Ohio workers' compensation questions

One year from the date of the injury. If the condition is an occupational disease, you have up to two years after the date the disability began, or six months after a qualified medical provider diagnosed you with the condition.

The amount depends on your Full Weekly Wage (FWW) and Average Weekly Wage (AWW), which have to be determined before benefits can be calculated. Getting these set correctly at the start matters, because they drive most of what you are paid later.

Sometimes it takes only a few weeks. In the best case, lost wages can be paid 4 to 6 weeks after the date of injury. But it can drag out, and employers and their insurers have ways of slowing a claim down by disputing it, questioning the injury, or appealing a decision. When that happens, an injured worker may wait several months. If your payments are late, call and ask what can be done.

Yes. Injured workers in Ohio have the absolute right to choose which doctor they treat with for their work-related injuries. Neither the Ohio BWC nor your employer can force you to treat at a specific facility or with a specific provider.

Yes. An injured worker can change the physician of record at any time.

Yes, but in a limited way. The BWC or the employer may require an injured worker to be examined by a doctor one time for each issue before the BWC or the Industrial Commission.

The employer can require you to sign medical authorizations to request records related to the claim. You do not have to sign medical releases that allow the employer to request any and all records, whether or not they relate to the workers' compensation claim.

Yes. If you are unable to return to the position you held on the date of injury, but your employer offers a job within your medical restrictions, you must accept that position. If you do not, you would not be eligible for temporary total disability benefits while you remain out of work.

All medical bills related to the allowed conditions of the claim are paid in their entirety. Treatment needs to be requested and approved before you begin it.

No. There are no co-payments required when treating under an allowed workers' compensation claim.

Yes. If the claim is ultimately denied, medical treatment related to the alleged injuries becomes the responsibility of the injured worker. If you have private health insurance, those bills should be submitted to your insurer.

No. An employer is prohibited from discharging, demoting, reassigning, or taking any punitive action against an employee because the employee filed a claim, or pursued or testified in any proceedings under the workers' compensation act.

Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) occurs when a condition has stabilized and further functional improvement is unlikely, despite continued medical treatment or physical rehabilitation.

Generally no. The Ohio BWC does not reimburse travel to and from your treating doctor unless the treatment cannot be obtained within the city or community where you live, and the treatment has been pre-authorized and approved.

Those are treated differently:

• If the Ohio BWC sends you for an examination, you can be reimbursed for travel if you travel more than 45 miles round trip.
• If the employer sends you for an examination, you can be reimbursed for travel regardless of the number of miles traveled.

I would encourage every injured worker to retain an experienced workers' compensation attorney, even for minor injuries. The system is complex, and knowing the nuances can be the difference between getting benefits paid and having a claim denied. Once a final decision is made in a claim, such as a denial of lost wages or medical treatment, that decision generally cannot be undone.

Upfront, nothing. Attorneys who represent injured workers in Ohio workers' compensation claims generally do so on a contingency fee basis. The attorney receives money only if your claim is successful and you are receiving money. Generally, an attorney receives 33.33% of the money the injured worker receives as a result of the attorney's work on the case.

No. When an injured worker is receiving ongoing temporary total disability, the attorney is not entitled to a fee on those ongoing benefits.

Yes. You can terminate your current workers' compensation attorney and hire new counsel at any time. That said, I encourage anyone unhappy with their representation to call their counsel first and try to work through the problem before deciding to end it.