In most cases, you will receive medical benefits – your medical bills related to your work injury will be paid – for up to 400 weeks. Usually these benefits end when your treatment is completed, or your doctor believes there is nothing else they can do. Sometimes this is referred to as “maximum medical improvement,” or MMI.
In order to receive these medical benefits, you must go to a healthcare provider approved by your employer. For this reason, the HR department is expected to provide you with a list of six doctors to choose from, or the contact info for a Worker’s Compensation Manage Care Organization (WC/MCO). If your company’s HR supervisor can’t or won’t provide you with this information, or seems unwilling to help you access your medical benefits, call a workers’ compensation lawyer right away. Even if you have received this information from the HR department, make sure that you also report your injury in writing to your supervisor in case they forget that it happened.