Georgia law could result in bigger workers' comp payouts
The change in rate is not likely to have as much of a financial impact on employers and insurers, according to an Atlanta-based attorney.
Payouts for workers’ compensation claims are on the rise after a bill passed earlier this year by the Georgia General Assembly took effect July 1.
The result is an increase in costs for employers and carriers handling the claims, but an Atlanta workers’ comp attorney says he doesn’t think the change will impact most cases.
“The change in rate is not likely to have as much of a financial impact on employers and insurers, as it will on a small subset of injured workers,” said Jeff K. Stinson, partner at Swift, Currie, McGhee & Hiers in Atlanta. “The maximum potential lost-time benefit this provides over the course of a claim is an increase of $20,000 over the maximum allowed 400 weeks.”
Under House Bill 1409, the Georgia General Assembly provided for an increase in the maximum temporary total disability, temporary partial disability and permanent partial disability rates.
Effective July 1, the maximum temporary total disability and permanent partial disability rates increased from $675 per week to $725 per week, while the maximum temporary partial disability rate increased to $483 per week. In addition, the maximum benefit payable to a surviving spouse with no other dependents increased to $290,000.
Stinson said that, because a majority of cases do not result in injured workers getting benefits for the maximum period of time, the change is not likely to have a major impact.
“The increase means that workers earning a minimum of $1,087.50 per week will now get the maximum benefit, which is up from the prior threshold of $1,012.50,” Stinson said. “In my experience, most claimants are earning less than the maximum rate already, and this increase will not impact their claims.”
However, Stinson said people making more than $1,087.50 will get an additional $2,600 in benefits a year.
Impairment ratings
Payments for impairment ratings have also increased following changes to the state’s workers’ compensation law.
“For example, a 10% rating to the whole person previously would result in benefits of $20,250, while it would now result in benefits totaling $21,750,” Stinson said. ”Again, it is not such a sizeable increase in cost for employers and insurers but provides more benefits to the employee.”
Stinson pointed out that Georgia still has one of the lowest rates for workers’ compensation. He said he didn’t anticipate an influx of new litigation driven by the payout increase.
“This is not a sizeable enough of a change that I think it will lead to people pursuing workers’ compensation claims, or retaining attorneys, more than they did in past years,” Stinson said.
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