Workers’ Compensation Benefits For Families

When a person is injured on the job in Florida, they will usually be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. There are two types of benefits that can be granted: medical benefits and wage replacement benefits. Both types can be of great help to an injured worker and their family – but the claim must be approved in order to receive them, and this does not always happen.

Medical & Wage Replacement Benefits

Medical benefits granted under workers’ compensation are intended to cover all relevant medical expenses relating to a work injury, though in Florida, they are only granted if the injured worker pursues medical care through a doctor chosen by their employer. Everything from hospitalization to prescriptions to physical therapy will be covered until the worker reaches a state known as maximum medical improvement (MMI) – basically a status where the injury, whether fully healed or not, has no likelihood of improving further.

Wage replacement benefits, by comparison, can be a bit more complex because one must receive what is known as an impairment rating in order for the state to know how incapacitated the worker is – and thus, how much in benefits a person can collect. If someone is incapacitated for 7 days or more, they are entitled to wage replacement benefits – the amount will be roughly ⅔ of one’s average weekly wage if you are fully disabled for this period.

Death Benefits For Workers’ Families

If a worker is killed while on the job, acting within the scope of their employment, their surviving family will generally be entitled to death benefits under Florida’s workers’ compensation law. A claim for these benefits must be made within two years of the worker’s passing – not the accident itself – and only people related to the decedent by blood or marriage, who directly depended on that person, may seek to recover.

In terms of actual benefits, a bereaved family may receive three types. They are:

• Funeral expenses, up to $7,500;
• Monetary compensation, paid out over time, which can total up to $150,000; and
• For a surviving spouse specifically, help with either community college or trade school fees up to 1,800 classroom hours or 80 semester hours. This is intended to assist the surviving spouse to re-enter the workforce if it becomes necessary.

Every specific case is different, but in general, as long as a family can establish the circumstances of their loved one’s passing, a workers’ compensation claim for death benefits will usually prevail.

Contact A Winter Park Workers’ Compensation Attorney

An on-the-job injury (or fatality) can completely change the course of a person’s life, and while compensation can help to soften the blow, the work required to receive it can be exhausting. A Winter Park workers’ compensation attorney from the Hornsby Law Group can help to smooth your path through the legal process. Call our office today for a free consultation.

Source:

flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2021/440.02