If you have been injured and cracked your ribs while at work, it can be a great burden on you, particularly if to ensure a quick recovery you need to take time off work. The first thing you probably consider is how you are going to manage financially, especially in those situations where you didn’t know you were going to be injured. These injuries are common, especially on construction sites where workers have to work off scaffolding or ladders to get the job done but at times miss their footing and fall. How a Cracked Rib Injury Might Lead to a Workers’ Comp. Claim Fortunately, in most states, the majority of workers are eligible to claim workers’ compensation. If you have been diagnosed with cracked ribs after falling off some scaffolding while in the course of your job, workers’ compensation may help to cover you for any lost wages and medical treatment. Construction workers, for instance, may earn between $15.34 and $29.36 per hour. This works out to be in salary terms around $31,910 per year but could reach as much as $61,070. The Accidents That Could Cause Cracked Ribs If you fall off a ladder or scaffolding and crack one rib or more the sharp end of a rib in the first three ribs at the top of the rib cage may rupture an aorta or other important blood vessel. If one of the middle ribs is cracked leaving a jagged end this could puncture a lung. These are serious injuries which sometimes can be fatal. In most cases, cracked ribs will usually heal on their own in a month or two. Pain relievers such as anti-inflammatory drugs can make it far easier to breathe normally. High Numbers of Workplace Injuries Are Reported As Cracked Ribs Injuries like the occurrence of cracked ribs make up a large number of workplace injuries which in turn result in many work days lost because of the injury. Billions of dollars in compensation are paid annually due to cracked ribs. Cost Of A Cracked Rib There are many ways you could suffer an injury that results in a cracked rib. A cracked rib is a painful injury that requires rest, and it can limit your movement and activities for a while. It can take six weeks or longer to completely heal. A hard hit to the chest or side could cause a cracked rib, and sometimes, other injuries are suffered at the same time. A cracked rib will not require surgery, but will require time off work, pain medications, and sometimes, your physician may prescribe a simple device to help encourage deep breathing. Medical care can be expensive, especially when someone doesn’t have adequate medical insurance. The costs of care vary from one state to another, and of course, the severity of the injury and patient needs affect the overall costs. News reports indicated that an uninsured man was billed $12,000 for medical treatment of a broken rib at San Francisco General Hospital. When you suffer a cracked rib, associated medical costs will include: The initial emergency room or urgent care visit Follow-up physician visits Medication expenses Workers’ compensation will cover the costs of your medical care. Usually, your employer’s workers’ comp insurer will have a network of medical providers. You will need to choose a provider from that list in order to have your medical bills paid. If you don’t see a copy of that list posted in a visible area, then ask your supervisor or a manager about the list and ask for a copy of it so you can make sure you seek care from an approved provider. In addition, there are costs associated with your inability to work. Workers’ compensation will cover about two-thirds of your lost wages. Calculating The Cost Of A Cracked Rib When you pursue a workers’ compensation claim, you will want to make sure you claim all your losses that are permissible in a workplace injury case. Workers’ compensation laws vary from one state to another, but the coverage remains rather consistent. Medical bills should be covered by your employer. Be sure to include any and all medical costs, such as doctor visits, hospitalizations, surgical procedures, specialist visits, prescriptions and pharmacy costs, any medical devices, and so forth. Also, consider if you will need future medical care. Sometimes additional doctor’s visits, physical therapy, or other treatment may be necessary. Make sure your doctor notes all that and includes those costs in your totals, so you can make sure you have the financial means to cover those costs as well. Add those totals onto your past medical expenses. Maintain thorough documentation that shows your missed work and lost wages. Workers’ compensation will pay about two-thirds of your lost wages. Any future missed work should also be considered. Ask your doctor if you will be missing work in the future because of your injury. You can be in a real bind if you don’t ask for compensation to cover future lost wages. What You Will Be Paid In A Workers’ Comp Payment For Cracked Ribs If you are entitled to workers’ compensation you will be paid a certain percentage of your present income which is usually up to two thirds, plus whatever it costs in medical treatment. There are certain situations which may occur due to cracked ribs which include: Temporary Total Disability where your cracked ribs stop you from undertaking your job for a short period of time. Permanent Total Disability is unlikely to occur with cracked ribs but it might happen if your cracked ribs have injured your organs so seriously that you can never return to work. Temporary Partial Disability occurs when the cracked rib injury is less severe, and you can return to work quickly at a reduced capacity. Permanent Partial Disability takes place when you are unable to undertake the duties related to certain parts of your job due to cracked ribs. Average Compensation for Broken Ribs It is not possible to state the average compensation for a broken rib injury as there are many different variables that affect the potential payment. Generally, your employer’s insurer will pay for all medical treatment as well as up to two thirds of lost wages as long as there is clear evidence that the injury happened while at work and correct procedures for reporting the