits in cases of injury on the job. For workers’ comp, you do not have to prove anyone was at fault to receive benefits and, as a result, you are not allowed to sue your employer. However, there are some situations where you may be able to go beyond workers’ comp and bring a personal injury or wrongful death claim in civil court to get more benefits.We can file these lawsuits if your accident was due to negligence or recklessness on the part of a third party. A third party is someone other than the employer.  Examples include:

• a subcontractor
• the manufacturer of faulty equipment
• a materials suppliers
• the driver of a vehicle that crashed into you.

In a successful lawsuit, you may win compensation for non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, emotional trauma, lost enjoyment of life, lost companionship, and lost consortium, as well as for your economic or monetary costs such as medical expenses and lost wages. In some rare cases, if a defendant acts in a particularly reckless or deliberate manner, you may be entitled to punitive damages as well.There are caps for non-economic damages in Maryland, and if you have done something to contribute to the accident, you will not be able to receive a damage award. In addition, there is a deadline, known as a statute of limitations, on the amount of time you have to file a personal injury lawsuit after an accident. Generally, this is three years after the date of the accident.When you contact us, our attorneys will examine your situation to see if it warrants filing a lawsuit and what types of damages you may be entitled to.

Can a Work Injury Lawyer File a Work Injury Claim Against Your Employer?

In Maryland, workers’ compensation is considered an “exclusive remedy” for your injuries, so you normally cannot file a personal injury claim against your employer, even for additional damages like pain and suffering. However, there are some exceptions and situations where you may be able to sue for damages caused by your injuries. Examples include:

• You were injured due to your employer’s intentional conduct, and you can prove that your employer deliberately and specifically intended to hurt you.
• If you can prove you were fired for filing a Maryland workers’ compensation claim, you may be entitled to file a civil lawsuit against your employer for wrongful termination since you are entitled to make a claim under Maryland law.
• If your employer does not provide workers’ compensation insurance, you may be able to sue in civil court or collect money from a state fund.

Since workers’ compensation does not provide punitive damages to punish an employer for poor safety controls or dangerous conditions, nor does it provide benefits for things like pain and suffering, you should consult an attorney to determine your rights to bring a case outside of the workers’ compensation system.

How Long Do You Have to File a Workers’ Compensation Claim?

Our workers’ comp lawyers will make sure all paperwork is filed on time.

In Maryland, there are different time limitations for filing a workers’ compensation case, depending on whether the claim is for (1) accidental injury, (2) occupational disease, or (3) death benefits.

• Accidental Injury — A covered employee who is injured on the job has 10 days from the date of the injury to notify the employer of the injury.  This notice can be given in writing or by other means, such as the injury’s being witnessed by a supervisor. A claim for an accidental injury must be filed with the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission within 60 days after the date of the accident.

Under certain circumstances, failure to file a claim within these time frames may be excused by the Commission if the employer-insurer was not prejudiced by the failure to file in time.  However, employees must file the claim within 2 years of the accidental injury, even if not aware of having sustained an accidental injury. Extensions are sometimes made in very limited circumstances, such as when the employer fails to file or in cases of fraud.

• Occupational Diseases — A covered employee with a compensable occupational disease must provide notice to the insurer within one year after knowing or having reason to know about the occupational disease. For a disablement, the employee must file a claim with the Commission within two years from the date of disablement or the date when the employee first had actual knowledge that the disablement was caused by the employer.

The time limit for filing is not extended by the employer’s failure to provide notice to the Commission of the disease, but there are exceptions for reasons such as fraud.

• Death Benefits — Notice that a covered employee died as a result of a work-related accidental injury must be given to the employer within 30 days of the death.  If an occupational disease caused death, notice must be given to the employer within one year after the death.

Claims for death benefits related to an accidental injury must be filed with the Commission within 18 months from the date of death, and within two years for death related to an occupational disease, regardless of whether the employee’s dependents were aware that the death was caused by the employment.

What Injuries are Covered by Workers’ Compensation?

Our workers’ compensation attorney can tell you whether your injuries are covered by workers’ comp.

Various work-related injuries throughout Maryland and all fifty states are covered by worker’s compensation benefits. This includes industrial accidents such as industrial fires, industrial explosions, chemical leaks, chemical explosions and fires, gas explosions and cancer/leukemia-linked chemical exposure.This also includes construction accidents such as trench cave-ins, trench collapses, scaffold collapses, high-fall accidents, steam and scalding water burns, falling debris injuries, electrocutions, nail gun injuries, and slips, trips and falls at the work site. This includes injuries involving hammers, nail guns, saws, drills, jack hammers, all defective tools, etc. This also includes injuries involving forklifts, cranes, backhoes, wrecking balls, bulldozers, dump trucks, skid loaders, etc.Fractures, neck and back injuries, head and spine injuries, brain injuries, crush injuries, herniated discs, thoracic outlet syndrome, scarring, amputations, rotator cuff and shoulder injuries, knee, leg and hip injuries and psychiatric injuries caused by accidents on the job throughout Maryland and all fifty states are covered by worker’s compensation law.

What Are Common Types of Injuries a Work Injury Attorney Deals With?

