Can Pre-Existing Conditions Affect Your Workers Compensation Claim?
It’s never easy to cope with getting hurt on the job. It may seem very simple. If you get hurt at work, you should receive workers compensation benefits. However, it can become an extremely stressful and painful time. You may be asking yourself how do you know if your pre-existing condition affects your worker’s compensation claim?
In many cases, your employer’s insurance company may try to use your pre-existing condition as an excuse as to why you do not qualify for workers compensation. For example, if your work-related injury is a back injury and your employer’s insurance company sees that you had a back injury years and years ago, they may try to deny your claim even if the two injuries are not related. Some other examples of pre-existing conditions include headaches, arthritis, and other already healed injuries. These are injuries that occur prior to the injury sustained on the job.
In most states, an injured employee is eligible for worker’s compensation as long as they sustain a new injury. Even if the new injury aggravates the pre-existing condition, they will still qualify. In the state of Florida, the impact of pre-existing conditions on workers compensation claims varies from case to case. There are some cases where it lowers the amount the injured receives or somewhere there is no impact at all. It all has to do with whether or not the injured person’s on the job injury was caused by a pre-existing condition. In Florida, the injured employee must prove that if their injury is related to the pre-existing injury then the newly sustained injury has significantly worsened the older injury.
In some cases where the injured employee might be denied workers compensation because of his pre-existing condition, it may be necessary to get an attorney involved. Let Franco Law Firm help ease some of the stress that comes with on the job injuries and help you gain restitution for your pain and suffering. To learn more and to schedule a free consultation, please call us at (813) 872-0929.
