Navigating the Basic Workers Compensation Insurance System

There are two main levels of Workers Compensation Insurance:

• Federal
• State

Federal Programs

The Federal Department of Labor‘s Office of Workers Compensation (OWCP) oversees four major disability compensations:

• Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program
• Federal Employees Compensation Program
• Longshoreman and Harbor Workers Compensation Program
• Black Lung Benefits Program

The OWCP provides wage replacement benefits, medical treatments vocational rehabilitation and other benefits to federal workers injured at work, or compensation to their dependents.

State Employees

If employed by private companies or state and or local government agencies, the state Workers Compensation insurance Office oversees these cases. The result is a wide variety or a slight variation in benefit categories for state recipients of Workers Compensation insurance claims. California has one of the most comprehensive Workers Compensation insurance companies requirements in the country. That is why CA Workers Compensation program is so often used as an example because it does have a wide variety of options for the employer and the employee. Look at the major categories that California provides to its recipients in its CA Workers Compensation program:

Medical Care: Paid for by your employer’s Workers Compensation insurance companies to help you recover from a work-related injury or illness

Temporary Disability Benefits: Payments if you lose wages because your injury prevents you from doing your usual job while recovering

Permanent Disability Benefits: Payments made by your employer’s Workers Compensation insurance companies if you don’t recover completely

Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits (if your injury occurred 2004 of later): Vouchers to help pay for retraining or skill enhancements if you are unable to return to your old job and your employer

Vocational Rehabilitation (if your injury occurred before 2004): Job placement counseling and possibly retraining if you are unable to return to your old job and your employer doesn’t offer other work

Death Benefits: Payments to your spouse, children or other relative
All of these are available through employer’s Workers Compensation insurance companies. These particular ones are available through the CA Workers Compensation insurance companies.
When researching what type of Workers Compensation insurance companies you want, it is time well spent to look at the CA Workers Compensation requirements.

Privacy of Information

Usually the only information available to the public in the Workers Compensation insurance companies record is information that would not violate the HIPPA rules.
For example, you could see:

• Name
• Case number
• Case status
• Court location
• Employer name
• A description of the events along with dates

Injured workers should be aware that once an Application for Adjudication of Claim is filed the case file information including case documents (work you can do or cannot do and a schedule) may be disclosed under the California Public Records Act.

If you wish to have you information made unavailable to the public, check with your employer’s Workers Compensation Insurance or the State Board. For more information visit: www.e-workerscomp.net.