In Oklahoma, workers' comp. is a financial benefit you may be entitled to if you have an injury or sickness that occurs at work. Workers' comp. is based on a system of "no fault", which means who or what caused your injury doesn’t affect your eligibility to receive workers’ comp. benefits. However, despite this sometimes your employer’s insurer doesn’t believe your case is eligible for workers’ comp. benefits and may deny your claim. If you intend to appeal the decision it’s a good idea to hire a workers’ comp. attorney who knows the process and likely outcome of workers’ comp. appeals and will work on your behalf to get the compensation you are entitled to for your injury or sickness; WC Law in Oklahoma Oklahoma workers’ compensation law is administered by the state Workers’ Compensation Commission (WCC). The sorts of benefits for workers' compensation include cost of medical care, reimbursement of a percentage of loss of earnings for a temporary disability or permanent disability and the cost of retraining if returning to your old job is not an option. Most workers in Oklahoma are eligible for workers’ comp. except Some exceptions do apply which are horticultural and agricultural workers employed by an employer who has no more than a $100,000 payroll for the next year, workers employed by the Federal government and licensed real estate brokers whose earnings are based on commission. By law your employer must provide necessary medical treatment within 5 days of receiving a notice reporting the injury. If this is not provided you may choose your own physician who will bill your employer. If your claim is denied your employer must submit the CC-Form-2A with the reasons given for the denial. Why Workers' Compensation Might Be Denied in Oklahoma There are a number of reasons why a workers’ comp. denial could take place and one of the most likely one is that you have failed to inform your employer within the 30 day deadline. It’s easy to overlook the deadline date and your employer’s insurer will jump on this as an excuse not to release your workers’ comp. entitlements. Also if you miss any physician’s appointments you may have your workers’ comp. benefits stopped quite abruptly. There are other reasons why your claim could be denied such as the fact that your employer doesn’t believe you when you say the injury happened at work. If the injuries occur for example in a parking lot close to the workplace these are typically not covered. Injuries due to drug or alcohol abuse are not covered. You will need testimonies from co-workers to prove what happened at work. If your workers’ comp. application is denied you don’t need to sit back and worry about it as you do have the right to appeal. Appealing a WC Denial in Oklahoma If a WC denial takes place you should file an appeal with the Workers Compensation Commission. A hearing is a formal matter and parties need to have witnesses present and any other evidence which will be reviewed by an administrative law judge. A pre-hearing conference is sometimes required which allows an informal hearing environment to take place between the 2 or more parties which may be able to resolve the dispute before an Administrative Law Judge hears the case at an administrative hearing. The parties are allocated 20 days to discuss and present evidence related to the workers’ comp. case. If you don’t agree with the decision reached by the Administrative Law Judge or Commission you can file a Request for Review with the Commission no more than ten days after receiving the decision. If this fails you can file an appeal with the Supreme Court no longer than twenty days following your receipt of the Commission’s decision. All these hearings can be avoided if an agreement can be reached through mediation. Why You Need an Attorney For a WC Denial in Oklahoma Appeals can be demanding and even quite frightening especially if you feel you are being pressed into accepting the denial because you have a certain feeling of loyalty to your employer. You have to first and foremost think about yourself and your family if you have one. Accepting a denial may mean you have to pay for medical treatment or you will have to find some way of paying your usual bills when you have no income. In order to bring more certainty to your life, talking to an experienced workers’ comp. attorney may help to ensure you get the workers’ comp. entitlement you deserve.