Just as there are a wide variety of occupations, the kinds of work injuries they can produce are varied, including:

• Burn injuries from fire or chemicals
• Broken bones and burns from explosions
• Electrocution
• Amputations from machinery
• Carpal tunnel syndrome from repetitive motion
• Cuts and lacerations
• Traumatic brain injury (TBI) from a blow or fall
• Blindness or vision loss from flying particles
• Back and spine injury from heavy lifting
• Neurological impairment from exposure to toxic fumes
• Mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos
• Cancer from fracking chemicals
• Death from breathing carbon monoxide.

In the injuries reported to OSHA for the year 2011, 33 percent were sprains, strains and tears of muscles, joints, ligaments, tendons and nerves.No doubt, when you get dressed in the morning and commute to your job in Baltimore, another city in Maryland, or Washington, D.C., you fully expect to return home that night as healthy as you went in – a little more fatigued, perhaps, but whole and healthy. Unfortunately, every year millions of workers are injured in their workplaces, thousands of them fatally. According to statistics from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), in 2011 nearly 3 million people were injured on the job and 4,700 died in work-related accidents. In fact, about 12 workplace deaths happen every day.

Where Do Accidents Occur that Lead to Workers’ Compensation Claims?

Everyone would agree that construction sites and factories can expose workers to numerous hazards. But what about offices, stores, hospitals and highways? In reality, danger lurks around every corner, and when an employer takes a shortcut on training or safety preparations or makes unreasonable demands, those actions can amount to negligence that can entitle the injured worker to seek compensation through the court system.

Dangerous Occupations

While anyone could get injured doing any type of work, some occupations are more hazardous than others.  According to Zippia, the most dangerous occupations in our country are:

This list was compiled based on OSHA’s injury reports, rating the most common source of injuries in each state, including incidents that require hospitalization or involve loss of a body part; it also considers the rate of on-the-job fatalities from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Surprisingly, the most dangerous occupation in Maryland turns out to be Research and Development.

Exposure to Dangerous Substances

According to OSHA, exposure to dangerous substances and chemicals causes hundreds of occupational injuries and diseases each year. OSHA estimates that 60,000 workers die and an additional 860,000 are injured by exposure to various chemicals, which they contact through either inhalation or exposure through the skin, mucous membranes, or other body parts.Chemicals that can cause serious injury are commonly used in industries such as manufacturing, construction, and research. Workers may be harmed from working with chemicals directly or from exposure to cleaning products or office supplies. Occupational diseases can develop from long-term indirect exposure to a chemical, especially heavy metals and other chemicals that build up in the body over time. Sometimes the harm is caused indirectly through toxic compounds created as the body breaks down the chemical.

Steps to Take After a Workplace Injury

Failure to take timely steps after an injury can cause a workers’ compensation claim to be denied. If you have been injured, you should take the following steps:

1. Report the Injury to your employer. You have 10 days to report an injury, but should do so right away. Employers who are notified that an injured worker must miss three or more days of work have 10 days to submit an Employer’s First Report to the Workers’ Compensation Commission (WCC), which starts the statute of limitations for you to submit your claim.
2. Get medical care and treatment for your injury right away. Inform your physician that your injury occurred on the job, and describe the incident that caused your injury and your symptoms. The doctor will determine whether your injury prevents your ability to work and will inform your employer of your limitations. In Maryland, you can choose your own physician, but your employer can have you see another doctor to determine whether the treatment is reasonable and necessary.
3. Keep track of all expenses you have incurred related to your injury and records of time you miss from work. Make a folder with receipts from doctors’ visits, lab tests, surgeries, medication, or medical equipment. These records can help build your claim for compensation.
4. Hire a Workers’ Comp Lawyer. An experienced worker’s compensation attorney will assist you in filing for and gathering evidence to prove your claim and will handle the appeals process if your claim has been denied.

Why Handling Your Own Work Injury Claim Presents Challenges

You may be tempted to save money by handling your own claim, but making a mistake can be costly or even cause your claim to be denied completely. The laws governing workers’ compensation benefits are complex and may be difficult to understand. The law defines a qualified injury or condition as “an accidental personal injury arising out of and in the course of employment,” but even if it seems clear that your employer is responsible for the accident, it’s likely that the employer or their insurance company has attorneys experienced in using tactics to avoid payment. Worker’s comp lawyers take cases on a contingency basis. They only get paid if they are successful in getting you financial compensation.Before attempting to go it alone, ask yourself whether you are equipped to fight attorneys who know how to manipulate the law and its definitions of qualifying injuries, illnesses, and medical conditions. Will you be able to handle the legal forms and terminology or file any necessary appeals? Isn’t it better to have a qualified Maryland workers’ compensation attorney on your side to make sure you receive the benefits to which you are entitled?

Questions & Answers About Workers’ Compensation in Maryland

Call Our Baltimore Workers’ Compensation Lawyer for Help

When you contact Steve Heisler after a workplace injury, he will thoroughly investigate your accident to identify all circumstances and parties that may have contributed to your injury and will make sure you receive full and fair compensation for your injury.Steven Heisler has devoted 25 years to helping injured people and their families pursue compensation from negligent people and companies who caused them to be injured. He genuinely cares about each and every one of his clients. These are just a couple of the clients who came to Steve after a workplace injury:

• A Baltimore pipe-fitter, who received a $275,000 settlement after his company failed to properly monitor its equipment, causing him to suffer second- and third-degree scalding burns, skin grafts, and scarring.
• A Baltimore City correctional officer who suffered a serious back injury from a workplace fall and was granted 105% permanent partial disability after initially receiving only 35%.