Getting Disability Insurance Benefits for a Permanent Partial Disability

When seeking "permanent parital disabilty" benefits, the disabled person is usually a worker of some kind looking to access benfits afforded by a State based Workman's Compensation program.  Every State entitles injured workers to insurance benefits covering their medical treatment if they are injured at work and thereafter suffer a disability obstructing their return to work.  All states have a waiting period for which no wage-replacement benefits are paid but that waiting period ends in the states are 3 or 7 days. Once the worker's time lost from work exceeds the state's waiting period, the entitlement to cash benefits begins. In a typical case in which the time lost because of the injury exceeds the waiting period, the worker can receive a cash benefit which is tax-free and is based to the worker's average weekly wage level.

Temporary Disability is the Route to a Permanent Partial Disability Designation

Benefits for a temporary total disability are calculated by the worker's average weekly wage.  A typical formula sets the benefit at two-thirds of the worker's average weekly wage, which amount is then subject to a maximum weekly beneft level.  Temporary total disabilty benefits stop when the worker returns to work at or near his pre-injury wage level.  If the worker's medical condition stabilizes and is unlikley to change but he remains unable to return to work the temporary benefit period will also end.  This is the stage at which the worker's condition has reached "maximum medical improvement" or has become "permanent and stationary."  When temporary benefits have ended, the worker may then be entitled to apply for and receive benefits for permanent partial disability.

 Permanent Partial Disability

In most States, the most costly category of workman compensaton cases will be the permanent partial disability cases.  In one-half of all cases in which a temporary disabilty lasted more than seven days, or resulted in a death, there were ultimately determined to be instances of permanent partial disabiliies.  On average the amount of monetary benefits paid per permanent partial disability  was over $35,000.  However, many permanent partial disability cases take years to resolve; in some states, only a fraction of cases were closed in under three years from the date of injury.

Getting Legal Help

If you or a member of your family has suffered an injury at work and the injury continues to obstruct any ability to return to work it may be important to discuss the circumstances of the injury with a workman’s compensation attorney or a disability attorney.