What Are Indemnity Benefits After A Minnesota Work Injury?

Workers are a protected class here in the United States, and because of this, you are eligible for what’s known as indemnity benefits in the event that you are injured during the course of your work duties. Indemnity benefits are monetary payments that are provided to a worker to offset lost wages, medical bills and other damages following an on-the-job injury. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at some types of indemnity benefits and how you can collect them if you are injured at work.

Types Of Indemnity Benefits In Minnesota

You may already be somewhat familiar with some common types of indemnity benefits in the wake of a workers’ compensation accident because the term is used synonymously with disability benefits. For example, temporary total disability benefits and permanent partial disability benefits are both types of indemnity benefits. With that in mind, here’s a look at four common indemnity benefits paid out after a Minnesota work injury:

Temporary Total Disability (TTD) – TTD benefits are paid out to employees who are unable to work because of their injuries, but they are eventually expected to make a full recovery. These benefits are paid out at two-thirds of your gross earnings at the time of your injury. You can collect these benefits until you return to work, you’ve collected TTD benefits for 130 weeks, you refuse gainful employment or retire, or 90 days following a doctor’s diagnosis that you’ve reached maximum medical improvement, whichever comes first.

Temporary Partial Disability (TPD) – TPD benefits help to provide additional income in the event that you are injured and you cannot work at the same normal capacity, but you’re still able to perform some type of work. For example, if you’re earning less after a work injury, your hours have been reduced because of your injury or you’re unable to work standard overtime because of your injuries, you may be able to collect TPD benefits. You can collect these benefits until you’re eligible for TTD benefits, you retire, you return to work in a normal capacity, you’ve been paid 275 weeks of TPD benefits or 450 weeks have passed since the date of your injury.

Permanent Total Disability (PTD) – PTD benefits are paid after a worker suffers an injury that will leave them completely unable to return to the workforce in any capacity. It’s payable at two-thirds of your gross earnings at the time of your injury until $25,000 has been paid, at which point it may be reduced based on the amount of disability payments you’re collecting from the government. You will be able to collect PTD benefits until you reach presumed retirement age or you are eventually able to maintain more than “sporadic employment.”

Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) – Finally, PPD benefits are paid to offset the permanent loss of function to a certain body part. For example, if you lose a finger or need to have a knee joint replaced after a work injury, you can collect PPD benefits. The amount you can collect is based on your PPD rating and which body part is affected. A lawyer can help give you a ballpark estimate as to how much you may be able to collect in a PPD claim.

For more information about any of these indemnity benefits, or for assistance collecting indemnity benefits after a work injury, reach out to Dean and the team at Margolis Law Firm today.