Injured Workers Can Collect Benefits Despite Preexisting Conditions

The workers’ compensation process was designed to be less adversarial than a personal injury lawsuit. There is no consideration of fault in workers’ compensation. With few exceptions, an employee who is injured on the job is entitled to receive workers’ compensation benefits no matter how the injury occurred. However, insurance providers who are focused on their own bottom line look for ways to deny claims or minimize the amount they pay out.

An injured worker who files a claim can expect to have his or her medical background thoroughly investigated for, among other things, preexisting medical conditions that can disqualify a claim. At Cullen Legal in Bristol, we advocate for injured workers in Bucks County and surrounding areas whose claims have been denied or undervalued due to preexisting medical conditions. We also assist many injured workers with their initial claim, which is an especially good idea if preexisting injuries exist. Robert Cullen’s experience as an insurance defense lawyer handling the other side of workers’ comp cases helps him prepare strong cases that withstand intense scrutiny.

Structuring Cases Involving Preexisting Medical Conditions

A medical condition that existed prior to your work-related injury may affect the amount of benefits you receive. But many claims are wrongfully denied because of preexisting conditions and injured workers give up when they should litigate. While it’s true that recovering benefits for a work-related injury or illness can be complicated by a preexisting medical condition, at the very least, your employer is still required to reimburse you for all of your medical costs for any new work-related injury.

The key component in many of these cases is presenting medical evidence that shows an injured worker’s preexisting injury or medical condition was substantially aggravated by the work-related activity or accident that led to the claim. For example, a worker may have been treated for a herniated disc two years ago, but was not experiencing any pain since receiving medical treatment. If that worker injures his or her back lifting heavy boxes, the worker should be able to receive workers’ compensation benefits for the new injury.

Personal Attention And Commitment Guaranteed

Thorough medical reports are essential to successfully recovering benefits in these cases. Attorney Robert L. Cullen has the experience and knowledge to develop the supporting evidence that is needed to withstand the intense scrutiny from insurance companies.

Our clients are assured of working directly with Robert from the free initial consultation through the resolution of the case. We provide personal attention that larger firms find difficult to match. Call 267-812-5870 or use our online contact form to schedule a free consultation.