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It's not uncommon for catastrophic damage personal injury cases to be quite difficult to resolve Sacramento Personal Injury Lawyer. Victims who sustain such severe injuries frequently need long-term care, and others may never be able to work again Car Accident Lawyer Sacramento . In this piece, we'll examine catastrophic injury claims in detail, exploring what constitutes a catastrophic injury and how damages for such an injury are calculated. If you or a loved one has been seriously hurt due to someone else's carelessness, recklessness, or negligence, the attorneys at Pacific West Injury Law can assist you in obtaining fair compensation to pay your medical bills and other associated costs. Talk to us for free about your case, and we'll tell you if your injury qualifies as catastrophic or not.
How are these injuries different from others in the workplace?
Catastrophic injuries are distinguished from other types of occupational injuries, including very serious injuries, by the fact that workers' compensation awards may be increased in some jurisdictions for catastrophic injuries. However, not all of them do so. There is no distinction made in certain states, such as California, between catastrophic injuries and other types of occupational injuries.
What is the law in California?
In the state of California, catastrophic injuries are handled in the same manner as other serious injuries sustained on the job: The victim may be eligible for permanent and complete disability compensation for as long as the injury continues to render them incapacitated Sacramento Personal Injury Attorney. The treating physician of someone who has been wounded on the job will give that person an impairment grade for each bodily component that was hurt. After gathering these scores, one can then determine their "whole person impairment." The Permanent Disability Rating Schedule is then used to provide a rating of permanent disability to the whole-person impairment that was determined earlier. A worker is considered to have sustained a permanent entire disability if their rating for permanent disability is one hundred percent. If the percentage is less than one hundred, the worker is considered to have a permanent partial handicap.
On the other hand, there is a school of thought that suggests particular kinds of personal injuries might result in total and permanent impairments. These severe conditions can manifest themselves in a variety of ways, including the loss of both eyes or total blindness. It is not possible to use both hands, or both hands themselves are removed from use. The term "catastrophic injuries" refers to any type of damage that results in virtually complete paralysis or severe brain injuries that lead to lifelong mental impairment.
These are the types of injuries that, in the state of California, come the closest to defining what is meant by the phrase "catastrophic injuries." It is not up to victims who have sustained one of these injuries to provide evidence that they are unable to function fully and permanently as a result of their condition.
Workers who suffer from a total and permanent disability are eligible to receive income benefits from workers' compensation that are equivalent to two-thirds, or 66 percent, of their typical weekly wage. They are eligible to receive these benefits on a weekly basis for the rest of their lives, or until the time that they are no longer considered to have a total disability. Workers who are permanently disabled in part receive compensation equal to two-thirds of the loss in their weekly wages. However, the California Labor Code 4658 LAB stipulates that the duration of these benefits is limited to a predetermined number of weeks.
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