Workers’ compensation covers your medical expenses and lost wages due to workplace injury. Workers’ compensation also reduces your employer’s liability if you are hurt on the job.
If you have been injured at work, it is crucial that you report the injury to your employer immediately. Your employer must complete a First Report of Injury form on your behalf within 10 days of being notified.
What does workers’ compensation cover?
- Emergency medical expenses
- Medical expenses for an injury that happened at work
- Lost wages—the money you would have made from your job if you hadn’t been injured
- Rehabilitation costs
- Death benefits—for the families of those killed on the job
All employers are required to purchase workers’ compensation insurance. In Minnesota, employees are entitled to psychological, chiropractic, surgical, podiatric and hospital treatment under the workers’ compensation statute.
Can you choose your doctor?
In Minnesota, you can choose your own doctor. Under Minnesota law, employees who have been injured on the job are not required to use their company’s doctor.
There are circumstances in which your employer can require you to see a certain physician. If your employer has a pre-established relationship with several healthcare providers, you may be required to choose a doctor from the list.
Your employer may recommend a doctor or clinic to you, but you do not have to follow their recommendation. It is important that you choose your doctor right away as Minnesota law does not allow injured workers to change physicians without cause. If you want to change doctors, you will have to submit a request through the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry.