One thing my clients often ask me is How can I get Permanent Total Disability under Indiana Worker’s Compensation Law? Or, Do I get PTD if I am badly injured?
Permanent Total Disability, or PTD, is reserved for injured Indiana employees whose injuries are so severe that they can no longer work in any employment, and their inability to work is because of a work injury. Some people may think that if they are unable to go back to their previous job, or make the same money in another job, that they are disabled under worker’s compensation law. While that seems reasonable, unfortunately that is not the way Indiana law works.
It is not enough to simply say that you are disabled. In a worker’s compensation case, just like a personal injury case, you have to provide actual evidence of disability. Most of the time, this requires a doctor’s opinion that you have permanent restrictions because of your on the job injury. They must be severe work restrictions, probably something like sedentary duty or light duty only. Then, you must have the opinion of a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, who will look at important factors including not only your physical restrictions, but also conduct things like a transferable skills analysis and a labor market survey. If you go to your worker’s compensation hearing alone and claim you are disabled, you will probably not win without evidence like this.
If you suffered a work injury and you are not working, and if you think that even after the doctor releases you that you still will not be able to work, you may need to speak with an experienced Evansville Indiana and Southern Indiana Worker’s Compensation Attorney like Charles Hewins to find out your rights.
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