Lancaster PA Workers' Compensation Law Blog

Worker’s Compensation is a type of insurance coverage that helps financially and medically support injured workers that have been harmed on the job as they recover. The benefits aim to cover the daily life of workers while they take on the healing process to rejoin the workforce. However, too few workers in Pennsylvania are aware of the potential coverage and how the benefits work. How are the Claims Handled in Pennsylvania? There are two separate laws that govern and regulate Worker’s Compensation claims in the state of Pennsylvania: the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act and the Occupational Disease Act. The two…

Forging a new claim under the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act can be daunting. The beginning stages can be tough and can determine how smoothly your recovery will go. In the last blog post, we explored half of the six types of Worker’s Compensation and how they work to aid workers in their recovery process after a work-related injury. In this post, we will look at the other three types of Worker’s Compensation in Pennsylvania and what can be covered by insurance after a work injury. Medical Expenses Any medical care that is necessary for recovery and is deemed reasonable and…

Originally passed in 1915, the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act was set forth as a state-wide insurance system on a no-fault basis aimed to provide injured workers with benefits, lost wages and medical coverage. The intent of the Act is not to replace all wages for the worker but to give a percentage of wages to help aid recovery after a work-related injury. The Act also does not cover non-economic damages. This means if pain and suffering come as a result of injury, the worker will have to pursue those damages separately. Depending on the injury, workers will be eligible for…

While many are familiar with the idea of pain and suffering as it results from other injuries and incidents, few are aware that mental injuries themselves can be compensable. Mental injury claims often come from workplace stressors and are on the rise as claims. For employers, this raises a lot of issues and creates a lot of headaches, especially in their HR departments. It is much more difficult to successfully claim one of these cases, and the issue brings up a lot of questions for both employees and employers. Understanding the link between stress in the workplace and the mental…

Some injuries at work are more complicated than others. For instance, if you are asked to come in and pick something up for or from your boss and are injured on the premises, you may wonder if you are eligible to receive Workers’ Compensation benefits. While you were not on the clock, you were at your place of work and your actions were in benefit of the employer. In a lot of claims like this, you will have a good case for compensation. However, the devil is in the details when it comes to such claims. The first question is…

The short answer to this question is “no,” but there are some caveats to the answer. While Workers’ Compensation benefits are not considered taxable income at the federal or state level, those receiving benefits through Social Security disability insurance or Supplemental Security Income in addition to Workers’ Compensation may have their benefits taxed. For some, their SSDI or SSI may be reduced to ensure the combination with Workers’ Compensation is below a threshold of payment, known as the Workers’ Compensation offset. The amount of Worker’s Compensation that would be taxable is the amount your disability payments are lowered to stay…