Watch Where You’re Walking! Fatal Pedestrian Accidents Are on the Rise!

We know that the increase in motor vehicles accidents is the result of distracted drivers using mobile phones while they are driving. However, did you know that according to a new study just released by the Governors Highway Safety Association, 2016 could be the deadliest year in more than two decades with 6,000 pedestrian deaths

You may have seen the funny videos posted online of people walking down the sidewalk, head down, glued to their smart phone, oblivious to their surroundings and falling into fountains and pools. But with cameras watching nearly everywhere, it isn’t a laughing matter to see videos of pedestrians, seeming unaware of their surroundings, being mowed down by distracted drivers. With their dense populations and high traffic volumes, bigger cities are more dangerous for pedestrians than smaller cities and towns. But preliminary data shows that even rural states, like Iowa, saw an increase in deadly pedestrian accidents. Iowa experienced a 35% increase over the first half of 2016 over the first half of 2015. (Iowa had 8 fatal pedestrian accidents in first half of 2015 and 11 fatal pedestrian accidents in the first 6 months of 2016 – a 37.5% increase).

There are many factors that are causing the rise in car and pedestrian accidents. Experts advise that you use common sense and, just like when you are driving, you should put your smart phone down while walking, especially when approaching and walking through cross walks and intersections.

Most lower back injuries involve people who do physical labor. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA, manual materials handling is the principal source of workers’ compensation injuries in our nation’s work force, with four out of five of these injuries affecting the lower back.

Common injuries include lower back strain; bulging, herniated and slipped discs; fractured vertebrae; and pinched nerves. Most of these injuries are caused by over extension from heavy lifting, pulling and pushing.

Workers who hurt their back on the job may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Because back injuries can be very painful and require extended treatment and recovery periods, benefits typically cover the costs of needed medical care and may provide periods of paid disability so that a worker can recover from an injury.

If a back injury is diagnosed as a temporary partial disability, a worker may resume employment duties after a recovery period. If a worker suffers a permanent partial disability, he or she may be assigned a different position upon returning to work to accommodate the disability. Those who suffer a permanent total disability will not be able to return to work and may be eligible for extended benefits.

If you or a family member has been injured at work, contact our Des Moines Iowa workers’ compensation attorneys to assist you with your workers’ comp claim. When you are injured it is important to get the maximum benefits allowed so that you can work toward recovery. Our experienced workers’ compensation lawyers have worked with many injured Iowa workers to help them get the benefits they need when they are injured on the job. Call today at 515-283-2116.

Iowa Legislature is currently reviewing House File 518, with companion Senate File 435, which, if passed will herald in significant changes to Iowa Workers’ Compensation.

Proposed reductions in benefits, particularly to those who are 67 and older, are the most troubling for may workers:

• The standard for a compensable injury would change under the proposed law. In basic terms, work injuries would have to be a “predominant factor” in causing a disability – as in more than 50 percent – for benefits to be paid. This would replace the more general “probable cause” standard.
• Shoulder injuries, a common injury in construction and manufacturing, are currently categorized as potential industrial injury disabilities with compensation based on 500 weeks. Under the proposed law, a shoulder injury would become a scheduled injury limited to 250 weeks.
• The proposed law regarding remaining industrial injury disabilities will take into account the years a worker would have remained in the work force or age of retirement at the time of the injury to make a benefit determination versus a more open-ended approach.

Older workers may be looking at some changes to benefits if the proposed changes succeed.

• Employees age 67 or up receiving permanent partial disability benefits for body-as-a-whole injuries, will be limited to no more that 150 weeks of compensation under the proposal. Employees who receive permanent total disability benefits may continue until they are no longer permanently or totally disabled or until they reach the age of 67. Injuries sustained after the age of 67 would be payable up to 150 weeks only.

As of now, the bills are still under review. However, if passed, they would represent the most substantial changes in Iowa Workers’ Compensation in decades and will undoubtedly impact Iowa workers and their families.

If you have been injured at work, contact the Law Offices of John T. Hemmingerfor assistance with your workers’ compensation or personal injury claim. Our team has helped many injured Iowans get the compensation they are entitled to when they have been injured on the job. Call today at 515-283-2116.

At a recent public hearing, Iowans split on proposed changes to the Iowa workers’ compensation law, with 17 speakers supporting the changes and 16 opposing.

House File 518 and Senate File 435 seeks to end worker benefits at age 67, reduce benefits for injuries related to pre-existing conditions, limit late fees for employers who fail to pay benefits on time and cap attorneys’ fees when injured employees seek legal help to get their benefits paid.

Among those in favor of the bills are business owners who say the insurance premiums are becoming too expensive and that the current Iowa workers’ compensation law is vulnerable to exploitation. Many voiced concerns over the rising cost of litigation brought by injured employees when their coverage is denied.

Those who oppose the bill say passage of the new law would be very disadvantageous to workers that are injured on the job. Many feel that employers should not only improve workplace safety so workers do not get injured in the first place, but that employers have an obligation to take care of their injured workers by paying benefits on time and approving needed medical care so that employees can work toward recovery.

If you have been denied workers’ compensation benefits, contact the workers’ compensation law offices of John T. Hemminger for help. Our attorneys will aggressively pursue the benefits that you are entitled to when you are injured on the job. Call today 515-283-2116.