Those who develop job-acquired medical conditions in Florida often face multiple financial stressors. If their injuries are severe, they may no longer be able to continue working. Some people require a temporary leave of absence while recovering, while others may need to cease working entirely or change professions.
Many injured workers and those who develop health conditions because of their work also require medical treatment. The medical benefits available through Florida workers’ compensation can be particularly valuable because they help cover all of someone’s treatment costs. Traditional health insurance passes quite a bit of the cost on to the patient in many cases. Therefore, workers usually want to utilize workers’ compensation coverage for as much of their costs as possible. How long can an injured worker expect their workers’ compensation medical coverage to last?
Until they fully recover
The best-case scenario for a worker with a job-acquired medical condition is that they will make a full recovery. It may take months of treatment or surgery followed by physical therapy to achieve that outcome. Typically, workers can count on their workers’ compensation medical benefits to cover their costs until they fully recover from their symptoms.
Until treatment stops helping
There are many work-related health conditions, including repetitive strain disorders, that will never fully go away. Workers’ compensation will not continue covering treatment that does not result in an improvement of someone’s symptoms. Instead, benefits will largely end once someone achieves maximum medical improvement (MMI). The physician overseeing their care will make the determination about whether or not they have improved as much as possible and if they are likely to respond to future treatment.
Those who have reached MMI often need to seek permanent disability benefits if they cannot return to work because of lingering symptoms. Some medical coverage is still available even after achieving MMI. Benefits for symptom management, like prescription medication, will still be available.
There are a few other scenarios in which workers’ compensation coverage will end. These include scenarios in which a worker has worsened their own conditions through medical non-compliance or similar mistakes. Those still undergoing and responding to treatment can usually count on workers’ compensation for full coverage for their medical treatments.
Getting the right support when seeking benefits can make a big difference to those coping with a job-related injury. Seeking legal guidance is always an option for those who have questions and/or are facing a particularly complex situation.
