How Do Impairment Ratings Work in Massachusetts?

Unless you get an impairment rating that convinces the carrier otherwise, your Workers’ Compensation benefits won’t last forever in Massachusetts. When the right time comes in your case, we can encourage you to get an impairment rating and use that to extend the payments from your employer’s carrier.

Injured workers get impairment ratings after they reach maximum medical improvement (MMI). This means you have gotten all the treatments you can, your condition is stable, and it likely won’t change. Impairment ratings range from 0% to 100%, letting physicians be very specific about a worker’s loss of function. An impairment assessment and rating can confirm that you are eligible for permanent and total disability from Workers’ Compensation or specific injury benefits, so keep that in mind before accepting any lump sum offers.

Call the Law Office of John J. Sheehan’s Boston Workers’ Compensation lawyers for help with your case at (617) 925-6407.

What Are Impairment Ratings and How Do They Work in Massachusetts?

Physicians give impairment ratings based on a worker’s loss of function or permanent damage because of a workplace injury. These ratings can directly influence the Workers’ Compensation benefits you receive, so understanding how they work is important.

You can get assessed for an impairment rating after reaching maximum medical improvement (MMI). At this point, you will have healed as much as possible, but that doesn’t mean you will have fully recovered. For example, if you suffer nerve damage in your hand, you may never regain full function, even with physical therapy.

When physicians assess workers for whole body impairment ratings, they look at their medical records and ask questions about their limited function because of the injury. They will then give you an impairment rating of a percentage between 0% and 100%.

This is a very wide scale and explains a worker’s permanent loss of function or injury to a Workers’ Compensation carrier.

Why Should You Get an Impairment Rating in Massachusetts?

Getting an impairment rating after reaching maximum medical improvement can help our lawyers assert your deserved damages to Workers’ Compensation. Your permanent injuries may qualify you for extended Workers’ Compensation benefits, and we can make sure you get them.

Initially when you get Workers’ Comp, you may get temporary total incapacity benefits. If you can’t work at all after an accident, you’ll get 60% of your gross average weekly wage for up to 156 weeks.

When those 156 weeks are up, or if you reach MMI sooner, you should get assessed for an impairment rating.

Suppose physicians confirm your permanent loss of function stops you from working indefinitely. In that case, your benefits may change to permanent and total incapacity payments.

According to Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 152, § 34A, these payments should be two-thirds of your average weekly wage before the injury.

If you don’t get assessed for an impairment rating, attempts to get permanent and total incapacity benefits might get denied, forcing an appeal. The impairment rating the physician gives you will help us show you deserve long-term lost-wage benefits. However, our Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation lawyers will also use other evidence to prove this, like your medical records from right after the accident until now.

Do Impairment Ratings Stop Medical Benefits in Massachusetts?

Workers’ Compensation should cover all the medical expenses you incur, regardless of your injury and its cost to treat. However, if it’s time for you to get an impairment rating, that means you have reached maximum medical improvement. This also means that the Workers’ Compensation carrier might be getting ready to shut the medical portion of your claim.

Impairment ratings help injured workers get the long-term benefits they need for their lost wages. This happens after they exhaust their temporary total incapacity benefits, and the permanent impact of their injuries becomes even clearer.

Physicians give impairment ratings so Workers’ Compensation carriers can better understand why claimants cannot go back to work to support themselves. The impairment rating is for that reason only, not to discuss a worker’s medical expenses.

Reaching MMI means your condition is stable, and any extra treatment would not improve it. Since Workers’ Compensation will likely stop paying medical benefits at this time, it’s important to ensure your impairment rating is accurate. Otherwise, you might not qualify for ongoing compensation for your lost wages via permanent and total incapacity benefits. Then, you might struggle to support yourself with your permanent injuries.

Should You Accept a Lump Sum Settlement Before Getting an Impairment Rating in Massachusetts?

Workers’ Compensation carriers may offer injured workers lump sum settlements instead of paying weekly benefits. Though getting a large, one-time payment might seem appealing, it could also leave considerable money on the table.

Soon after a workplace injury, you may not know its full severity. And, before you reach maximum medical improvement, you might not know what that looks like.

For example, say you suffer a bad back injury at work. Then, say you accept a lump sum settlement from Workers’ Compensation, only to realize later on that you have permanent nerve damage. The lump sum settlement might run out quickly, leaving you in a difficult situation if you can’t work.

Getting temporary total incapacity benefits, reaching maximum medical improvement, and then getting an impairment rating to assess your eligibility for long-term payments might be the better route.

Impairment ratings and confirmation of loss of function from physicians might get you extra payments from Workers’ Compensation. Under § 36, specific injuries, like sight loss in one or both eyes and limb loss, lead to special one-time-payments.

If you were to accept a lump sum settlement without considering the permanent nature of your injuries and your possible eligibility for specific injury benefits, you could lose out on compensation. Our attorneys can help avoid this by making sure you get an impairment rating after reaching MMI and informing the Workers’ Compensation carrier of your status.