What are the different types of workers’ compensation benefits?

Workers’ compensation benefits can be vital to help injured workers get through an injury they suffered on the job and time away from work that results. For that reason, it is necessary for injured workers and their families to be familiar with the categories of workers’ compensation benefits and how they may help them through the challenges they face.

Categories of benefits

There are several categories of workers’ compensation benefits intended to address different concerns injured workers and their families commonly end up facing including:

• Medical benefits: Medical benefits are available for all reasonable and necessary medical care treatment the injured workers needs to treat their workplace injury or occupational illness. This can include medical treatment, hospital services and prescription medications.
• Disability benefits: Based on the degree and severity of the injured worker’s disability, they may receive disability benefits which may be able to help with their lost wages. There are three categories of disability benefits including temporary disability benefits, permanent partial disability benefits and permanent total disability benefits.
• Death benefits: If the worker has been killed in a fatal workplace accident, their dependents may be able to receive weekly benefits equally 70% of the weekly wage of their loved one. There is a limit on the amount of weekly benefit that can be received. A surviving spouse and children part of the worker’s household at the time of the fatal accident are presumed to be dependents but there may be other ways of establishing dependency, and eligibility for benefits, as well. In addition, surviving family members may also be able to receive funeral benefits up to $3,500.

Workers’ compensation benefits can help injured workers and families recovering from the loss of their loved on in a fatal workplace accident. Because these benefits can be critical to the challenges injured workers and their families face, it is important to be familiar with what they are and how to obtain them.