Matt Fendon Law Group Legal Blog

Disability tip of the day — alcoholism and drug addiction may not be considered disabling impairments by the Social Sec Admin. However, alcoholics and drug addicts may be found disabled for some other condition as long as the alcoholism/drug addiction is not “a contributing factor material to the determination of disability.”

Here’s your Monday Morning Worker’s Comp Tip — If you are traveling to or from work and are injured, the general rule is that your employer is not responsible for the injuries. There are several exceptions to this rule, however, including if you’re on the employer premises, driving a company vehicle, traveling between employer premises,…

Here’s Medicare 101: Part A is Hospital Insurance, Part B is “supplemental medicare insurance benefits” (this includes coverage for office visits, etc) and Part D, which was passed under President George W Bush, is the prescription drug benefit. Now next time you’re listening/watching the news, and Medicare is the topic, you’ll have a better understanding…

Construction Workers Take Notice! Even if you’re a subcontractor or work for a subcontractor, you may be able to establish a compensable worker’s comp claim against the general contractor (GC) if the GC retains control and the work is a part/process of the trade of business of the employer. This is called the “statutory employer…

Here’s bad news for Monday. Social Security Disability could be drained by 2017. Applications are up by 700,000 since 2008!! http://www.ibtimes.com/welcome…

Idiopathic Falls – if someone has a heart attack, seizure, or fainting spell while at work, and is injured, the only way that injury is covered under worker’s comp is if the employment aggravated the effects of the fall. The best example is passing out onto a pallet jack. If this happens, any injury the…

There is a five-month waiting period for Social Security Disability benefits. That is, if someone is deemed disabled in January, they would have to wait until June for the benefits to kick in. This only applies to SS Disability and not Social Security Supplemental Income (SSI).

The “bunkhouse rule” applies when you as an employee live on your work’s premises. If you meet the requirements of the rule, and are injured in any way, you most likely will be eligible for worker’s compensation benefits. Please let us know if you have any questions about this or any other issues involving worker’s…

If you’ve applied for Social Security Disability benefits, been denied twice, and have requested a hearing, you may qualify for an expedited hearing if any of the following apply: your illness is terminal, or you are without food, medicine or shelter, or you are suicidal or homicidal.

Whether a recreational activity – a company picnic, sports team, etc. – is within the course of employment is dependent on the facts. Recreational activities on lunch breaks are almost always within the course of employment. Therefore, if you do get injured while engaging in a recreational activity, you should file for WC benefits.