Medical Experts are Vital to a Successful Workers’ Compensation Claim
If you have been hurt or injured in the scope of your employment, your employer is required by law to pay workers’ compensation benefits. This is not the first thing many workers think about after being hurt or injured. They often receive the required medical care and then are faced with the stark reality of what comes after being hurt on the job, which could include loss of income, temporary disability, or permanent disability.
If you are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, this compensation can help with your medical bills, lost wages, or rehabilitative services so that you can return to work. Workers’ compensation benefits can also be sought by family members who lose a loved one.
What Proof is Required in a Workers’ Compensation Claim?
In order to receive workers’ compensation benefits, you must prove that the injury you experienced was the result of something that happened within the scope of performing your job duties. Simply showing proof medical care you received for the treatment of your injury or injuries is often not enough to ensure that you will receive the worker’s compensation benefits you are seeking. To get the most from these benefits you need to have a successful claim.
All employers in the State of California are required to have workers compensation benefits for their employees under the state’s labor laws. Workers’ Compensation Claims in California often begin with being processed by the Division of Workers Compensation (DWC). This typically begins as an administrative process but can lead to the need for judicial involvement for a number of reasons. There are often disputes over how the injuries suffered were received and if that is due to other factors not related to employment. These disputes can lead to a denial of the benefits or reduce the amount you may be entitled to for the injuries you received from your work-related injury or impairment.
The Division of Workers Compensation claim will likely require a Qualified Medical Evaluator or an Agreed Medical Evaluator for those represented by attorneys to review the injuries and if those injuries are related to employment. These evaluators are physicians who are licensed to practice medicine in the State of California and are certified by the Division of Workers’ Compensation medical unit to perform evaluations. These evaluations may not include the results you need for your claim and can be disputed.
The Importance of a Medical Expert
A medical expert can help to prove your claim to receive worker’s compensation benefits. This medical expert can also become vital in the dispute over the denial of claim by the Division of Workers’ Compensation or in litigation on the payment of benefits through other areas. A medical expert can review your medical documentation and may provide testimony on your behalf in further proceedings.
An expert witness is someone that has specialized knowledge of an area based on their education, training and past experiences. Expert witnesses are highly regarded witnesses that can help explain simple to complex issues. They often are called to testify in trials and are sought after to explain key issues for a party’s perspective on the matter at hand.
A medical expert is a very common witness in a workers’ compensation case. They are also often a vital witness needed as a claim for benefits moves through appeals processes and litigation. Medical experts can explain injuries that occurred to you. These experts can also explain the effect of those injuries to your body and health.
They can also identify and explain how your disability will continue and explain the long term effects of your injuries. Additionally, they can explain the treatment plans and the future treatment you may need. Medical experts can also explain the difference of the various medical evaluations you receive throughout the duration of your claims process. They may also be used to explain another medical professional’s diagnosis. The type of diagnosis and seriousness of the impairment effect the amount of the workers’ compensation benefit being paid.
Though workers’ compensation benefits are to be paid to those injured on the job by state law in California, this is often not a simple or quick process. The experience of a medical expert allows for you to have a skilled professional to evaluate your injuries or medical needs. Further these skilled professionals can explain those needs throughout different stages of appeals and litigation.
Preparing medical evidence for your case often involves requesting an expert report and deposing the expert witness under oath to submit their testimony in court. Our experienced attorneys at Castillo & Associates can help you gather any evidence you may need to get the maximum benefits for your injury. Contact us today at 1-800-497-9774.
Attorney Domingo Castillo handles workers’ compensation, personal injury, family law & immigration throughout Southern California from our 5 offices: Indio, Pomona, Riverside, San Diego & Cathedral City. We help clients file injury claims, obtain residency & citizenship, and we assist families through divorce, child custody and all family law matters.
