What To Do If You Are Injured At Work In Pennsylvania?

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Suffering a work injury in Pennsylvania can be scary and confusing. Many times, trying to do “the right thing” ends up costing an injured worker valuable and important rights. The workers’ compensation system can be a complicated process; in fact, even the employer may not know what to do when an injury takes place. We do not recommend an injured worker handle it alone. That is why our firm devotes its entire practice to handling PA workers’ compensation cases.

The first thing an injured worker should do after being injured is report the injury to his or her employer. Many times, an injured worker will tell us that he or she failed to report the work injury, since it seemed like something minor or that they did not want to make waves or cause a fuss. Unfortunately, the workers’ compensation insurance carrier will often deny a claim and force litigation, simply on the basis of there being a delayed reporting of the injury. We stress to any injured worker how critical immediately reporting an injury, no matter how minor, can be in the PA workers’ compensation system.

Once an injury is reported, the attention should turn to getting medical treatment for the work injury. Under certain situations, the employer, or the workers’ compensation insurance company, has some say over the injured workers rights to medical treatment. If the employer posts a proper list of healthcare providers with which an injured worker should treat in case of a work injury, and has the injured worker acknowledge seeing the list, before and after the work injury, then the workers’ compensation insurance company may only be responsible for payment for medical treatment with one of these providers for the first 90 days. Often, the list is not posted, not a proper panel list or there is not a correct acknowledgment from the injured worker. This may mean the workers’ compensation insurance company has no control over medical treatment even in those first 90 days. Under no circumstances, does the workers’ compensation insurance company have the ability to direct or control medical treatment after those first 90 days.

The Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act gives an insurance carrier 21 days to accept or deny a claim in writing. This acceptance could be full, with the issuance of a Notice of Compensation Payable (NCP) or temporary, with the issuance of a Notice of Temporary Compensation Payable (NTCP). The acceptance could be for wage loss and medical together or it could just be for medical benefits. If an injured worker is disabled from work due to the injury, and the claim is either denied (Notice of Denial (NCD) is issued) or is accepted only for medical benefits, then the filing of a Claim Petition may be necessary.

If a Claim Petition needs to be filed, this would entail litigation before a Workers’ Compensation Judge. The injured worker would testify, and would present medical evidence proving he or she is disabled from work as a result of the work injury. Medical evidence is usually presented in the form of a deposition of his or her treating doctor. This process can take up to a year, or even longer.

If the Insurance Carrier/Employer fails to accept or deny the claim within 21 days or fails to adhere to the Workers Compensation Act’s many rules and mandates, a Penalty Petition may need to be filed to get the matter in front of a Workers’ Compensation Judge.

After the injured worker has an accepted case there are many things an Employer/Insurance Carrier can do to try to stop the receipt of wage and medical benefits. These attempts to stop wage and medical benefits may be contrary to the treating doctor’s recommendations and as such require arguing the legal and factual issues in front of a Workers Compensation Judge. Please see our website (bnlegal.com) for more details on the various actions a workers’ compensation insurance carrier can do to avoid the continued payment of benefits.

In summary, the Workers Compensation system is complicated but with help can be utilized for its intended purpose of getting injured workers wage loss and medical benefits while they heal. What happens in the early stages after a work injury is extremely important and can determine if an injured worker will get the compensation to which they are entitled. It is crucial to get legal representation immediately to make sure that everything is being done to get a positive result. However, an experienced attorney will still be able to guide an injured worker at any stage of the case if an attorney was not retained early on. The attorney will still be able to identify prior issues and defend an injured worker’s benefits. Please see Coronavirus (COVID-19) Can Be a Work Injury in PA with advice on how to pick a workers compensation attorney.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS: Dina Brilliant, Esq. and Glenn Neiman, Esq. have each been practicing law for over 27 years. Both attorneys are Certified as Specialists in Workers’ Compensation Law by the Supreme Court of PA. Glenn and Dina formed Brilliant & Neiman LLC, in 2004 as a boutique Law Firm that only handles Workers’ Compensation cases so that injured workers get the service and attention they deserve and to help injured workers get the benefits to which they are entitled. To obtain further information in regard to workers’ compensation injuries or issues, you can reach Brilliant & Neiman LLC by e-mail at Dina Brilliant, Esq. dbrilliant@bnlegal.com or Glenn Neiman, Esq. gneiman@bnlegal.com or by telephone at 215-638-7500. The firm’s website is www.bnlegal.com.

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