Kane County Workers' Compensation Lawyers
Experienced Workers' Comp Medical Benefits Attorneys in Aurora, IL
Generally speaking, an employer must pay for all reasonable and necessary medical bills associated with work injuries. This obligation contains several limitations. The specific medical treatment must be reasonable, meaning that it must be generally recognized as valid by medical science. The treatment must also be necessary, meaning that its use under the circumstances and at the time must be considered appropriate by medical science.
In addition, the amount an employer must pay for medical care is limited to the charges set by the workers’ compensation fee schedule. The medical provider must accept the fee schedule amount and doctors and hospitals cannot bill the injured worker for balances left over after the fee schedule payment is made.
Finally, the employer is only obligated to pay the bill if it comes from a medical provider the worker was authorized to see. In general, injured workers are entitled to pick one physician for which the employer must pay. Charges from other physicians must be paid only if those physicians are in a chain of referral from the first one or if the subsequent physician is on a physician list approved by the employer. If the employer has not established a medical provider program, the employee can pick a second physician for which the employer must pay. The employer’s obligation to pay for medical bills exists for the lifetime of the worker unless that obligation is waived as part of a settlement.
For a more detailed description of medical benefits, see the Illinois Handbook on Workers’ Compensation and Occupational Diseases.
The well-being of an injured worker demands prompt and appropriate medical care. The failure to authorize or pay for treatment violates the law and requires swift and sure legal action. Once injured, don’t be victimized a second time by insurance companies that ignore the needs and rights of you and your family. Helping injured people to stand tall and fight for justice is our life’s work.
At Kinnally Flaherty Krentz Loran Hodge & Masur P.C., we exist to protect your rights and to hold employers accountable. We understand the burden work injuries impose and the added hardship delayed or denied benefits create. Contact us today at 630-907-0909 for a free consultation regarding your workers’ compensation case. From our offices in Aurora, Illinois, we represent injured people in workers’ compensation cases throughout Northern Illinois, including Chicago, Aurora, Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles, Oswego, Sugar Grove, Kane County, Kendall County, DeKalb County, LaSalle County, and Will County.
