What is Major Contributing Cause in Your Florida Workers’ Compensation Case?
The Florida Workers’ Compensation law is very complicated. This law is covered under Chapter 440, Florida Statutes. One aspect of the law concerns “Major Contributing Cause”. Major Contributing Cause or MCC is a defense that your employer or workers’ compensation insurance carrier may use to deny your benefits.
Why is Major Contributing Cause Important?
The specific language of major contributing cause is set forth in Florida Statute 440.09 (1). The statute provides that the employer must pay compensation or furnish benefits if you, the employee, suffer an injury while working. Any accidental compensable injury must be the Major Contribute Cause of any resulting injuries. The term Major Contributing Cause means “the cause which is more than 50% responsible for the injury as compared to all other causes combined for which treatment or benefits are sought.”
What Do I Need to Prove to Establish Major contributing Cause?
The importance of the Major Contributing Cause under the Florida Workers’ Compensation Law is relevant when an employer or workers’ compensation insurance company believes that your injuries may not have resulted from your work accident. As an injured worker, you have the obligation to prove that the cause for the need for treatment is more than 50% related to your work accident. You may ask yourself, if I was injured at work then my injuries should be covered under the Workers’ Compensation Law. This is not always the case if you had any prior existing conditions ,which may have contributed to your injuries.
What are Pre-existing Conditions?
Example? What if , prior to your workers’ compensation injury, you had seen a doctor or you had back pain? If you were diagnosed with degenerative disc disease then this is known as a prior existing condition. Even if you never had any major issues with your back prior to your work accident you still must prove that the injuries you had at work were more than 50% related to the work accident as compared to your prior existing degenerative disc problems to your back.
How do I prove Major Contributing Cause?
After you are injured, the employer or workers’ compensation carrier should authorize a physician to examine and treat your back. If your physician determines that the need for treatment to your back is more than 50% related to your work injury as compared to your pre-existing condition then your treatment and resulting benefits should be covered under the Workers’ Compensation Law. In some circumstances, the employer or workers’ compensation insurance carrier may deny your benefits if they believe that your pre-existing condition is more than 50% the reason why you need treatment as compared to your work accident. In this case, you should seek the advice of a Florida Workers’ Compensation attorney so that any benefits that you would be owed under the law will be properly administered to you.
Should You Hire a Workers’ Compensation Attorney?
If you or anyone you know has been injured in any kind of accident, whether working or not, you may be entitled to medical and compensation by the filing of a workers’ compensation claim or petition for benefits. You should seek the advice of a Miami or South Miami workers’ compensation attorney so your rights can be explained to you. Attorney Jeff E. Rubin at the law firm of Talianoff Rubin & Rubin, P.A. has been handling Florida Workers’ Compensation cases since 1989. Jeff will provide a free consultation so that you can have a clear understanding of your rights if you had an accident and you were hurt or injured while working. Call 305-270-3211 or email jeff@mialaw.com to schedule a free consultation.
Call 305-270-3211 or email jeff@mialaw.com to schedule a free consultation.
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