Workers’ compensation is a system that is designed to help employees maintain a steady stream of income while they recover from a work-related injury. In a perfect world, employees would be able to make a full recovery in a relatively short period of time, but we know that life doesn’t work this way. Sometimes employees need months or years to recover, and some are bothered by the fallout from their workplace mishap for the rest of their life.
Minnesota workers’ compensation is set up to help these workers with long-term injuries, but it’s not a never-ending system. There are end times and payment maximums, and we explore these target amounts based on your injury type in today’s blog.
Workers’ Compensation Maximum Payment Lengths
Many clients ask us how long they are eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits. This is a smart question to ask, because nobody wants to have their income stream dry up without a proper heads up. In Minnesota, you can receive wage loss benefits for four types of injury classifications. They are:
- Temporary Partial Disability
- Temporary Total Disability
- Permanent Partial Disability
- Permanent Total Disability
First, let’s look at temporary disability benefits. For employees with temporary total disability, meaning they currently cannot return to work because of their injuries, they can receive up to 130 weeks of compensation. For employees with temporary partial disability, meaning they can work in a limited earnings capacity, they can receive up to 225 weeks of compensation. When you’re diagnosed with a temporary injury rating, this means that a doctor expects you to make a full recovery after a certain amount of time, so while it’s important to understand your expected recovery timeline, employees with this injury designation are less likely to go beyond their compensation limits than those with permanent injuries.
Permanent disability ratings mean that even after you’ve reached maximum medical improvement, you’ll still have some dysfunction in the injured area. These payments are also handled a little differently in terms of how they are paid out. In employees with permanent partial disability, you’ll receive a compensation amount that is based on your disability rating, not your weekly wage. These are typically five- or six-figure payments that can be collected over time or in a lump sum. As for those with permanent total disability ratings, meaning they will never be able to reenter the workforce, they can typically collect PTD benefits until they reach retirement age, which is classified as 67 in Minnesota. Other factors for additional compensation may also be available given your specific situation.
So if you have questions about your compensation schedule, or you want to file an injury claim against your employer after a work accident, give Hey Workers a call and let us get you the biggest injury award possible until you recover. For more information, pick up the phone and call (844) 439-9675.
