(from the November 2008 newsletter)
Do you know what to do when one of your employees ask to file a workers’ compensation claim for an injury on the job? And do you complete everything in a timely manner? Filling out the correct paperwork, taking the correct steps and turning it in on time can save you money and frustration.
- If your employee has received or plans to receive medical attention, then you need to fill out your state injury report form; in Oregon, it is the 801 form. In some states, the form is generated by the doctor and sent to the employer after initial treatment. You then need to send that form to your insurance carrier within 3 days of your knowledge of the claim. In states where the form is generated by the treating doctor, they will send it to the insurance carrier. Sending the injury form late can add to your claim cost.
- Make sure you have a medical release from your employee so that you know if they can come back to work and if there are any restrictions to the duties they will be able to perform.
- Work with your employee to bring them back to work after their injury. In most situations, even if they have been given restrictions to their duties, they can do their job with the modifications. Providing them modified work after an injury saves cost on the claim and keeps a valuable employee working and productive.
- Stay in contact with the employee and up to date on their situation and the changes in their restrictions. Keep communication open with them about their claim.
- Stay in contact with your insurance carrier as well on the status of the claim. Make sure to provide them with all the information they need to process the claim for you.
- At your next safety meeting, talk about the injury (without naming the employee) and discuss how a similar injury can be prevented in the future.
- If you have further questions or need assistance, contact a Xenium Representative or your Workers’ Compensation Insurance Carrier.