Work with a Pennsylvania Bone Fracture Attorney Who Understands How to Recover Disability Insurance Benefits
Broken bones are often considered to be injuries that heal fully with relatively minor medical intervention and short-term inconvenience. The reality, however, is that bone fractures can often be extremely complex injuries that require multiple rounds of surgery and that never completely heal. Broken bones frequently lead to long-term disabilities.
These injuries should qualify professionals to receive benefits under their disability insurance policies, but insurance companies often deny claims or delay the process by demanding additional evidence without explaining what will satisfy their requirements. When they do approve a claim involving broken bones, they may try to attach unrealistic expectations for recovery or undervalue the loss of income caused by the injuries.
A Pennsylvania bone fracture attorney at Seltzer & Associates can help professionals obtain the full benefits they are entitled to under the terms of their policies. We have focused our practice on disability insurance recovery for decades, so we know how insurance companies operate and the evidence needed to successfully present a claim without unnecessary delays.
Types of Bone Fractures
Broken bones are classified medically in different ways. When a fractured bone breaks the skin, the break is called a compound fracture. A fracture that does not pierce the skin is referred to as a “simple” fracture, although that term can be misleading because simple fractures are often quite complex.
Bone fractures are also classified by the pattern of breakage, the cause of the fracture, and the location in the body. Some of the most common patterns include:
- Breaks that follow a straight line, which include transverse fractures and oblique fractures
- Breaks with an uneven fracture line, which include spiral fractures and greenstick fractures
- Breaks that occur in two or more places, leaving segments of bone totally separated
- Breaks that shatter bones into multiple irregular pieces
- Hairline fractures that cause bones to crack but not fully break
- Avulsion fractures where a piece of bone attached to a ligament pulls away from the main part of the bone
Severe fractures often occur due to trauma such as a fall or motor vehicle accident. Other fractures can be caused by overuse or other factors.
The Impact of Bone Fractures on Professional Roles
Some fractures heal during a recovery period of about 2 months after which an individual may attempt a return to work. Other bone fractures may require years of treatment to reach full recovery, and in still other situations, abilities may be permanently limited due to the residual effects of broken bones.
Fractures involving the spine or hands can be particularly disruptive for all types of professionals. Spinal injuries often result in extreme chronic pain that interferes with the cognitive functional capacity of skilled professionals. It may not even be possible, for instance, for a psychologist with back pain to sit comfortably while speaking with patients or for an executive to attend meetings, engage in business travel, efficiently dictate correspondence or review reports and analyze data.
Professionals who perform physical tasks, such as chiropractors, dentists, and veterinarians, may have a very limited range of motion or stamina for performing procedures. They may have to permanently limit what they can do or how long they can do it.
Insurance companies are often unwilling to accept the permanent disabilities that result from bone fractures, so they frequently deny claims for benefits or expect a professional to recover full functionality that is simply not possible. An experienced Pennsylvania bone fracture attorney at Seltzer & Associates can help professionals acquire the medical and vocational evidence necessary to demonstrate eligibility for benefits.
FAQs About Bone Fractures and Disability Insurance Claims
What steps can a professional take to pursue disability benefits?
When bone fractures impact a professional’s ability to perform critical tasks of their profession, it is important to review the terms of disability insurance policies. An application for short-term disability insurance, if available, should be filed as soon as possible, but the benefits provided under this type of policy will typically be discontinued within 6 months or less, so it is important to prepare a claim for long-term disability benefits. This will be an entirely separate process, likely to be more heavily contested by the insurance company. The legal team at Seltzer & Associates can guide you through the process of filing a long-term disability claim, including the gathering of evidence and preparing the right arguments to demonstrate that you have satisfied all the requirements under your policy.
If I can work but at a reduced capacity, do I still have a claim for disability benefits?
Many disability insurance policies pay benefits when a residual or partial disability prevents professionals from earning as much as they did before the onset of the disability. A Pennsylvania bone fracture attorney on our team could review your policy to assess your coverage and help you recover benefits to make up for the reduced earning capacity resulting from your disability.
What if my injury requires surgery and hardware?
Broken bones frequently result in the need for surgery, and a part of the process often requires implanting hardware to facilitate the healing process. This can frequently lead to complications. Insurance companies do not factor these aspects of treatment into the algorithms that they use to assess benefit claims, so they wrongfully deny or limit benefits. The circumstances may then require appropriate legal action to get the claim properly administered.
How long do I have to file a disability claim for a broken bone?
For private disability insurance claims, the requirements and deadlines are generally subject to the terms of the policy and the applicable laws. There are frequently situations where deadlines can be extended due to the specific circumstances associated with an injury. A bone fracture attorney at Seltzer & Associates could review the policy terms and help ensure you comply with any applicable deadlines. If you have missed a deadline, we will work on your behalf to remedy the adverse situation in your favor.
When a Disability Interferes with Your Ability to Work, Find Out How We Can Assist
After you’ve paid premiums on private individual or group disability insurance to protect yourself in case of emergency, it is exasperating and disappointing to learn that the insurance company is not willing to pay disability benefits you may be entirely reliant upon. It is a recurrent pattern, and it is why we founded Seltzer & Associates. We focus on helping professionals put their lives back together after disabling conditions interfere with their ability to work.
Whether you have yet to start the claims process or you’ve already filed and received a denial or termination, a Pennsylvania bone fracture attorney on our team may be able to help. We invite you to schedule a free consultation by calling us at 888-699-4222 or contacting us online.