What Are Georgia’s Workers’ Compensation Disability Ratings?

Workers hurt on the job have the right to workers’ compensation in many situations. This form of insurance may help cover medical bills and lost time at work. 

Understanding your rights under Georgia’s workers’ compensation disability ratings is essential. These disability ratings include temporary partial disability, permanent partial disability, and permanent total disability.

Our Atlanta workers’ compensation lawyer can answer all of your questions during a free consultation.

Understanding Disability Ratings in Workers’ Compensation

Employees hurt at work must seek immediate medical evaluation for their injuries. If a doctor deems it necessary, you may be eligible for disability payments. The payments you receive are dependent on the disability rating assigned to your case based on workers’ compensation law FAQs.

If you are hurt at work, you will need to purchase an independent medical evaluation conducted by a licensed doctor who will use testing, imaging, and an examination as appropriate to establish the level of injury you have. They will then assign a disability rating as defined, in most cases, by the American Medical Association. This impairment rating determines the payout provided to you from workers’ compensation.

Ultimately, the objective is to ensure you receive the right level of support based on the severity of your injury. This process aims to minimize the risk that a person is not treated fairly or misuses the system’s advantages. As an injured employee, you have the legal right to compensation, but you may not be treated in that manner, though legal representation can minimize that risk.

Types of Workers’ Compensation Disability Ratings

The impairment rating payout you receive is based on the severity of the injury or illness you have and the length of time you are likely to suffer from it. Numerous rating levels could be assigned to you. They include the following:

• Temporary Partial Disability: TPD is typically assigned to a person who has an injury but can engage in light work duty, limited work hours, or a modification of their job. Here, a worker may have lowered earning ability, and workers’ compensation would pay the difference between your former wages and your current wages. In Georgia, this equates to up to $675 a week for up to 400 weeks.
• Permanent Partial Disability: PPD applies in situations where a person can work, but the employee has suffered some type of permanent damage to their body, and workers’ compensation benefits are paid based on scheduled and unscheduled awards. For damage to hearing, vision, legs, feet, hands, or arms, most people receive scheduled damages equal to two-thirds of the difference between what they are earning now and what they earned prior to the accident. Unscheduled earnings are for internal damage to the brain, other organs, or the spine, and benefits depend on the location.
•  Permanent Total Disability: PTD is an impairment rating that indicates a person cannot work due to the location or extent of the damages suffered. There is no likelihood that the impairment will improve any more than it has. Examples include amputations, paralysis, traumatic brain injury, and blindness. The payment is dependent on the severity of the incident.

The complexity of disability ratings is often a concern. If the wrong rating is assigned, it could drastically impact your ability to receive the compensation you are owed. As your workers’ compensation attorney, you can expect our team to fight for the most appropriate rating in your case.

How a Workers’ Compensation Attorney in Georgia Can Help You

With the help of a skilled workers’ compensation attorney, it is possible to minimize the risk of not being awarded the right impairment rating payout. Our lawyers have extensive experience in this area and understand the complexities of many medical conditions that may qualify for coverage. Consider some of the ways we can help you:

• We can fight back if the board does not agree: One of the biggest concerns is that the State Board of Workers’ Compensation may not agree with the doctor’s findings, which can impact your payout. We will ensure that you are being treated fairly.
• You can continue to get the care you need: Approval of your disability payments can take a long time, especially if there is any disagreement. Our objective is to make sure you can continue to receive the care and payments owed to you.
• We can help you appeal: In situations where mistakes are made, and you want to protect your rights, we can help you appeal to these decisions.

Every case is vastly different, but our experience with Georgia’s workers’ compensation disability ratings helps our legal team protect your rights. 

Reach out to us for a free consultation to discuss your options. If you do not agree with what has been offered to you, let us take a closer look and create a plan, one that can help you recover compensation, much like our prior case results.

In These Cases, You Need an Attorney for Your Workers’ Compensation Claim

Many times, victims of injuries feel like they have to do what they are told. The fact is, you have rights, and our legal team can protect them. In the following situations, we encourage you to contact us as soon as possible. Let us prevent complications in your claims:

• You were denied workers’ compensation benefits.
• Employers refused to pay the claim.
• You are required to obtain multiple doctor’s evaluations.
• Your employer is not accommodating your specific medical needs after an accident.
• You do not feel your benefits payout is accurate.

Allow our attorneys to guide you in seeking fair compensation. With our aggressive legal strategies, we will make them pay for the losses they caused to you. Do not wait to reach out for immediate help. Read through our client testimonials to learn about our success stories.

Contact Our Workers’ Compensation Attorney in Georgia Now

If you are not sure if your impairment rating payout is accurate or if you have received a denial for your claim, contact John Foy & Associates for immediate help.

 Our experienced Atlanta workers’ compensation lawyers in Georgia know how to make sure you are treated fairly in all aspects of disability ratings under the law. Set up an appointment with us today for a free case review.