Tag Archives: Disability

What Could You Possibly Know About Your Own Disability?

Posted on November 3, 2016 by Roger Moore

In 1991, the Social Security Administration drafted a rule that explained that controlling weight was given to medical opinions from treating sources about the nature and severity of claimants’ impairments if they are well-supported by medically acceptable clinical and laboratory diagnostic techniques and are not inconsistent with other substantial evidence in the record. This rule is commonly known as the “treating physician rule.”

The SSA has recently proposed a number of changes to this rule based upon a 2013 study (downloadable PDF). Among the recommendations were to no longer apply controlling weight to doctor opinions addressing the following issues:

Statements that an individual is or is not disabled, blind, able to work, or able to perform regular or continuing work;
Statements about whether or not an individual’s impairment(s) meets the duration requirement for disability;
Statements about whether or not an individual’s impairment(s) meets or equals any listing in the Listing of Impairments;
Statements about whether or not an individual’s impairment(s) functionally equals the Listings.

The SSA will also not use a diagnosis, medical opinion, or an individual’s statement of symptoms to establish the existence of impairment. A physical or mental impairment would now need to be established by “objective medical evidence.”

It’s easy to understand how discounting a treating source could adversely affect applicants for disability. These physicians have the most interaction with their patients in terms of frequency and duration of involvement. When you contrast a treating physician’s opinion with a doctor chosen by the SSA who most often never even meets or speaks with the claimant, you can see the problem. Putting these two entities on the same footing legally seems misguided at best and purposefully devious at worst.

However, when you add in that the SSA will not use an individual’s statement of symptoms as a basis for finding disability, particularly in the mental-health field, you make proving disability a much more difficult proposition than it already is. Individuals who are applying for disability typically face difficulty seeing doctors on a regular basis due to obvious financial considerations. They often cannot afford the “objective” tests to fully explore the extent of their diagnoses. Moreover, there are no objective tests to diagnose depression, schizophrenia, anxiety, etc. The very nature of these claims requires a thorough examination of the claimant’s expression of disability to diagnose, evaluate and treat. The SSA cannot possibly ignore the claimant’s accounts of their disability and do an adequate job of evaluating these claims, especially the ones based upon mental illness.

The SSA needs to jettison these proposed rule changes, and stick with the controlling weight standard that has been in place for 25 years. Furthermore, they need to allow the judges to evaluate claimant testimony without rigid rules that discount their personal evidence.

To comment on the SSA proposal, follow this link: Regulations.gov – Docket Folder Summary and press the “Comment Now!” button. Comments are due Nov. 8 (next Tuesday, aka Election Day).

Please contact an experienced Social Security Disability lawyer with specific questions about the details of your case.

What Happens If I Get Hurt at My Second Job?

Posted on October 10, 2016 by Jon Rehm

An estimated 7 million Americans work at least two jobs. As the holidays approach, many people will take on holiday jobs as well. Getting hurt at a second job or a holiday job can also create problems at your full-time or regular job. This post will help you navigate some of those issues:

What benefits are you entitled to when you are hurt at a second or holiday job?Your benefits are limited by the wages you are receiving at your second job. You might be able to increase this amount with tips or other perks, but you cannot be paid for wage loss from your first job. If you do have permanent disability, that will be paid based off of a 40-hour week even if you worked part time.
Receipt of workers’ compensation benefits assumes that you are an actual employee and not an independent contractor. For most relatively low-wage part-time work, this is a fair assumption. But since I wrote my holiday job post back in 2013, there has been the emergence of ride-hailing companies like Uber and other sharing-economy companies that have blurred the lines between employee and independent contractor. If you get hurt working for one of these companies, you should contact an attorney, as the distinction between an employee and independent contractor is very fact specific.
How does a work injury at a second job affect your benefits at your regular job?

Health insurance

Assuming your other job’s workers’ compensation insurance company picks up your medical benefits, your health insurance from your regular job would not be affected. But in a disputed case, you may have to use health insurance from your regular job to pay for your workers’ compensation injury at your second job. In that case, you should list workers’ compensation from the company where you were hurt as the primary insurance and your private health insurance as your secondary insurance. Also be aware that if you settle your workers’ compensation claim, you may have to pay back your private health insurance. If you go to trial and win an award of medical benefits, your medical providers should refund the private health insurance and reimburse you for out-of-pocket expenses. In a disputed case, you should contact an attorney not only to get benefits but also to health navigate reimbursement.

