If you suffer from work-related mental, emotional, or psychological problems, South Carolina workers' compensation law allows benefits in two situations. In this brief video, South Carolina workers' compensation attorney Rob Usry reveals when you can qualify, and why you likely need an attorney to help you along the way.
Transcript
We're talking about workers comp benefits for mental and emotional injuries. First of all, if you're sitting here watching this wondering if you qualify for these benefits let me commend you on your courage. It’s really, really hard to admit you need this kind of help. Second, if you need this help get it whether comp covers it or not because a mental injury is like any other injury left untreated it can wreak unneeded havoc on your life.
Now, let's talk about getting you those benefits. First, you've got to prove it the right way or you lose your rights. You’ve got to have medical evidence establishing your mental or emotional problem is related to work, there's two ways to do that. The first is where you prove it's caused by physical injury. that's called a physical mental injury and workers comp lingo. That might occur where you've got a bad spinal injury and as a result of being disabled and unable to do the things that you're accustomed to doing, you get depressed.
The second way is when there's no physical injury but your mental injury is as a result of unusually stressful or disturbing conditions at work compared to other people with the same job. Now, there's a couple of things about these injuries which are called “mental mental injuries.” First, they can be really challenging to prove the South Carolina Supreme Court denied benefits to a deputy sheriff who shot and killed a suspect who attacked him because use of deadly force is within the normal expectation of a deputy sheriff's job. Second, routine personnel actions like firing usually don't qualify.
In the end regardless of how your mental or emotional injuries are caused you need the help of a skilled workers attorney to get these benefits for you. Insurance companies can be heartlessly skeptical about these cases. So if you've got questions about whether you qualify for a mental or emotional benefit and workers comp or any other workers comp questions feel free to start a live chat right where you are so you can get answers from an experienced workers comp attorney. I thank you for thinking about this with me and I hope I see you soon.
