Author Archives: Jay Butchko
The Three Faces of Medical Bills in a Job Injury Claim
The average injury-related medical bill in Florida usually exceeds $40,000. The average cost of medical treatment is like the average cost of a motor vehicle. New vehicles vary so much in terms of size, options, and other features that the “average” cost is almost meaningless. A minivan costs a lot more than a motorcycle…. Read More »
Supreme Court Closes Fair Debt Practices Loophole
Affirming a lower court ruling, the Florida Supreme Court agreed that injured workers deserve additional protection from medical creditors. Two providers, Sheridan Radiology Services of Pinellas, Inc., a subsidiary of Sheridan Healthcare, Inc. (Sheridan);and Laboratory Corporation of America and Laboratory Corporation Of America Holdings (Labcorp), treated a woman for work-related injuries. The workers’ compensation… Read More »
Common Occupational Diseases In Florida
Falls and other immediate trauma injuries make up most workers’ compensation claims in Florida. An occupational disease is a work injury that develops over the course of more than one shift. Some of the more common occupational diseases are outlined below. For a Tampa workers’ compensation lawyer, these claims have some special issues. For… Read More »
What Are ‘Reasonably Necessary’ Medical Bills?
This question is a little harder to answer in Florida than in some other states. Job injury victims don’t have the right to choose their own doctor in the Sunshine State. An insurance company or employer-provided doctor often has a much different view about what’s reasonably necessary than an independent physician. More on that… Read More »
Priciest Job Injury Diagnostic Tests
Diagnostic tests are perhaps the most important and most expensive part of job injury medical treatment. Uninsured patients usually pay inflated prices for these tests, while insured patients, including workers’ comp patients, receive substantial discounts. Frequently, providers try to bill job injury victims for the difference between the inflated and discounted price. This technique… Read More »
Lawmakers Mull Workers’ Compensation Prescription Drug Changes
A proposed new Department of Financial Services rule would limit prescription drug reimbursement for workers’ compensation medical providers in the Sunshine State. If enacted, the new rule would prohibit doctors from dispensing prescription drugs without prior, written authorization. Unless these authorization requests follow specific rules, the insurance company may deny them. Absent unexpected developments,… Read More »
Workers’ Compensation And Lost Wage Replacement
Job injuries are financially devastating to most families. Most Americans have practically nothing in their savings accounts. Making matters worse, a job injury victim is a family’s only or primary breadwinner. The inability to earn a paycheck is also very hard emotionally on job injury victims. The inability to provide for their families often… Read More »
What To Expect In A Workers’ Compensation Claim
Florida and most other states enacted workers’ compensation laws around 1910, when management and labor struck the Grand Bargain. Management provided no-fault insurance that covered economic losses, and workers gave up their right to sue in court. Back in the day, workers only needed to file paperwork to obtain these benefits. Now, the system… Read More »
Guilty Plea In Employer Workers’ Comp Fraud Case
A Lakeland construction company owner faces up to twenty years in federal prison after he admitted to multiple workers’ compensation fraud counts. According to court documents, the 52-year-old man had agreements with contractors and subcontractors to use workers employed by him at construction sites and these workers were often undocumented immigrants who were actually… Read More »
Evidence In Drowsy Truck Driver Crash Claims
Recently, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has repeatedly watered down key HOS (hours of service) requirements. These rules usually include daily driving limits, usually 11 hours, and weekly driving limits, usually 70 hours. These rules also include mandatory break periods. Because of these dilutions, more drowsy truck drivers are on the road than… Read More »