Short-term and long-term disability

Larger employers will often have short-term and long-term disability policies to help employees make up for lost income. These are a mixed bag. Some won’t let you collect benefits for work injuries, some may allow you to double collect workers’ compensation and disability, while others may require you reduce benefits. These policies often have repayment policies if a workers’ compensation case is settled as well. It is helpful to have a lawyer to help you with this process as well.
How does a work injury at a second job affect your employment at your regular job?

Assuming your injury requires you to miss time from work, you can claim the Family and Medical Leave Act, assuming your employer has 50 employees, you have worked there for a year, and you have worked there for at least 1,250 hours over the last year. Assuming your employer has 15 employees, your employer would be required to make some reasonable accommodations for your injury under the Americans with Disabilities Act. You should reach out to a lawyer if either employer requires you to return to work without restrictions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has stated in final regulations implementing the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008 that policies that force employee to return to work without restrictions are unlawful. Ironically, if you are hurt at your second job, that employer is probably more likely to return you to work at light duty so that they can avoid or reduce what you are owed in temporary benefits. The new ADA regulations were intended in part to end how work-caused and non-work-caused disabilities are treated.

9-11: 15 Years Remembered

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Todd Bennett

What have we learned, and what is the progress we have made toward helping those who help others?

As we remember and celebrate that fateful day, we should continue to celebrate and protect those who risk their lives to help others but who continue to live with the mental and emotional effects when faced with such tragic events encountered in responding to the call to serve.

In Nebraska, we have recognized that with tragic events come the effects to some who just can’t mentally and emotionally get past those events. We have garnered some protections for those first responders whose job it is to serve when emergency matters require it.

First responders have a specific definition as set forth in Nebraska Revised Statute 48-101.01, but essentially if a person serves as an officer, fireman or medical emergency personnel who is called to an emergency response situation, then that person has some workers’ compensation protections.

Personal injury now “includes mental injuries and mental illness unaccompanied by physical injury for an employee who is a first responder” if that person suffers from PTSD, depression, anxiety, mood disorder, panic attacks, reactionary diversion, neurotic disorder, etc.

One must establish “that the employee’s employment conditions causing the mental injury or mental illness were extraordinary and unusual in comparison to the normal conditions of the particular employment” in which they serve. What is usual is constantly being debated and disputed, but an event causing significant bodily injury or death is not usual in the eyes of the courts.

What is not covered or considered compensable are “mental injuries and mental illness arising out of and in the course of employment unaccompanied by physical injury … if they result from any event or series of events which are incidental to normal employer and employee relations, including, but not limited to, personnel actions by the employer such as disciplinary actions, work evaluations, transfers, promotions, demotions, salary reviews, terminations” or going through the legal process in unrelated matters.

Sometimes employers will retaliate against employees who claim work injuries. Though demotions, write-ups and post-injury terminations aren’t compensable through workers’ compensation, there could be a retaliation or disability discrimination claim. First responders who believe they might be being retaliated against should also reach out to the NAPE/AFSCME, IAFF or FOP representative immediately to help preserve their employment.

We have come a long way in the 15 years since 9-11 in providing protections and workers’ compensation coverage to first responders who make it their job to serve and protect. But what about those who were working and saw and experienced this tragedy who are not first responders? They continue to not be covered for their mental and emotional effects. On this anniversary date, as we remember those who served, we need to continue to fight for everyone who encounters tragic events in the course and scope of their employment and suffers mental illness or conditions, but do not suffer a physical injury. They need the protections workers’ compensation coverage can provide, just like first responders.

Trouble Flexing Your Foot Up? You May Have Foot Drop.

Posted on July 31, 2016 by Rod Rehm

Today’s blog post was written by Anthony L. Lucas from The Jernigan Law Firm in North Carolina. I think that consumers and those who have loved ones with this condition will find this information useful. Just like in a previous blog post that Mr. Lucas wrote, it is helpful to have more details about a medical concern, so a person can have the knowledge to ask questions for greater understanding of a person’s individual situation.

Though each case’s details are different, in general, if foot drop is a result of you or your loved one’s work-related injury, it is more than likely covered by a state’s workers’ compensation laws. There are some exceptions in Nebraska, so please contact a lawyer who is familiar with your state’s workers’ compensation system for more information and with your specific details.

