Impairment Vs Disability: How Are They Different
Impairment and disability are common yet often confused terms. However, understanding them is crucial for an injured worker to claim and receive all the benefits conferred on him by the workers’ compensation law. Hence, this guide prepared by the top workers’ comp lawyers in Newport News will help you understand and differentiate between these terms. Let us get started by shedding light on them individually before comparing them with one another.
What Is Impairment
Simply put, impairment occurs when a worker loses the normal functionality of a body part or system because of a work-related illness or injury. For the purpose of determining the compensation, medical professionals evaluate and quantify this loss after you attain Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). The Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) is the point at which no further improvement is possible.
Some examples of impairment include a 15% impairment rating. This rating denotes that the affected body part has lost 15% of its function. However, please note this rating is entirely a medical assessment, and it does not take into account the effect of the impairment on your working ability or the ability to execute daily activities.
What Is Disability
Disability has lasting effects and it shows an individual’s inability to completely recover from an injury. It can be of various types as discussed below.
Permanent Disability
It occurs when an individual cannot completely recover from the injury. The permanent disability can be classified into permanent total disability and permanent partial disability. Let us take a look at them.
Permanent partial disability
A permanent partial disability is when you have some work capability. However, there are significant restrictions. In this case, the doctor declares you have reached the Maximum Medical Improvement stage and gives you a disability rating.
Permanent total disability
A permanent total disability is a situation when a worker becomes incapable of performing any kind of work.
After understanding impairment and disability in their individuality, let us look at their key differences.
Key Differences Between Impairment and Disability
Below is how impairment and disability differ from one another.
- Medically, impairment is a loss of function capable of being quantified using medical criteria and guides. Whereas, disability includes the practical limitations occurring due to the impairment and involves functional capacity evaluations and vocational assessments.
- Legally, impairment ratings determine whether or not you are eligible for certain workers’ compensation and social security benefits. Whereas disability assessments indicate the duration and extent of benefits.
- The impairment rating determines the benefits you are entitled to receive based on the Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) rating. Whereas, the disability payouts vary according to the disability extent. For instance, a worker with permanent total disability receives different benefits than a worker with permanent partial disability. These payouts are determined according to the impact a disability has on your ability to work for a living.
So, that was all about impairment and disability. We hope you no longer have any doubts. However, understanding these situations can be complex without the assistance of expert lawyers. Hence, we recommend contacting a competent legal professional to help you navigate the impairment versus disability complexities to secure your rights as an injured worker.
