Injuries to an Arm, Hand or Fingers

Injury to an arm, hand, or fingers is commonly referred to as a scheduled injury claim. Included in the workers’ compensation statutes is a schedule, with a list of body parts that assigns a number of weeks associated with a respective injury. So for instance, the schedule says the loss of a hand is associated with 190 weeks; the loss of an arm is associated with 250 weeks; and so forth, dealing with the thumb and fingers. What typically happens with a scheduled injury is at the end of a healing period, a physician is asked to provide an impairment rating. This impairment rating is applied to the respective scheduled loss to arrive at a number of weeks owed to the injured worker for a permanent injury. So for instance, if a hand injury results in a ten percent impairment rating by a physician, since the value of a total loss of a hand is 190 weeks, a ten percent loss is equivalent to 19 weeks of benefits. Typically, the insurance company will then initiate workers’ compensation benefits for an additional 19 weeks based upon the physician’s impairment rating. There can be exceptions to the impairment rating in terms of obtaining benefits beyond the doctor’s rating. If another physician provides a rating that is higher, it simply means there is a controversy that will need to be sorted out as to the exact extent of benefits owed.

While this basis of compensation seems to be straightforward, it may be in an injured worker’s best interest to review this issue, as well as other workers’ compensation issues, with an experienced and knowledgeable attorney. The attorneys at Wertz & Dake will sit down at no expense and review your claim, including scheduled claims, to make sure you are being compensated to the full extent provided by law.