Foot drop describes the inability of a person to lift his or her foot at the ankle due to weakness or paralysis of the muscles that lift the foot. Foot drop can be caused by several things including: an injury to the spinal cord, an injury to the nerve that controls the muscles involved in lifting the foot during hip or knee replacement surgery or during intramuscular injections, ALS, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, or muscular dystrophy.

Symptoms of foot drop include dragging your foot on the floor when you walk, walking like you are climbing stairs to prevent your foot from dragging, and numbness on the top of your foot and toes. Treatment options depend on the cause and severity of a person’s drop foot and include orthotics such as braces or foot splints, physical therapy, or surgery including decompression, nerve sutures, nerve grafting, nerve transfer, or tendon transfer.

Depending on the cause of a person’s foot drop, it may not be a lifelong disability. If the underlying cause is trauma or nerve damage it is possible for a person’s foot drop to improve or go away completely; however, if the underlying cause is a progressive neurological disorder, foot drop will likely continue as a lifelong disability.

Exoskeletons and the Workplace

Posted on December 7, 2015 by Jon Rehm

Due to Japan’s rapidly aging demographics, they are using exoskeletons to make older workers more productive in heavy-labor jobs.

“’We expect that exoskeletons, or power-assist suits, will be widely used in people’s lives in 15 years,’ said Panasonic spokesperson Mio Yamanaka, who is based in Osaka, Japan, as quoted by Tech Review.”

“The suit, which weighs just over 13 pounds and attaches to the back, thighs, and feet, allows its wearer to carry an additional 33 pounds,” according to the Business Insider article. Industries that have tested the suit in Japan include warehouse handlers and forestry workers. Another suit in testing that’s larger “could help workers carry up to 220 pounds.”

I see some upsides and downsides to this trend:

Positives:

This preserves manual-labor jobs. The human brain is still more sophisticated than a computer when it comes to having the skills to perform many tasks. Robotically enhanced humans might preserve human labor.
It’s potentially easier to accommodate injured and disabled employees. There might be fewer workers’ compensation payments, but employers may find it harder to fire injured workers. Not having an exoskeleton available for injured or disabled employees could be considered discrimination.
Less discrimination against older workers would occur when physical limitations are decreased.

Negatives:

Using an exoskeleton opens the potential of abuse by employers. The machines may push production workers to perform their duties even faster. Employees may still have injuries or maybe even develop new work-related injuries from using exoskeletons.
Are exoskeletons really safe? Who is responsible if they cause injury?

In summary, if you or a loved one have questions about current workplace trends as they apply to injured workers, please contact an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer.

Workers’ Compensation Basics: Understanding Social Security Disability Offsets

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Roger Moore

This is the next post in the series that looks at the basics of workers’ compensation. If you receive both workers’ compensation benefits and Social Security Administration disability benefits, please be aware of the concerns raised here.

The most important thing a worker who is entitled to receive both workers’ compensation and SSA disability benefits can do is report the amount of workers’ compensation benefits to the Social Security Administration, in writing if possible. Failure to do so can result in an overpayment that may not be uncovered until years later and may be thousands of dollars.

However, the reporting of these benefits doesn’t ensure the SSA will make the proper adjustment to your SSA monthly benefit. As such, it’s important to follow up with the SSA once you have reported your benefit amount to ensure they adjust your SSA benefit to account for this. This will help ensure an overpayment is not found years later. Be sure to ask an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer if you have questions.

Please read the previous blog posts in the workers’ compensation basics series by clicking on these links:

Do I Have a Wrongful Termination Claim?

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Jon Rehm

Assuming you do not have an employment contract, you can only claim wrongful termination if the firing was motivated by certain unlawful reasons. Unlawful reasons include discrimination based on sex or gender – this includes sexual harassment and pregnancy – as well as race, religion, nationality and disability. In certain places and in certain situations, sexual orientation discrimination can also be unlawful. Disability in this context will often mean any serious or chronic health condition you have. Disability discrimination can also mean that you are taking care of someone with a disability.

