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Recent changes to the Indiana Worker's Compensation Board's policy regarding nurse case managers

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In some worker's compensation claims it is not uncommon for the worker's compensation insurance company to retain a nurse case manager to oversee the injured worker's medical treatment. Essentially, a nurse case manager acts as the worker's compensation insurance company's claim adjuster's eyes and ears on the ground. On April 17, 2018, the Indiana Worker's Compensation Board issued an update regarding its nurse case manager guidelines . According to the Indiana Worker's Compensation Board, "ideally, a nurse case manager is a liaison among the medical provider, the employer and the injured worker.  While not an indispensable player in the Indiana worker’s compensation process or specifically governed by the Worker’s Compensation Act, the nurse case manager can play an integral role in the coordination of medical treatment and the stay-at-work/return-to-work process." In its updated guidelines, the Indiana Worker's Compensation Lawyer...

Recent Developments In Indiana Worker's Compensation Law

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Recent Developments In Indiana Worker's Compensation Law When Temporary Total Disability Benefits are available to an injured worker who has been fired after sustaining the work-related injury. Under the Indiana Worker's Compensation Act , employers would typically be able to deny an injured worker temporary total disability benefits if the employer had fired the injured worker for a reason unrelated to the work-related injury. Contact a Fort Wayne Indiana Work Injury Lawyer For example, in many situations an injured worker would be off work undergoing treatment for the work-related injury and while doing so, would be receiving weekly temporary total disability benefits. These temporary total disabil ity benefits are essentially wage replacement benefits paid out at two-thirds of the injured worker's average weekly wage. However, when the employer would fired the injured worker for say failing a drug screen or for some other reason, the employer would take the p...

Car Accident? Steps to Remember

Safety precautions include: Stop your vehicle and move it to a safe nearby location;  Check to see if anyone is injured;  Call 911 for medical assistance;  Do not leave the scene of the accident;  Make sure everyone involved moves to a safe location; and  If you think you are injured or think that the accident was violent enough, wait for the EMS to examine you. If possible, get the other party's information, including: Name;  Address (including email);  Phone number(s); and  Also, get the contact information of any witnesses. Get the following information about all vehicles involved: Year, make, and model of the motor vehicle(s);  License plate number(s);  Insurance carrier(s); and  Insurance policy number(s). If a police officer is present, get the following information from him or her: Name and badge number;  Phone number; and  Police report number. Document the motor vehicle accident, including: Dam...

Indiana Worker's Compensation: Understanding Permanent Total Disability Benefits

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Under the Indiana Worker's Compensation Act, injured workers are normally entitled to three (3) different types of benefits, including: (1) medical treatment at no cost to the injured worker; (2) wage replacement benefits, commonly known as Temporary Total Disability ("TTD") benefits; and (3) compensation for any permanency of the work-related injury that is calculated by looking at the Permanent Partial Impairment ("PPI") rating assigned by the treating doctor. However, in some cases, when the injured worker's impairment is so severe that it might adverely affect his or her ability to engage in competitive employment, the injured worker may have a claim for Permanent Total Disability ("PTD") benefits. PTD claims arise when the injured worker is unable to perform reasonable forms of work activity, such as a sit down job. In determining whether there is a viable PTD claim, the following considerations are taken into account: the injured worker...

Social Security Disability Hearings: How the Vocational Expert Can Affect Your Case

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During a Social Security disability hearing, vocational experts routinely assist the Social Security Administrative Law Judge in determining whether there is work available in the national economy which a particular disability claimant can perform. The disability attorney will also use the vocational expert in an attempt to show that the disability claimant's severe restrictions prohibit his or her ability to engage in competitive employment. The federal district courts have noted that vocational experts are persons who have, through training and experience in vocational counseling or placement, an up-to-date knowledge of job requirements, occupational characteristics and working conditions, and a familiarity with the personal attributes and skills necessary to function in various jobs. In providing their testimony, vocational experts rely in part upon the Dictionary of Occupational Tables which is a reference published by the  U.S. Department of  Labor tha...

Social Security Judges File Lawsuit Claiming Poor Work Conditions

April, 18 2013 -- Social Security Administrative Law Judges and their union filed a lawsuit against the Social Security Administration on Thursday in federal Court in Chicago, alleging that the agency's productivity goals in fact constitute an illegal quota that pushes judges' workloads beyond the capacity of what they can realistically handle. The lawsuit alleges that the agency requires administrative law judges to decide between 500 and 700 cases per year, which averages out to over two decisions per workday. The judges claim that the goals are too high, and force judges to make decisions too quickly. The lawsuit essentially puts in question the integrity of the  Social Security disability  hearing process. The fact that the people in charge of the process are raising the issue makes it all the more serious. The lawsuit alleges that judges are supposed to keep meet their quotas, regardless of how complicated their cases. Many case files are 500 or more pages. Judges c...
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In the 2011-2012 Session of the Indiana General Assembly, Public Law 69-2012 was passed allowing D felons to reduce their past mistakes and have them entered as Class A Misdemeanors.  ( See  new I.C. s 35-50-2-7). In order to reduce a Class D Felony conviction and have it entered as a Class A Misdemeanor: 1.  The offense cannot be of a sexual or violent nature (as defined in I.C. 11-8-8-5); 2.  The offense did not result in bodily injury to another person; 3.  The offense did not involve perjury or official misconduct. 4.  At least three (3) years must have passed since the sentence was completed (if any); 5.  At least three (3) years must have passed since any other obligations were satisfied; and 6.  The defendant has no pending criminal charges. If you meet these criteria and would like to have your Class D Felony conviction reduced to a Class A Misdemeanor in Indiana    Attorney Fort Wayne Indiana . ...