injury took place. Most rib injuries do not need extensive surgery, but they can be very painful and in some cases, an examination by a medical professional may detect internal injuries to body organs which could complicate recovery. In most cases, broken ribs would need to be examined carefully first to assess the extent of the damage. X-rays would reveal the degree of severity. Doctor’s fees, x-rays, hospital visits and medication would the main items that would be included in a workers’ compensation claim as well as the time lost while being treated and recovering. Your employer’s insurer may determine which medical provider you use or provide a list of providers to choose from. In some cases, you may have to use the preferred doctor initially for an assessment to confirm the severity of the rib injury, then you may be able to use your own choice of medical provider to get treatment including medication. Another factor that could affect the average compensation for broken ribs is how much the injury impacts on your ability to return to work. If you have an office job, for example, you may still be able to return to work while recovering from the injury, while a more physically demanding job may prevent you from returning to work until your rib injuries are more fully healed. You Will Need To Gather Evidence to Prove Your Claim Your doctor will undertake diagnostic tests such as getting x-rays completed to confirm you are suffering from cracked ribs. One of the most compelling and important pieces of evidence for your cracked ribs is your x-rays of it. If there is indeed damage to your ribs, the x-ray will most certainly back up your claim. You may even want to ask if your attorney if it is worth getting a statement from the radiologist who administered the x-ray as well. Bone injuries like a cracked ribs is much more easier to prove because of the x-rays showing the damage. You should get your x-ray showing the cracked ribs and use this as evidence when filing a workers’ comp claim. Keep all your medical invoices and receipts so that a realistic compensation payment can be calculated. If you have any evidence of the work related injury, such as witnesses who can confirm that your injury was caused by an incident while you were working, you should make sure that they make written and signed statements confirming what they saw. How Long To Get A Workers’ Comp Settlement To get your settlement underway in a timely manner, you will want to be sure to file all paperwork required for the claims process in a timely manner. You will also want to provide thorough documentation that supports your claim, showing lost wages and medical expenses. Also, provide evidence of any future expenses associated with your cracked rib, such as the need for future doctor visits and medical care and the need to miss work in the future, such as for future doctor’s office visits or for physical therapy appointments. Once a settlement has been negotiated with the workers’ comp insurer, all the parties involved must sign off on the agreement. The signed document is then sent to a judge. Depending on the judge’s caseload and how busy the court has been, it may take several days or even two or three weeks for the court to sign off on the settlement and agree to it. After the judge has approved it, there is a maximum time limit the insurance company has to issue the check. Usually, they have anywhere from 14 to 30 days to send the check to your workers’ compensation attorney. The settlement check will be sent to your lawyer. If there are any outstanding medical bills, they will be paid first. Next, any legal costs advanced by your attorney to cover the cost of pursuing the claim will be paid. These costs might include the costs of acquiring medical records. Next, your lawyer will receive his or her fee. Workers’ comp lawyers work on a contingency basis, so they get a percentage – which is usually 20 percent – of your settlement. The rest of the funds from the check will be distributed to you, so you can use them as you need to cover your basic living expenses. You should consider any future expenses and put aside funds for those since you will not receive any additional compensation for your claim after the settlement has been reached. When to Return to Work After a Rib Fracture Your doctor will have undertaken diagnostic tests such as getting x-rays completed to confirm you are suffering from cracked ribs. The most important piece of evidence to confirm you have a cracked rib is the x-ray results. A cracked rib is a painful injury that requires rest, and it can limit your ability to move normally and take part in daily activities including those which are work related, for quite a long time. Even though an injury that has caused a cracked rib doesn’t usually require surgery, you will still need to take some time off work to fully recover it may take six weeks or even longer to heal completely. It is likely your physician will prescribe pain management medication until your rib fracture has healed and you are pain free. You should consider the following to help you decide when you should return to work after a rib fracture. If your job requires manual, physical labor, frequent or sudden movements, then it would likely be best to wait a longer time before returning to work just to be on the safe side and avoid exacerbating the rib fracture. For a sedentary job, you may find it easier to return to work sooner as there is less pressure put on your healing cracked rib. It is important to follow treatment and recovery provided by your doctor and doing this will help you get your WC entitlements. You May Need To Speak To an Attorney If you have never filed a workers’ comp. claim before and think you lack the confidence to file a fruitful claim, or you have little or no idea how to calculate the right amount that will cover you fully for painful cracked ribs, you should talk to an experienced workers’ comp. attorney. He or she will understand your problem and will know how much workers’ compensation you are likely to receive. Additional Resources Cracked Ribs and Workers' Compensation