You also cannot be discriminated against by your employer for certain activities on the job. This is commonly referred to as retaliation. One of these activities is taking extended leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for your own or for a loved one’s medical condition. Other common protected activities include opposing unlawful discrimination; filing a safety complaint; filing a workers’ compensation complaint; complaining of pay practices; or complaining about other illegal activities. If you are a government employee, you might also have some claims based on constitutional law.

Essentially, not all terminations are unlawful. But if your situation fits into the categories described above, then be sure to contact an experienced employment attorney. In addition, it is wise to ask for advice about applying for unemployment, even if there’s not a wrongful termination case.

Six Tips for Safe and Fair Holiday Employment

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Jon Rehm

This time of year, many people get holiday jobs to earn extra money. That means some people will get injured at work and run into other difficulties working holiday jobs. Here are six tips on how to deal with the workplace challenges arising from holiday jobs. These tips for safe and fair employment apply just as well to any second job, not just a holiday job.

Just because you have a “holiday job” doesn’t necessarily make you a seasonal employee: In some states, including my home state of Nebraska, employees can have their benefits reduced if they are a “seasonal employee.” However, even if you have a holiday job, your job may not be seasonal. In Nebraska, “seasonal employment” is defined as a job that is dependent on weather or can only be done during certain times of the year. For example, if you hurt your back working at an electronics store at your holiday job, that employment is not seasonal because you can work at an electronics or really most any retail store at any time of the year.
You can’t be paid workers’ compensation for how your holiday or second job affects your regular job: If you are off work at your regular job because of an injury at your second job or holiday job, you are only paid income-replacement benefits for the income you lost at your holiday job or second job. For example in Nebraska, if you were hurt at your holiday/second job that pays $120 per week and you are unable to do your regular job that pays $600 per week, your only income benefit would be two-thirds of your second/holiday job, which would be $80. Employees should be extra cautious in second jobs or holiday jobs for just that reason. Employees should also consider applying for private disability plans if they plan on having a second job in order to account for the possibility of losing income due to an injury at their second job. In short, employees should do a thorough cost-benefit analysis before taking a holiday job or second job.
Your permanent disability benefits could be better than your temporary benefits: In full-time employment, permanent and temporary disability benefits are generally fairly close. But with part-time employment, permanent disability benefits may be much higher than temporary benefits. In my state of Nebraska, temporary benefits are paid based on a typical work week. For example, if you are a part-timer working 12 hours a week at $10 per hour, your temporary disability pay would be $80 a week. However, in Nebraska and some other states, permanent disability is based on no less than a 40-hour week. So if you are a part-timer getting paid $10 per hour, your permanent disability rate would be $266.67 per month. This is good for employees, because serious injuries will usually have permanent effects that can permanently affect an employee’s ability to earn a living.
If you are an injured part-time worker and your insurance company is trying to force you to take a settlement based on your part-time wage rate, you should consult with an attorney in your state.
Your employer/insurer may be low-balling your wage rate: Say you get paid $8 an hour as a barista but you have an agreement to share tips, or you work in retail but you get store credit, or you teach exercise classes at a health club but you have an agreement that you get a free membership. In any of those scenarios, you could possibly use those benefits to increase your loss-of-income benefits.
You are still protected by most fair-employment laws: Part-timers are still covered by most fair-employment laws. The most glaring exception is likely the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave and job protection for employees with a serious health condition, to care for a close family member with a serious health condition, or take care of a close family member who is affected by a military deployment. FMLA requires 1,250 hours worked in the last calendar year and 1 year of employment. That 1,250 hours a year translates to roughly 24 hours a week. Many people working second jobs don’t meet the eligibility standards for FMLA.
Independent contractor, independent conschmacktor: Many holiday employees do fairly low-wage work that doesn’t require any specialized training or education. If this describes your holiday job or second job, then you are an employee, despite the fact that your company may have classified you as an independent contractor. Since you are an employee, you should be covered by workers’ compensation law. If you are misclassified as an independent contractor, you should look for other employment and consider reporting your unscrupulous employer to the United States Department of Labor or to your state’s department of labor.

Workers' Compensation Watch

Published by Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm

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Tag Archives: Disability

What Happens If I Get Hurt at My Second Job?

9-11: 15 Years Remembered

Trouble Flexing Your Foot Up? You May Have Foot Drop.

Exoskeletons and the Workplace

Do I Have a Wrongful Termination Claim?

Six Tips for Safe and Fair Holiday Employment

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