Almost everyone’s using social media these days. Even my 80-year old grandma is on Facebook! However, there are special considerations that you need to keep in mind when posting on Facebook and you have an open workers'’ compensation case. Claimants receiving workers'’ compensation benefits need to be aware that the insurance companies will watching everything [...]
We’ve all seen the ads for “work from home” jobs (spoiler alert – many are scams). However, corporations like Apple, IBM, CVS, and many, many more are frequently advertising work-from-home or telecommuter jobs to employees thus providing a flexible work schedule. The question then arises – what happens if the telecommuting employee is injured at [...]
Sometimes prospective clients ask whether they developed cancer as a result of their job. Most claims arise from accidents and obviously cancer is a slowly developing process. However, cancer can be an occupational-related disease for which medical and disability benefits may be awarded under the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act. A doctor must give his [...]
Last month our firm held a planning retreat in the beautiful town of Chapel Hill. We reaffirmed our firm’s slogan: “Accidents Happen, Sometimes You Need Help.” Frequently we speak to injured workers' during our free consultation about getting medical treatment. It’s frustrating and scary for an injured person to have to wait for authorization for [...]
One question that comes up frequently, or at least routinely, in North Carolina workers'’ compensation claims involves employees injured while playing or participating in recreational activities while on-the-clock or part of an employer-sponsored team building event. The North Carolina Supreme Court clearly answered this question in Frost v. Salter Path Fire & Rescue, 361 [...]
On August 12, 2015, a series of chemical explosions in Tianjin, China sent a massive fireball into the sky. The ensuing gulf of fire blazed for hours. Shocking images and video recordings of the apocalyptic scene streamed across the internet. The explosion killed 112 people. More than 500 people were hospitalized as a result of [...]
Occupational asthma (OA) is asthma that's caused or worsened by breathing in chemical fumes, gases, dust or other substances on the job. Typical symptoms of OA are: chest tightness, wheezing, and shortness of breath. OA accounts for approximately ten to twenty-five percent of adult onset asthma. (Dykewicz, MS. Occupational Asthma: Current Concepts in Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, [...]
How frequently do you think you’ve been overcharged by a medical provider? According to medical bill expert and founder of Medical Recovery Services, Pat Palmer, your chances are pretty high. According to Ms. Palmer, eight out of ten hospital bills contain numerous overcharges. These inaccuracies can add thousands of dollars to your medical costs. However, [...]
“Decimated.” That is the word the Honorable Circuit Court Judge Jorge Cueto used to describe what’s left of Florida’s Workers’ Compensation Act after a series of reforms, notably in 2003, which attacked injured workers'’ rights and benefits. After 2003 Florida became one of the most restrictive workers'’ compensation jurisdictions in the nation. As it currently [...]
When my husband and I purchased our home, we immediately bought a forty-foot ladder because obviously we would be cleaning our own gutters and needed the biggest ladder possible to reach the roof. Our first attempt to use the ladder was miserable. We could barely lift the ladder. After a few pathetic attempts to use [...]