Lancaster Attorneys Help You Win Workers' Compensation Benefits

Disability Benefits, Payment of Medical Bills and Work-Related Death Payments

Pennsylvania’s Workers’ Compensation Act is a no-fault law, meaning that, other than in rare cases, regardless of whom is at fault for the injury, the injured worker is entitled to receive benefits under the system. Indemnity, or wage loss, benefits are paid to an employee hurt on the job for any wage loss they experience, partial or total. Typically, the injured worker will receive 66 2/3% of their average weekly wage, which is paid on the same schedule as the employee’s regular paychecks—usually weekly or bi-weekly. If an employee’s income does not meet a certain threshold, then their income loss benefits will be 90% of their average weekly wage. Workers hurt on the job are also eligible for scarring and disfigurement resulting from the work injury—including surgical scars—that affect the head, face and neck areas caused by the work injury, separate and distinct from wage loss benefits.

In terms of treatment costs, medical expenses that are reasonable, necessary and directly-related to the work injury must be paid. Before the workers’ compensation system, an on-the-job injury could mean financial ruin for a family. Injured workers often lost their jobs, leaving them no means for paying medical bills and living expenses. To make matters worse, disabilities sometimes made returning to work impossible or allowed the worker to engage in only a less-demanding job at lower pay. The workers’ compensation program sought to right these wrongs. Pennsylvania workers are entitled to payments for medical care and lost wages and sometimes for disabilities arising from their workplace injuries.

Georgelis, Larsen & Sabatino Injury Law Firm, P.C. is a Lancaster County law firm dedicated exclusively to helping people who have been injured in workplace accidents or have suffered an occupational illness recover compensation for their losses and damages. As a firm with roots and a long history in Lancaster, we understand that a work injury has a ripple effect, not only affecting you, but your family as well. Taking proper care of victims of workplace accidents takes compassion, care, respect, skills, resources and an unwavering desire to make sure our clients are fully compensated for their injuries. There is no better way to know how you will be treated at a law firm than to see how that firm has handled prior claims and cases. Our team invites you to read our 5-star Google reviews to see what our clients are saying about us, because choosing the right injury and accident firm can make all of the difference!

Are You Eligible for Workers’ Compensation Benefits?

The Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act requires most employers to carry insurance coverage for job-related injuries. However, the law exempts some types of workers and allows some executive officers to opt out. Generally, though, if an employer-employee relationship exists and an employee is injured in the course and scope of their employment, they will be eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits.

Just because an employee is eligible for benefits, however, does not mean that the employer or insurance company will pay them. Claims get denied regularly, many times for illegitimate or suspect reasons. And, even if an employee believes that their claim has been “accepted,” this might not be the case. Our top workers’ compensation lawyers have encountered numerous situations where an employer or insurance company initially pays the injured worker wage loss benefits and pays their medical bills, only to have those benefits cut off when surgery is recommended, when an injury is diagnosed as being more severe than previously thought or when medical treatment becomes more costly. This is why it is incredibly important to know exactly where your claim stands, how your injury is described and what benefits you are entitled to at a very early stage in the process. The longer things go unchecked, typically, the more difficult it is to have them corrected or rectified.

The team at Georgelis, Larsen & Sabatino Injury Law Firm, P.C. immediately investigates whether your employer has the appropriate coverage and undertakes the appropriate steps to ensure that you receive full benefits and maximum coverage and compensation for your injuries, disability and medical bills. There is absolutely no fee for our investigation and evaluation of your claim, nor will you ever receive a bill for our time.

Types of Workers’ Compensation Benefits

The Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act governs employers’ coverage of work-related accidents and occupational diseases for eligible employees. Depending on your individual circumstances, the law may entitle you to benefits that include:

• Medical care — Workers’ compensation typically covers reasonable and necessary medical and surgical services—including medications, hospital treatments, physical therapy, chiropractic care and orthopedic appliances and prostheses—related to your worksite accident or illness.
• Payments for lost income — You may receive wage loss benefits while you are totally disabled from working, which means temporarily unable to work in any capacity, or while you are partially disabled, which means making less money than you were before your workplace accident or illness.
• Specific loss benefits – Specific loss benefits are awarded if you have lost the permanent use of your thumb, finger, hand, arm, leg, foot, toe, sight or hearing, whether by amputation or for all practical intents and purposes.
• Scarring and disfigurement benefits — You are eligible for compensation resulting from the permanent scarring or disfigurement of your head, face or neck areas.
• Death benefits — Surviving dependents of a fatally injured worker may be entitled to death benefits.

Injured workers should know that, even if you are already receiving workers’ comp, you must continue to provide medical evidence supporting your ongoing disability, whether total or partial, and your employer and the insurance company can challenge the reasonableness and/or necessity of your medical treatment at any time through an independent medical examination (IME) or utilization review (UR). The experienced workers’ compensation attorneys at Georgelis, Larsen & Sabatino Injury Law Firm, P.C. can best posture your claim to withstand these challenges and make sure that you and your family continue to have access to the benefits and compensation that are rightfully yours, and, if appropriate, will work to get you a lump sum settlement for your workers comp claim.

Learn More About Your Workers’ Comp Benefits After a Job-Related Accident

For information about your particular workers’ comp benefits, call Georgelis, Larsen & Sabatino Injury Law Firm, P.C. at 717-394-3004 or contact our firm online to schedule a FREE consultation and evaluation of your claim. There is absolutely no obligation—only a genuine, insightful and thorough analysis of where your claim stands and where it can/should head, as well as an opportunity for you to have all of your questions answered and concerns addressed. Our top legal team is here for you whenever and wherever you need us.

We can meet you during the day, after regular business hours or on the weekend, and we can visit you at home, in the hospital or rehabilitation center or anywhere else of your choosing. Georgelis, Larsen & Sabatino Injury Law Firm, P.C. is conveniently located on Embassy Drive, between Route 741 (Rohrerstown Road) and Good Drive. We are only 5 minutes from the Lancaster General Health Campus and offer plenty of free parking!