Stroke Workers’ Compensation Claims in Orange County

If you suffer a stroke due to your job, our compassionate attorneys are here to help. You will want to collect California benefits meant to help those injured or sickened on the job. We understand your recuperation may be long and difficult, and if we can help you get your medical bills and lost wages paid, we will fight to do so.

Our team could assess your situation, including the circumstances surrounding your stroke. It may have happened at work or just because you are in a high-stress job. There are numerous medical journal articles that relate strokes to stress, working shift work, working at extremes of temperature, and other work exposure.  After a stroke, workers’ compensation claims in Orange County could help you and your family move forward.

What Happens if an Employee Suffers a Stroke at Work?

Orange County and all California employees may suffer a stroke and be eligible for workers’ compensation due to extreme heat and excessive physical labor. It is also possible that a stroke suffered outside the job is related to it, which may be proved by coordinating testimony with the employee’s medical provider. Depending on the severity of the stroke, an employee may be entitled to temporary disability and permanent disability benefits.

The California Labor Code §3700 requires all employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance which covers employees both full and part-time if they are injured or become ill because of a job-related incident. Medical bills and lost wages are paid for a prescribed amount of time, and other benefits may apply, such as retraining if the employee can no longer perform the job related to the injury or illness.

Workers’ Comp Benefits After a Debilitating Stroke

After suffering a stroke due to their job, injured workers’ must be evaluated by a physician to determine how impaired they are and if the impairment is related to the job. Depending on the physician’s findings, California workers’ compensation may provide some or all the following benefits:

  • Medical treatment, including emergency and hospital visits, physicians’ appointments, prescription drugs, diagnostic tests, travel reimbursement, and rehabilitation
  • Temporary disability payments for lost wages if the employee will recover fully from the stroke or at least enough to return to work
  • Permanent disability payments if the stroke restricts the employee from ever returning to work and whose employers do not offer them comparable employment the treating physician believes appropriate
  • Supplemental job displacement voucher which pays for job retraining
  • A return-to-work supplement for employees eligible for supplemental job displacement benefits
  • Death benefits paid to employees’ next of kin if the stroke is fatal

An Orange County lawyer could assist a worker who has suffered a stroke file a claim to receive workers’ compensation benefits if the stroke is job-related.

When a Claim is Denied

Because claims for benefits associated with strokes are more tenuous than an accident on the job, claims administrators may attempt to deny them. This is why a tenacious workers’ compensation attorney should act on an injured employee’s behalf to secure a qualified medical evaluator, file an Application for Adjudication of Claim, and submit a Declaration of Readiness to Proceed to request a court hearing before an administrative judge in the Orange County division.

A judge will schedule a settlement conference which an employee’s attorney will attend to make a case to the judge and claims administrator about why an employee’s stroke is work-related and therefore qualifies for workers’ compensation. If the dispute is not resolved in the worker’s favor, the judge will schedule a trial to be heard before a second, impartial judge, who will render an opinion within 90 days.

Call to File a Workers’ Compensation Claims for a Stroke in Orange County

If you suffered a stroke at work or because you work in a high-stress profession, call our office to schedule a consultation with one of our compassionate and persevering attorneys in our Orange County or one of our other offices to learn what we can do for you. After a job-related stroke, workers’ compensation claims in Orange County could help you receive the benefits you are owed. Call now to get started.