Under the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Act, an eligible employee may qualify for one of four different types of workers’ compensation benefits at any one time. Depending on the length of time the employee is injured and/or the severity of the injury, he or she may receive a combination of the four types of benefits.
Temporary Total Disability Benefits
Temporary total disability benefits typically apply in the first days and weeks after the work-related injury occurs. An employee who qualifies for benefits and whose injury prevents him or her from working at all will usually receive temporary total disability benefits while he or she recovers from the injury. Once the injury has healed enough that the employee can return to work in at least a partial capacity, the benefits will stop.
Temporary Partial Disability Benefits
If an injured employee has recovered enough to return to work in a partial capacity, but cannot yet return to work in a full capacity, he or she may receive temporary partial disability benefits. These benefits would begin once the employee was back at work, and after the temporary total disability benefits ended.
Permanent Total Disability Benefits
If it is determined that the employee was injured so severely that he or she in unable to ever return to work, even in a limited capacity, then he or she may receive permanent total disability benefits. In Maryland, permanent total disability is usually awarded upon the loss of, or the loss of the use of, any of the following: both arms, both legs, both hands, both feet, both eyes, or a combination of any two (i.e. an arm and a leg, or an arm and a hand, etc). A severe occupational disease that prohibits a qualifying employee from ever returning to work may also result in permanent total disability benefits.
Permanent Partial Disability Benefits
If an employee is injured, but not so severely that he or she is unable to return to work in a limited capacity, the employee may receive permanent partial disability benefits. Any injury that results in residual physical symptoms or disfigurement may qualify for an award of permanent partial disability. Permanent partial disability benefits continue for a specific period of weeks. Maryland law determines how long the employee will receive benefits for a permanent partial disability.
In addition to these monetary benefits, the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Act also requires an employer and its insurance company to pay for all medical treatment related to the work injury.
For assistance obtaining compensation for your workplace injury or for questions regarding the types of workers’ compensation benefits available in Maryland, contact the attorneys of Ingerman & Horwitz, LLP today.
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