New Jersey Broken Bones Lawyer

Attorneys Assisting Employees Across New Jersey In Pursuing Benefits For Fractures

Broken bones often cause intense pain and render people unable to work, causing them to suffer lost earnings. In many instances in which a person fractures a bone at work, however, the person can recover workers’ compensation benefits that not only help the person recuperate from his or her injury but also replace a portion of the income that the person lost due to the injury. If you sustained a fracture in a work-related incident, a New Jersey broken bones lawyer at New Jersey Workers Compensation Lawyer of The Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall can assist you in pursuing any benefits that you may be eligible to receive.

Types And Causes Of Workplace Fractures

There are numerous types of broken bones, which range in severity. For example, compound fractures, when the bone splits and a portion of the bone breaks through the skin, are typically viewed as the most severe type of fracture, and they often require a surgical procedure known as an open reduction and internal fixation. Conversely, stress fractures, which are small cracks in a bone caused by repeated or excessive force, typically cause pain that worsens with activity and subsides with rest, and they often go undiagnosed for some time after they occur.

People who have jobs that require heavy lifting or repetitive motions, such as nurses and other health care workers, people who work in warehouses, and construction workers, are at a higher risk for stress fractures than other workers. Construction workers are more prone to other kinds of fractures as well, since construction accidents often involve heavy equipment or machinery or large materials that create sufficient force to break bones. Broken bones are also often caused by slip- or trip-and-fall accidents, which can occur in any industry, and motor vehicle collisions, which occur more frequently in jobs that require driving.

Benefits Available To Employees Who Suffer Work-Related Fractures

If a person suffers a fracture, he or she may be eligible to recover workers’ compensation benefits if he or she is an employee, and the fracture occurred within the scope and course of the person’s employment. While in some instances, such as when a fracture is caused by an accident in the workplace, the fracture is obviously work-related, in other instances, such as when an employee sustains a stress fracture, his or her employer may dispute whether the fracture is work-related.

If a fracture is deemed work-related, a New Jersey employee may be eligible to receive medical benefits as well as income benefits. Medical benefits include any treatment that is both necessary and reasonable to treat the fracture and can include hospitalization, surgery, and physical therapy. While the employer must provide the employee with medical treatment, the employer has the right to choose the treating physician in most cases, unless there is an emergency or the employer refuses to provide treatment.

If an employee cannot work due to a fracture, he or she may be awarded disability benefits as well. Temporary total disability benefits are paid to employees who are unable to work for a minimum of seven days, at a rate of 70% of the employee’s weekly wage, within specified limits. Temporary disability benefits are generally paid until the employee reaches maximum medical improvement or until he or she returns to work. If the employee remains disabled, however, he or she may be eligible to receive permanent total or partial disability benefits.

Speak With A Capable Workers’ Compensation Lawyer In New Jersey

If you suffered a work-related fracture, it is advisable to speak with an attorney experienced in handling workers’ compensation matters to discuss which benefits you may be able to recover. The dedicated attorneys at New Jersey Workers Compensation Lawyer have the skills and experience needed to assist you in seeking any benefits that you may be owed. We have three offices in Freehold, Toms River, and New Brunswick, and we represent employees in workers’ compensation claims in Atlantic, Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, and Union counties. We can be contacted online or at 866-916-3549 to schedule a case evaluation.