Top Reasons Why Your Workers Comp Benefits May Be Stopped

An experienced Mississippi work injury attorney knows that an injured worker will be continuously under scrutiny while they are out on workers comp benefits. This is why one of our first pieces of advice to potential clients is to seek legal advice before filing a claim. Also, once your benefits are approved, you must continue to follow your lawyer’s recommendations.

Many workers mistakenly believe that once their claim is approved, they are “out in the clear”. Instead, your employer will receive constant reports from the doctor who treats you. Also, your employer will monitor you in other ways. 

The reason for this is simple. They want you back at work as soon as possible. If they can prove that you are no longer suffering the negative consequences of the injury, they can put an end to your workers comp benefits.

Mississippi Law Clarifies for How Long You Can Collect Workers Comp Benefits

The official Mississippi Workers Compensation Commission states clearly that an injured worker will receive full compensation for medical costs and replacement wages:

• For a maximum period of 450 weeks for permanent and total disability
• Depending on the nature of the injury for less than permanent and total disability.

Also, what makes our state different from other US states in terms of workers compensation rules is that injured workers can choose their own treating physician. As any Mississippi work injury attorney can tell you, this is very important.

An employer-approved doctor would understandably side with the party that pays them. While not jeopardizing their patient’s health and chances of recovery, they will do their best to declare them fit for work as quickly as possible. 

Since Mississippi does not oblige you to go to a doctor approved by your employer, it should be fairly simple to prevent getting your workers comp benefits denied or stopped.

Reasons Why Your Workers Comp Benefits May Be Stopped

Despite the more favorable conditions of the Mississippi workers compensation system, many clients contact their lawyer stating that they stopped receiving their benefits.

Upon examining the situation, the Mississippi work injury attorney finds out that the injured worker committed one of the following mistakes:

1. You Did Not Follow the Prescribed Treatment

Workers comp benefits are paid to offer injured workers the chance to heal as soon as possible and to get replacement wages. Thus, the worker should follow their doctor’s treatment and instructions to the letter.

If you experience any negative side effects from a medicine or physical therapy procedure, you should inform your doctor immediately. However, do not stop the treatment on your own. Your employer will definitely find out about this.

And their immediate conclusion will be that you are healed and you can come back for work. Thus, your workers comp benefits will stop and you will be called back to your job.

2. You Got a Referral to a Second Specialist without the Employer’s Approval

Mississippi workers comp rules state that your treating physician can refer you to a specialist without your employer’s approval once. The second time this is necessary, your employer must be notified BEFORE you go for the first appointment with the specialist.

For instance, your accident may have caused both soft tissue damage and bone fracture. Your doctor may refer you to an orthopedist to check how your fracture is healing. If you also need a referral to a pain management specialist, your employer must approve it.

If you do not follow the procedure, your workers comp benefits may stop and you will have to pay for the second specialist’s treatments out of pocket.

3. You Share Videos Showing You Involved in Physical Activities

Social media is one of your biggest enemies during the workers comp claim process and while you are out own workers comp benefits. Anything you share will somehow become accessible to your employer.

The most self-incriminating posts are those showing you doing activities that are incompatible with the injuries you claim you suffered. It does not matter if the video is older – unless it has a clear time stamp, the employer may reason that it is recent.

And, of course, as your Mississippi work injury attorney can tell you, falsely stating that you are injured represents insurance fraud. You must be aware that you will be found out sooner or later and that the financial and legal consequences are severe.

4. The Employer Reverses the Decision in Your Case

Your employer may continue to investigate your workplace accident even after you start collecting workers comp benefits. If they find a crucial piece of evidence proving that your injury is not compensable – it happened outside the work hours – they can reverse the decision.

At this point, your best choice is to talk to your Mississippi work injury attorney and file an appeal. Depending on the type of evidence in case, your lawyer will advise you if this option has any chances of success.

5. You Refuse a Light Duty Position Offered by Your Employer

In some situations, your employer may identify a less strenuous position you can fill in while you recover. This will help them reduce the amount paid as replacement wages. 

If you refuse this position, your employer can terminate your workers comp benefits and fire you. Since Mississippi is an at-will state, this can happen. Although the law states that you cannot be fired in retaliation for filing a worker’s comp claim, proving this is very difficult.

In the experience of any Mississippi work injury attorney, only a handful of such cases are successful. What you should do instead is this: start working on the light-duty position and notify your lawyer.

The lawyer can file an appeal on your behalf. Even if you do not win it, you will not have to work on the light-duty job while the case is pending. This buys you some time to further recover from your injuries.

Follow the Advice of an Experienced Mississippi Work Injury Attorney!

At Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, we have your best interests at heart. Every Mississippi work injury attorney on our team has extensive experience and knows how to protect your rights. However, you must also follow your lawyer’s advice and refrain from doing things that would hurt your case.

You should get in touch with us as soon as possible after your workplace accident. We will evaluate your claim in a free case review and, if it is a valid one, we will win your workers comp benefits. Remember that your employer can use anything you say or do to deny your claim, so talk to a lawyer before you discuss your case with anyone else!