Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Compensation in a Job Injury Claim
Originally, the agreement between workers and management known as the Grand Bargain sped benefits to injured workers, so they could quickly get back on the job. Today, the workers’ compensation system is a bloated bureaucracy dominated by insurance company interests. Yet the injuries these victims sustain are more serious than ever, mostly because of… Read More »
The Five Phases of Medical Treatment After a Job Injury in Louisiana
After a serious injury, like a spine injury, the medical bills could exceed $4 million. Much of these expenses are associated with one of the five phases outlined below. Health insurance companies usually do not cover injury-related costs, and most families cannot possibly pay these costs out of their own pockets. To help families… Read More »
Diagnosing and Treating Work-Related Neck Injuries
Neck injuries are among the most common work-related injuries in Mississippi. Actions like craning one’s neck and turning one’s head do not immediately cause injury. But people who do these things dozens of times a day almost every day for decades often develop a repetitive stress disorder. Work-related motor vehicle collisions often cause whiplash,… Read More »
Work-Related Hearing Loss: A Closer Look
Hearing loss has both physical and emotional effects. Frequently, the emotional effects are worse. Prizefighter Jake LaMotta, the subject of Raging Bull, was mostly deaf in one ear. His frustration over his inability to follow simple conversations and participate in special events probably explains his violent temper. That’s an extreme example. But symptoms like… Read More »
Workers’ Compensation and Wage Replacement in Mississippi
Most working families in the Magnolia State live from hand to mouth. Over a third of Mississippians do not have the cash to cover a $400 emergency expense. So, a few weeks off work could be almost crippling. A few months without income could force most families into bankruptcy or worse. A Jackson workers’… Read More »
What You Should Know About Job-Related Back Injuries
These wounds are one of the worst work-related injuries in Louisiana, in terms of frequency and severity. Roughly a fifth of job-related injuries are either acute or overuse back injuries. Furthermore, since the back is a critical part of the central nervous system, back injuries usually cause either partial or total paralysis. Additionally, since… Read More »
Work-Related Head Injuries: A Closer Look
Largely due to better understanding of these wounds, head injury-related hospital admissions have increased by 53 percent since 2006. Brain injuries are degenerative. Initial symptoms, like unconsciousness and vomiting, quickly give way to more advanced symptoms, like tinnitus (ringing in the ear), severe headaches, and mood swings. These symptoms make it difficult or impossible… Read More »
Wage Replacement for Injured Workers in Louisiana
Most families live from paycheck to paycheck. In fact, about two-thirds of families have less than $1,000 in savings. Many of these families have little or no savings at all. So, even a temporary wage disruption is often devastating. That’s especially true if the affected wage-earner accounts for all or most of the family’s… Read More »
Medical Bill Payment for Injured Workers in Mississippi
Since the end of the Great Recession, medical bill inflation has usually outpaced overall inflation. A serious injury or illness, like a job-related fall or cancer, can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars a month to treat. Most health insurance plans do not cover injury-related costs, and most families cannot possibly pay these… Read More »
What to Expect in a Workers’ Compensation Claim
In the early 1900s, workers and management reached what became known as the Grand Bargain. Injured workers gave up their rights to sue in civil court in exchange for a system of employer-provided, no-fault insurance that paid for economic losses. Over the years, what started as an efficient and worker-friendly system has become a… Read More »