This is a common question among injured workers and their employers in Philadelphia and there is a straightforward answer. The injured worker’s doctor decides when the worker is able to return to work. It is not up to the injured worker, the employer, their attorneys, the insurance adjustor or anyone else to make that determination.
Why the Doctor?
The purpose of Philadelphia workers comp is to compensate workers for the time that they must miss from work due to their injuries. A doctor is in the best position to determine when a worker is physically able to return to his or her job and is seen as impartial because the employee’s returns to work has no direct impact on the physician.
That said, if you have been injured in a Philadelphia worker’s comp case and you believe that your doctor is clearing you to go back to work too soon, you do have the right to seek the opinion of a second medical doctor and to contact your Philadelphia workers compensation lawyer for additional advice.
