Workers Comp Lawyer Georgia

Revised workers' comp overhaul set for vote

Folwell's initial bill triggered hordes of injured workers, union members and others to descend upon the General Assembly in opposition to the measure. But at Folwell's urging, the opponents had a series of meetings with supporters, led by the N.C. Chamber, to work out a deal.

"At this point we support it, not because it is perfect, but because it's a reasonable compromise," said Victor Farah, a Raleigh lawyer who represents injured workers and was involved in the negotiations.

The most hotly contested provision in the original bill would have capped income benefits for most workers at 500 weeks, a little more than 91/2 years - except for the most severely injured workers with specified injuries, such as the loss of both hands or paralysis. Although that cap still stands under the revised bill, a new exception has been carved out.

Workers would be able to qualify for "extended compensation" if they can prove that they have "sustained a total loss of wage earning capacity."

The compromise augurs well for the bill's future, said Bruce Hamilton, a Raleigh lawyer who represents insurers and employers in workers' comp cases.

"I think there are people maybe not thrilled with it on both sides ... but everyone can live with it," he said. "I don't see anyone trying to derail it or amend it tremendously."

North Carolina Democrat Kay Hagan led a group of 39 U.S. senators who are asking federal regulators not to require higher down payments for certain mortgages.

In a letter Friday, which was also signed by Republican Sen. Richard Burr, they argue that regulators are not following the legislative intent of the new Dodd-Frank financial reform, which included several provisions designed to prevent the type of lax mortgage lending that was a major cause of the economic crisis.

The law requires lenders to retain at least 5 percent of the mortgages they issue, instead of bundling and selling all of them on Wall Street as mortgage-backed securities. The thinking was that if lenders were forced to hold more of the loans they issue, they would be less inclined underwrite loans to people with poor credit.

But some legislators worried that the rule would raise the cost of all mortgages, even those that were not the cause of the crisis.

Hagan, along with Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Johnny Isakson of Georgia, included a provision in Dodd-Frank that exempted certain loans from the 5 percent rule. It was left up to regulators to determine how the loans, called qualified residential mortgages, were defined.

Compensation Cases - Atlanta Georgia Workers Compensation Attorney

Permanent impairment ratings, also referred to as PPD ratings, are assigned by an injured worker's treating physician when he or she has reached maximum medical improvement (MMI). The ratings are based upon the 5th Edition of the American Medical Association's Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment.

In Georgia, after the doctor has assigned a rating, the workers' compensation statute assigns a certain number of weeks of benefits for each part of the body. For example, a neck or back injury would be given an impairment rating to the body as a whole. The body as a whole is worth 300 weeks of benefits. A 10% rating to the body as a whole would be worth 10% of 300 or 30 weeks times the injured worker's weekly compensation rate. If the injured worker's compensation rate is $500.00 per week, a 10% rating would have a value of $15,000.00.

An arm injury would be given an impairment rating to the upper extremity and a leg injury would be given an impairment rating to the lower extremity. A 10% rating to the upper or lower extremity is worth 10% of 225 or 22.5 weeks of benefits. If an injured worker's compensation rate is $500.00, a 10% rating to the upper or lower extremity would be worth 22.5 weeks times $500.00 or $11,250.00. Fingers, toes, hands, and feet are also allotted a specific number of weeks of benefits. Ratings are also given for hearing loss and loss of vision.

Permanent impairment ratings can be assigned to more than one part of the body if the injured worker has suffered multiple injuries. The worker is entitled to be paid for each rating. The value of the PPD rating can be paid in weekly installments until the entire rating is paid out or it can be paid in a lump sum. The workers' compensation carrier gets to make that choice. PPD benefits cannot be paid at the same time that an injured worker is receiving weekly benefits for temporary total disability (TTD) or temporary partial disability (TPD). They are paid when all weekly benefits have ceased. If a worker has suffered a serious injury and will not be returning to his or her pre-injury job, the value of the impairment rating will typically be incorporated into the overall settlement value of the case.

If you, a friend, or a family member have suffered a work related injury and you have questions about your impairment rating, Susan J. Sadow can offer you expert legal advice. Call her today at 770-984-8900.

Susan J. Sadow P.C. represents clients with workers' compensation legal concerns in the Atlanta metro area and throughout Georgia, including Marietta, Decatur, Douglasville, Lithonia, Lawrenceville, Cartersville, Smyrna, Stone Mountain, Norcross, Riverdale, Jonesboro, Fulton County, Cobb County, DeKalb County, Gwinnett County, Clayton County, Douglas County, Barrow County, Henry County, Fayette County, Cherokee County, Forsyth County, and Floyd County.

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