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Understanding Workers' Compensation for Knee Injuries
In the United States, knee injuries are the most common non-fatal workplace injuries. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated approximately 3.5 million non-fatal workplace injuries happened in the last decade. Surely like other workplace injuries, how much compensation you get for a knee injury will depend on external factors and the company policy.
Secure your worker’s compensation for knee injury with expert legal help at Royce Injury. Explore options for compensation and maximize your settlement benefits.
Identifying Common Work-Related Knee Injuries
According to the statistics shown by the Emergency Department of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, among the work-related cases of injury that result in a rest day of one day to a week, knee injury is the second most prevalent type of workplace injury. The statistics also help the studies in focusing on compensation data i.e. on how much compensation for knee injury at work is paid as a result of such injuries.
Some major types of knee injuries in the workplace are:
- Sprain or strain: It is usually a muscle pull, twist, or strain on a muscle tendon.
- Abrasion: Abrasion can be a small external damage to the skin tissue around the area covering the knee.
- Contusions: Bruises around the knee area due to a direct blow.
- Fractures: Breaking of knee bone or one of the bones forming the patellofemoral joint.
- Dislocation: Alignment of the knee bones is disturbed entirely.
- Introduction of a foreign body: External objects can pierce the knee bone or the patellofemoral joint.
- Puncture: A hole in the knee bone due to piercing of the foreign body object.
Knee surgery verdicts and settlements for workers’ compensation are calculated based on one of these types of knee injuries.
Professions Prone to Knee Injuries
Knee injuries are more prevalent in industries that require jobs like lifting weights, prolonged standing, etc. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated approximately 170,000 knee injuries in the workplace in 2019. The construction industry is the most vulnerable in terms of knee injury accidents, and such accidents might result in workers compensation knee replacement settlements more often than other types of knee injuries at the workplace. Other industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing industry, agriculture, transportation, etc, also have a higher rate of knee injury accidents. Jobs that involve climbing, kneeling, etc, are more susceptible to a knee injury at work. Carpenters, laborers, construction workers, electricians, etc, are at high risk of getting knee injuries at work. Desk jobs also cause knee injury due to prolonged sitting. Bad posture causes a strain on the joints, especially on the knee joints.
Understanding Compensation and Benefits for Knee Injuries
If a worker has suffered a knee injury you can claim knee injury at work compensation under Workers’ Compensation benefits. These benefits may include:
- Medical bills: All the medical expenses incurred due to knee injury. It can include hospitalization expenses, doctor fees, medical bills, treatment expenses, etc.
- Wages: Loss of wages due to knee injury are also covered under the benefits of workers’ compensation law. This can include weekly or monthly wages. In some cases, the compensation for wages is provided as a lump sum.
- Vocational benefits: Some knee injuries make it hard for the worker to return to their previous job or perform them adequately. In such cases, vocational rehabilitation benefit is provided to the injured employee.
- Job accommodation due to disability: If the knee injury has resulted in a temporary or permanent disability of the worker, they are entitled to the benefit of job accommodation. The employer has to reasonably accommodate the worker. This may include assigning tasks that are convenient for the worker to perform, providing a reasonable seating arrangement and facilities so that the worker can perform their job with ease, etc.
- Other specific benefits: The worker can also be entitled to other circumstantial benefits, depending on the severity of their knee injury.
| Type of Compensation Benefit | Amount |
| Medical Bills | $20,000 – $25,0000 |
|
66 2/3% of the average wage of the worker |
| Vocational Benefits | 66 2/3% of the average wage of the worker |
Detailed Steps for Filing a Knee Injury Claim
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1
Get a proper medical checkup for diagnosis of the type of knee injury, severity, treatment expenses, resting and recovery period, etc.
Step 2
Timely report the injury to your employer.
Step 3
Gather the required documentation i.e. medical report, bills, footage of the accident (if available), and the statement of any fellow employees present at the time of the accident.
Step 4
Seek legal advice from an expert knee injury attorney to weigh your legal remedies regarding how much is a knee injury worth to workers comp in your case.
Step 5
File your compensation claim timely, and make sure all the necessary documents are complete and attached properly.
Step 6
Do regular follow-ups with your doctor to track and document the recovery process.
Step 7
Regularly follow up on your claim request so that if any additional information is required you can timely provide it.
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Prevalence of Knee Injuries in the Workplace
National Safety Council stats show that in 2021-2022 knee injury is one of the most prevalent workplace and DAFW injuries, especially in the category of workers’ comp meniscus tear settlement. According to these statistics, approximately 138,710 knee injury-related DAFW cases were reported in 2021-2022.
How Our Knee Injury Attorneys Can Assist You
The most challenging aspect of the post-knee injury accident is to ensure you get the workers’ compensation as early as possible. You wouldn’t want to endure the extra hassle and tension of not getting paid in addition to your physical pain due to the injury. Our expert knee injury attorneys in Kansas City will get the claim process kick-started for you, ensuring that the claim has all the correct and complete documents attached to it but also make necessary follow-ups and negotiate and represent your interests, where needed. For example, if your injury urgently requires a knee replacement operation, our attorneys will ensure that the knee replacement workers comp settlement is negotiated with the insurance company as soon as possible.
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