Workers Comp Disability Benefits
DiSante Law Offices
1150 W. Littleton Blvd. Ste 200 Littleton, CO 80120
Providing Workers Compensation advice and representation in Metro Denver, Colorado (CO),
including Littleton, Englewood, Centennial & Aurora in Arapahoe County, Highlands Ranch
and Castle Rock in Douglas County, and south Jefferson County, Colorado CO
B. Temporary Partial Disability (TPD)
If you are able to work part-time, or at a lower rate of pay while you are treating, you
are eligible for Temporary Partial Disability (TPD) payable at the rate of two-thirds of
the gross income you have lost (the difference between what you make now and what
you made before).
PERMANENT DISABILITY BENEFITS:
Once you have reached a permanent stable medical condition, you will be evaluated to
determine whether your medical conditinhas resulted in some permanent impairment
of your functional abilities. If you have, you may be entitled to once of the following
benefits:
A. Permanent Partial Disability (PPD)
Permanent partial disability is only determined after you have become medically
permanent and stationary (reached maximum medical improvement or MMI) and are
able to return to some form of work, even if it is not your customary occupation.
When your treating physician determines that you are at MMI, and believes that you
have sustained some permanent physical impairment, he will arrange for you to receive
an impairment rating under the Colorado statutory system.
The impairment rating will be converted to a monetary sum under formulas and charts
within the Workers Compensation statute. This money (PPD) is then paid to you over
time, bi-weekly, unless you request a lump sum payout. Lump sum payouts are subject
to a discount for early payment using a 4% discount factor.
There is a cap on the total of the PPD and TTD/TPD paid paid to a worker of $60,000
for impairment ratings of 25% whole person or less, and $120,000 above 25%.
B. Permanent Total Disability (PTD)
An award of Permanent Total Disability is rare as it must be proven that you are
incapable earning any wages at all. Certain conditions such as the loss of use of both
arms or both legs or the loss of use of both eyes are presumed to be PTD. PTD is paid
at the temporary disability rate for life, or until you are is no longer so impaired and are
able to return to work.
DISFIGUREMENT BENEFITS
In addition to any disability benefits that you may be entitled to, after a work injury has
had time to heal, you may be left with permanent visible evidence of the injury, such as
scars and other deformities of your person. If such disfigurment is in an area " normally
exposed to public view", ie. visible when you are wearing a swimsuit, you may be
entitled to monetary compensation.
We provide representation serving the entire south Denver, Colorado (CO)
Metropolitan area, including Littleton, Englewood, Centennial & Aurora in
Arapahoe County, Highlands Ranch and Castle Rock in Douglas County,
Denver and south Jefferson County, Colorado. Evening and weekend
appointments are available upon request.
DiSante Law Offices
1150 W. Littleton Blvd. Ste 200 Littleton, CO 80120
303.797.3311 - fax 303.797.8280
DiSanteLaw@comcast.net
Free
Consultation
Evening ,
weekend,
home and
hospital
appointments
available
Percentage/
contingent
attorney fees
No attorney
fees unless
we are
successful
Free
Consultation
Evening ,
weekend,
home and
hospital
appointments
available
Percentage/
contingent
attorney fees
No attorney
fees unless
we are
successful
If your on-the-job injury is severe enough to from working, or results in some
permanent form of impairment of your body, there are monetary disability
benefits available as follows:
TEMPORARY DISABILITY:
A. Temporary Total Disability (TTD)
Temporary Total Disability generally is payable when, due to your injury, you are unable
to perform your usual job while you are undergoing medical treatment, unless your
employer provides "light duty" work which your treating physician says you can perform.
Initially, you do not receive temporary benefits for the first three days of disability, but
after you are disabled for ten days, you are reimbursed for the first three days.
TTD is paid at the rate of two-thirds of your average weekly gross earnings, to a
maximum amount that changes every year.
You are not entitled to TTD if your employer provides medically-approved light duty
work at your normal average weekly wage. Caution: if you unreasonably refuse an offer
of light duty, your employer may cut off your disability payments.
TTD gererally continues until one of the following happen
- You are released by the treating doctors to "full duty" work, even if you are still
undergoing some medical treatment. This can trigger a termination of your
temporary wage benefits, even if your employer does not have a job position for
you to return to.
- You return to work with restrictions and the employer provides a job within these
restrictions for the same hours and wages.
- You are terminated for fault or good cause from the job. This could cause a loss
or total or partial benefits. Often we see arguments over whether the employee
retuned to work promptly after being released by the doctors. You should be very
careful to maintain good commumication with your employer if you desire to return
to your old job, to avoid giving the employer a reaon to terminate you. If this
happens to you, there are procedures to contest the termination.
- You reach what is called "maximum medical improvement" (MMI). Maximum
medical improvement (MMI) is defined in the law as the point in yourt medial
treatment where your condition is not expected to improve signifiantly with further
treatment. When your treating doctors say that you have reached MMI, your right to
further temporary benefits ends. This is true even if you are unable to return to your
job because of your physical restrictions.the job because of restrictions, no further
temporary benefits are paid. At this point you may be entitled to the "permanent"
disability benefits discussed below.
However, if you disagree that you have reached MMI, and feel that further medial
care could make a significant difference in your recovery, there is a procedure for
requesting that another doctor perform an "independent medical examination" to
determine wheter you have truly reached MMI.