When I’m not giving my all to help injured workers fight against a system that is stacked against them, I find great joy in coaching my eight year old son’s sports teams. In fact, I have coached so many seasons and different sports that most of the parents of my son’s friends have taken to calling me “Coach Davis.” I kind of like that name and figured it’d be a good reference point for my series of tips and commentaries for injured workers and attorneys.
In workers’ compensation cases, doctors are not focused on the way an injured workers’ job was actually performed. A doctor’s note stating the injured worker is at “full duty” might not be a true full duty release. Injured workers should make sure the doctor knows the full extent of how their jobs were actually performed, and is not relying on an incomplete job description or the doctor’s assumptions about how a certain job is done.
Following a work accident, injured workers are predictably in need of prompt medical attention and income. This is typically a vulnerable time for injured workers, and it is unfortunately also a time that is filled with unreturned telephone calls from insurance companies, leaving the worker with many unanswered questions. In the event that the insurance company does call, they will likely ask for a recorded statement.
Injured workers often believe that their employer is appropriately handling and filing their workers’ compensation claims. So many times, an injured worker believes that their workers’ compensation rights are protected because they have received medical treatment or disability payments. However, mere payment of medical bills and disability payments do not establish an Award Order with the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission.
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