Philadelphia Back Injury Workers’ Compensation Attorney

Back injuries are one of the most common causes of lost time at work.  These injuries can haunt workers for years, suddenly resulting in a “bad day” where you can do nothing but lay in bed – and that is even with somewhat mild or moderate back injuries.  Others can cause substantial injuries that require surgery and potentially affect your ability to work for the rest of your life.

Our lawyers can help you prove that your back injury was work-related and fight to get you the benefits you deserve.  Because back injuries are often so nebulous and vague, you may need substantial medical records to prove to the insurance carrier and the Workers’ Comp Judge that the back injury was work-related and that it prevents you from being able to work – important factors you need to prove to get benefits.

Call Cardamone Law at (267) 651-7945 for a free case evaluation from our Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyers today.

Are Back Injuries Covered by Workers’ Comp in Philadelphia?

Workers’ Comp is supposed to cover all injuries sustained in the course of an employee’s work.  This should include back injuries, but there are many factors that make back injuries a bit harder to pin down and harder to prove, leading to unjust denial in some cases.  Our Philadelphia back injury Workers’ Comp lawyers can help you lock down the proof needed for a back injury claim through Workers’ Comp, helping you to get the benefits you deserve under your employer’s Workers’ Comp coverage.

Work-Relatedness

In order for any injury to be covered, it has to be work-related.  Any injury that occurs during your work tasks should be work-related and qualify for benefits.  This means injuries from lifting and carrying things, swinging a tool, moving a patient, pulling something, dragging something, or even sitting for long periods could qualify for coverage if those tasks were part of your job tasks.

Insurance Carrier Doubt

Insurance carriers often choose to challenge the work-relatedness of back injuries because back injuries can be sustained in so many different types of accidents or activities.  It is simple enough for an insurance carrier to just say that they do not believe you and to claim that your back injury happened outside of work or on a weekend, and that you are now just trying to pass it off as a work injury.

In these cases, linking your injury to your work tasks often requires statements from coworkers and superiors who witnessed the injury happen, as well as evidence from doctors examining and treating your condition.

Preexisting Back Injuries/Conditions

One thing that might be perceived as a potential problem with back injuries is that many work-related back injuries are acute, sudden injuries that come on top of years of having a “bad back.”  Under Workers’ Compensation rules, it should not make a difference that you had a preexisting condition, as the sudden, acute injury is still work-related.  The starting condition of the worker is not supposed to be a factor in deciding whether or not this injury in this case is work-related in the first place.

However, the resulting harm needs to be weighed against the initial condition of your back.  If you had a “bad back” for years but were still able to work, that might be factored into the determination of when you are healed up enough to return to work and what part this injury played in hurting your capacity to work and earn money.

Proof Needed

As mentioned, it can be hard to prove that a back injury was work-related.  In part, this is because back injuries do not always have obvious, verifiable symptoms.  With something like a slipped disc or a broken back, there will be cold, hard evidence that an X-ray or MRI can show, but with muscle spasms, misalignment that popped back into place, or bulging discs that receded, there might not be as much obvious evidence.  Moreover, back injuries often feel a lot worse for the person experiencing the injury, and the proof available might not show it to be as severe as the injured worker claims it to be.

Because of this, it often takes more medical evidence, examinations, testing, and imaging to prove the injury and show that it is severe enough to keep you from being able to return to work, thus affecting your earning capacity.  Helping you collect this evidence and present it to a Workers’ Comp Judge will be a big part of what our attorneys do to help with your case.

Common Back Injuries Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers Can Help with in Philadelphia

Back injuries are somewhat common, but they can occur from various types of accidents and result in various types of back injuries.  Whether you were hurt in a lifting, carrying, or fall-down accident, a car crash, or even from repetitive strain/repetitive stress, our attorneys can help you claim Workers’ Comp benefits for any of the following back injuries if they were work-related.

Broken Back/Neck

Actually breaking your back is one of the most serious injuries you can sustain.  Often, the proof of injury is more obvious in these cases, and the compensation you can receive is quite high.

Herniated Disc/Bulging Discs

When the tissue between the bones of your vertebrae bulges or sticks out, it can cause impingement on the spinal cord and serious pain, numbness, and loss of sensation or motor function.  This can often require surgical intervention to heal you from the injury.

Nerve Damage

An acute misalignment can cause damage to the spinal cord, even if the bones go back in place.  This resulting nerve damage is often permanent and can lead to long-term disabilities.

Muscle and Soft Tissue Injuries

Pulling a muscle, straining a ligament, or spraining a tendon in your back – especially your low back – can put you on the bench for weeks if your job is physically demanding.  This might require expensive medical care and physical therapy to get you back to working capacity.  In the meantime, you could miss out on a lot of work, especially if your work requires you to be at 100% for lifting, carrying, and other physically demanding tasks.

Call Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers for Back Injuries in Philadelphia Today

Contact Cardamone Law’s Philadelphia back injury Workers’ Comp lawyers at (267) 651-7945 for a free review of your potential case.