In a decision involving a claim for Massachusetts workers’ compensation benefits brought by an employee who suffered from a pre-existing medical condition, the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents, Reviewing Board affirmed the administrative judge’s denial of benefits. The Board focused on the judge’s determination that the employee’s injury had not…
Workers’ compensation benefits are provided to employees injured in the course and scope of employment, without requiring that they prove fault for an accident or a workplace medical condition. This means that the employer need not have directly caused the injury to the worker. Boston workers’ compensation claimants are entitled…
Injured workers, like others dealing with pain, may turn to painkillers such as OxyContin and Vicodin to alleviate their symptoms. Throughout the nation, and particularly in Massachusetts, workers’ compensation systems are attempting to stop the overprescription of these powerful painkillers to workers. This reflects an effort to help workers avoid…
The Health and Safety Act of 1970 makes clear that employers must provide all workers a safe place to work, free from potential hazards. In a recent press release, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) determined that a Massachusetts company did not notify the agency, as…
A recent decision by the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents, Review Board, held that an Administrative Judge’s decision awarding benefits to an injured employee must be recommitted and reassigned to a different judge, based on the judge’s misconceptions and mischaracterization of the medical evidence. The Board agreed in this appeal…
Recently, the Reviewing Board for the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents affirmed an award of benefits to an employee for her physical and psychiatric disabilities. The Board made clear that this was a Massachusetts workers’ compensation case involving both orthopedic and psychiatric sequela, and therefore there was a causal connection between…
Workers who are injured in the Boston area and are not independent contractors have the right to pursue a workers’ compensation claim. As a workers’ compensation claimant (or injured worker), the process of securing benefits is set forth by guidelines made clear by the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA).…
Workers throughout Massachusetts seeking to report an unsafe work environment are protected from retaliation by their employer. Retaliation can take different forms and includes any “adverse action” taken against workers, such as employees filing a Massachusetts workers’ compensation claim. This action may include firing, demoting, denying benefits, threatening, or reducing…
The Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act (WCA) provides benefits for workers who have suffered harm in the course and scope of employment. Industrial injuries, which include physical harm as well as diseases or illnesses, range in severity, and they can cause a temporary disability as well as permanent harm. As a…
Massachusetts workers’ compensation lawyers are familiar with the tactics and strategies used by employers and their insurance companies to deny benefits to injured employees. Often, medical treatment and initial diagnoses serve as the foundation for challenging an injured employee’s claim for benefits. The insurer selects a doctor for an initial…