Florida Injury Attorney Blawg

In Giraldo v. AHCA, the Florida Supreme Court addressed the vexing question regarding whether the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) may lien the future medical expenses portion of a Florida Medicaid recipient’s tort recovery. In an opinion favoring individuals who have sustained personal injuries through the fault of third parties, the court held that…

Every type of legal matter has a time bar to when legal proceedings can be maintained to address a dispute. The time bar is known as the statute of limitations. The Florida workers’ compensation statute of limitations is contained in section 440.19, Florida Statutes. Especially in the area of workers’ compensation, the courts have formulated…

For the most part, workers’ compensation insurance companies limit their payment of medical expenses to conditions caused by work-related accidents. In some instances, however, carriers may be required to cover expenses for unrelated conditions. The primary instances are when (1) diagnostic testing is required to determine the compensability of an injury, (2) an unrelated condition…

Under Florida law, only individuals meeting the definition of “Survivors” under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act may be compensated for losses resulting from the death of another person. (See this blog, Florida Wrongful Death Survivors Chart, for a handy reference to benefits available under the Act.) Under section 768.18(1) of the Act, survivors are defined as:…

The current definition of “attendant care,” which is not significantly different than in past versions of the statute, is as follows: Florida Statute 440.13(1)(b). “Attendant care” means care rendered by trained professional attendants which is beyond the scope of household duties. Family members may provide nonprofessional attendant care, but may not be compensated under this…

Florida Statute 440.02(1), which is contained in the definitions section of Florida’s workers’ compensation system, defines “Accident” as “an unexpected or unusual event or result that happens suddenly.” Can an injury resulting from an event that is not unexpected or unusual be compensable under Florida’s workers’ compensation system? Yes. In Bryant v. David Lawrence Mental…

Florida’s workers’ compensation system has two distinct time bars for filing petitions to seek benefits. Most people are at least vaguely aware of one of the concepts, known as the statute of limitations (SOL). Florida’s workers’ compensation SOL is enunciated in section 440.19, Florida Statutes. The other time bar is laid out in Florida Statute…

Individuals receiving Florida workers’ compensation benefits for serious medical conditions must give deep thought and consideration to the role of Medicare in their future medical plans. This is especially so for those who are eligible or soon to be eligible for Medicare. Because workers’ compensation has primary responsibility [for covering medical care associated with work-related…

Nothing is more important to a workers’ compensation claimant than being under the care of a fair-minded doctor. Unfortunately, realizing this fundamental right under Florida’s workers’ compensation system can be elusive. This is because Florida law offers employers/workers’ compensation insurance companies (E/C) the opportunity to select all of the injured worker’s treating doctors, 440.13, Florida…

This previous blog — Florida Workers’ Compensation Permanent Total Disability (PTD) and the Social Security Disability (SSD) Offset — explains how workers’ compensation benefits and Social Security Disability benefits can offset each other. Today’s blog explains what happens when the workers’ compensation case settles. Federal law (42 U.S.C sec. 424a) and Florida law allow workers’…