They’re Trying to Take My Worker’s Compensation!
By: Kevin J. McGarrey, Esq.

You’ve been injured on the job and have been unable to work for over a year.  You have been receiving your Worker’s Compensation check regularly and have been trying to rehab your injury.   One day you get a notice form the insurance company stating that they are filing a petition to terminate your worker’s compensation benefits.  What do you do?

Under the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act, an employer (usually through an insurance company) has the right to try to terminate (stop) or suspend your right to ongoing benefits, based on evidence that you have fully recovered from the injury, have returned to work at wages greater than or equal to your pre-injury wage, or because you have the ability to earn wages in spite any residual impairment related to the work injury. If you receive notice that a Termination, Suspension or Modification has been filed in your case you have the right to fight the insurance company to keep your Worker’s Compensation benefits coming.

Under current law, the insurer has to prove that there has been a change of condition to prevail in a serial termination petition.  Previously, the insurer could harass you by filing petition after petition to try to stop your benefits.  All that has changed specifically, a recent court decision held that a workers’ compensation insurance carrier in PA had to prove there was an actual change in condition from the previous adjudication of disability to file a new petition to change or cancel your benefits.

Be warned:  your employer, usually through their insurance company, will have a high priced legal eagle that knows the Worker’s Compensation Code through and through.  You may have received your Compensation benefits without the aid of an attorney but the Termination or Modification is a completely different animal.  You need the assistance of a seasoned attorney who can fight the insurance company’s attorney.  If you are not represented you will have no way of knowing what the insurance company can and can’t do.

Article Owner is Kevin and Source is "http://www.pacomplawyers.com"