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Long-Term Effects of Brain Injuries

The amount of treatment needed for brain injuries will depend on the severity of the brain injury. Common problems include: Cognitive difficulties – an inability of lessening of the ability to think, reason, and remember Difficulty in talking and understanding Inability or lessening of the ability to see, hear, taste, touch or smell Loss of …

What are the Long Term Effects of Brain Injuries?

Brain injury symptoms often do not appear right away. When they do appear, the worker may not even know that he or she has suffered a brain injury. Any worker or family member who suspects an employee has suffered a work related injury should seek medical attention as soon as possible. Delay can hurt the …

How Do Brain Injuries Happen at Work?

There are many reasons a person can suffer a traumatic brain injury at work. Many of these are due to some type of trauma such as: Falling off a ladder or scaffold Having an object fall on your head A motor vehicle accident that occurs while you are working Slipping and falling on a loose …

Types of Brain Injuries

Brain injuries are one of the most serious types of injuries a worker can suffer. The symptoms can be hard to detect because they may not appear right away. There are different types of head injuries that can occur at work. Some of these injuries may occur in combination meaning a person can have more …

What is a Claimant Deposition in a Worker’s Compensation Case?

Sometimes a claimant will be questioned by the insurance company lawyer in a deposition. A deposition is a less formal proceeding than a full hearing. In depositions, the insurance company is trying to find out what happened. While the defense lawyer is usually fairly friendly, do not be fooled. The insurance company lawyer or employer lawyer is trying to find some fault in the claimant’s case that can help the defense.

What is a Medical Deposition in a Workers Compensation Case?

A deposition is a chance for the attorneys representing either party in a legal case to question a party, witness, or anyone who possesses relevant facts about the legal case about their knowledge of the matter. The deposition is conducted under oath, in the presence of a Court Reporter, who converts all of the testimony into a transcript that she later types up and distributes to the parties, sometimes directly to the Judicial body.

What are the Basic Mechanics of Settling a North Carolina Worker’s Compensation Claim?

Many factors have to be reviewed before a settlement should be considered. A big factor is knowing the full medical prognosis. It is often best to wait to settle until the worker has obtained his/her maximum medical recovery. Here are just some of the questions your North Carolina attorney will review with you:

Unique Situations in North Carolina Injured Worker Settlements

There are many unique situations in the settlement of North Carolina Worker’s Compensation cases. Here a just review. For a full review of your situation, please contact my office.

Partial Disability Settlements. Some employees can return to work but at a lower pay rate before they were injured. Workers in this scenario are allowed the weekly difference of the amount they previously earned minus the amount they now earn – times 2/3. This rate is available for up to 500 weeks under the revisions to the North Carolina worker’s compensation statute.

Medicare Approval of Medicare Set Asides and Worker’s Compensation Settlement Agreements

If you are a current Medicare recipient at the time of settlement, then Medicare will also have to sign off on the MSA in the Worker’s Compensation Agreement in North Carolina. Unfortunately, getting approval from Medicare can be an exasperating process. While it’s not as bad as it used to be, it can take Medicare up six months to approve the MSA. This makes the decision to submit the agreement to the North Carolina Industrial Commission a little problematic.

Medicare Set-Asides (MSA’s) in North Carolina Settlement Agreements

Employees who have an MSA (Medicare Set Aside) account as part of their settlement should get a separate check from the employer or insurance carrier to cover the cost of future medical expenses. Self-administered accounts should be deposited into a separate account that is used just to pay for the employee’s medical expenses – and no other expenses. Some MSAs are not self-administered. Here, the employee will normally get a yearly check for the anticipated medical bills.