A work-related injury may result in lost wages, medical bills or other damages. In order to help injured workers fund these potentially significant costs, the state of Illinois requires employers to provide workers’ compensation benefits. Specifically, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation and Occupational Diseases Act requires employers to insure against injuries that arise out of and in the course of employment. Among the many questions that eligible workers may have for our Illinois work accident lawyers is how long they can receive workers’ compensation in Illinois.
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Four categories
The length of time that an injured worker may be eligible to receive workers’ compensation in Illinois depends on the nature of the injury suffered. The type of injury determines the amount of time the worker will be off the job, any residual impact on his ability to work upon returning and the amount of the medical costs of the injury. The Workers’ Compensation and Occupational Diseases Act specifies the following four categories of disability that affect how long an injured worker may receive workers’ compensation:
- Permanent total disability – PTD refers to cases in which the worker is not expected to regain the capacity to perform work. This condition implies the need to provide compensation for permanently lost wages.
- Permanent partial disability – PPD is similar to PTD, in the sense that benefits will extend for a long period. The difference is that the injury in question still allows for some work to be performed. In this case, benefits may compensate for only the earning power that was lost, even though some earning power remains.
- Temporary total disability – TTD applies to cases in which a worker is incapacitated for some time but is expected to recover and regain the ability to work. The length of compensation in these cases depends on the duration of time away from work.
- Temporary partial disability – TPD fits cases of workers who sustain a work-related injury that only temporarily limits the ability to perform work.
Each of these four categories uniquely determines multiple dimensions of compensation, including the length of time over which benefits are received. Crystal Lake work accident lawyers advocate for clients to obtain the appropriate category designation, compensation level and duration of benefits.
Legal help
Employers and insurers have financial incentives to resist workers’ compensation claims, especially those that appear to be long-term in nature. For this reason, injured workers may wish to consult with McHenry work accident lawyers.