Following a job-related injury, medical bills and other expenses can quickly pile up. Ideally, workers’ compensation benefits would quickly begin covering those expenses, but your employer or the insurance provider can leave you temporarily on the hook for those bills. You may be asking yourself, what is the 90-day rule for workers’ comp in California?
Fortunately, there are protections put in place that can protect your access to workers’ compensation benefits. If someone is denying your lawful requests for compensation, a state workers’ compensation attorney can fight to protect your rights. The lawyers with English Lloyd & Armenta have helped many clients receive the workers’ compensation benefits they are entitled to.
What Is the 90-Day Rule for Workers’ Compensation?
Every state manages workers’ compensation differently. In California, all employers must comply with state Labor Code Section 3700 by providing workers’ compensation insurance for workers.
Once you file a workers’ compensation claim, your employer is required to facilitate the application process by submitting the form to the insurance provider in a timely manner. Workers’ compensation insurance providers are required to respond to a claim within 14 days, but your employer has the option of delaying your claim.
If your employer does not accept or deny the claim within the specified time limit, then your injury or illness is presumed to be work-related. This will allow you to be eligible for benefits. While you are waiting for the claims adjuster to approve your claim, you can undergo treatments for your injuries. You are allowed to undergo treatments as long as thy are recommended by a medical doctor and qualify under the state program.
When your claim is approved, you can be reimbursed for these expenses, and further medical treatments will be covered by your workers’ compensation program as long as you work within the program’s guidelines for seeking medical treatment.
Workers’ compensation programs are complicated, and failing to complete certain steps could mean that you are not eligible for reimbursement later on. To ensure that you are given the benefits that you are entitled to, hire a Palm Desert workers’ compensation attorney.
A workers’ compensation attorney can handle all the complicated paperwork associated with filing a claim and providing follow-up documentation. If your boss or insurance provider tries to delay or block your claim, your attorney can fight for your rights.
What Benefits Am I Entitled to Under Workers’ Compensation?
Workers’ compensation benefits are designed to help workers recover from illnesses or injuries they received while on the job. In extreme circumstances, the benefits can help someone who has become disabled due to a work-related injury. The benefits may also help the survivors of a deceased employee receive monetary compensation.
The 90-day rule helps workers access benefits even in cases where their employers are delaying the compensation process. With the help of a workers’ compensation attorney, you may be entitled to the following types of benefits.
- Medical treatments: One of the most critical types of compensation you can receive through the workers’ compensation program is medical treatment that addresses your work-related injury.
- Temporary disability benefits: Serious injuries can lead to missed time from work. As you recover, workers’ compensation payments can partially make up for lost wages.
- Permanent disability benefits: If you are unable to recover completely, permanent disability benefits can help you retrain for a new position. You may also receive long-term benefits if you are unable to return to work.
- Death benefits: When an accident leads to death at the workplace, death benefits can cover funeral expenses and payments to surviving relatives and dependents.
Remember, you are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits if you were injured on the job. That doesn’t mean your employer or insurance provider will make the process easy or fair. Hiring a workers’ compensation attorney can make the claims process much easier.
FAQs
Q: How Long Can You Be Out on Workers’ Comp?
A: You can be off work as long as you need to recover on workers’ compensation in the state, based on the advice of a medical doctor. There are deadlines for benefits, though. Within the first five years of receiving benefits, you will have up to 104 weeks of benefits. You do not have to use this time consecutively. Permanent disability benefits can last much longer.
Q: How Long Does an Employer Have to Hold a Job for Someone on Workers’ Compensation?
A: Your employer does not have to hold a job for someone on workers’ compensation. However, they cannot retaliate against a person for using their benefits.
Q: Can You Be Terminated While on Workers’ Comp?
A: No employer can retaliate against you for engaging in protected actions like filing a workers’ compensation claim. Your employer can fire you as long as the termination does not violate your employment contract or state employment law.
If you believe you were unlawfully fired, an employee’s rights lawyer can help you claim monetary damages. If your company has to lay off workers for legitimate reasons, you may be terminated from your position. Being on workers’ compensation does not give you any type of special protection from layoffs that are unrelated to your filing for workers’ compensation.
Q: What Is the Maximum Workers’ Comp Benefit?
A: As of 2024, the maximum weekly payment for employees who receive temporary disability payments is just over $1,600 per week. This amount is regularly adjusted upward to keep up with inflation and cost-of-living expenses in the state. The weekly rate for any compensation plan is largely based on the average weekly salary of the employee who files a claim.
Schedule Your Palm Desert Workers’ Compensation Consultation Today
California’s workers’ compensation program is complicated, and the 90-day rule is just one of many protections that workers have in this state. Enforcing your rights under the workers’ compensation program will be difficult without the help of an attorney who understands employment law.
To schedule your Palm Desert workers’ compensation consultation, contact our office today. We bring more than 30 years of experience helping clients receive the compensation they deserve.