When you are on workers’ compensation, you may need prescription medications to help treat your workplace injury. In most cases, your workers’ comp benefits should cover any prescriptions that you need. But you should make sure that the workers’ compensation insurance company is footing the bill.
How Do You Get Prescriptions Through Workers’ Comp?
Workers’ compensation medical benefits cover any of an employee’s reasonable medical expenses that are related to a workplace injury. These expenses often include the costs of prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, or medical supplies available at a pharmacy.
Your doctors should either give you prescription slips that you can take to a pharmacy or send your prescriptions to a pharmacy chain automatically. You should fill the prescriptions at a pharmacy counter. The workers’ compensation insurance company might require you to go to only certain chain pharmacies, or you might have your choice of pharmacy.
As long as a doctor treating you for your workplace injury writes the prescription, the cost should be covered by workers’ compensation insurance. That means the pharmacy should not charge you a co-pay. However, if your workers’ comp benefits have been denied and you are seeking treatment in the meantime, you may have to pay out of pocket or charge your insurance. When the insurer grants you benefits, you can request reimbursement of the prescription costs. For that reason, keep all paperwork related to the prescriptions.
Possible Limitations on Workers’ Comp Prescriptions
Again, prescriptions must be reasonable medical expenses related to your workplace injury. If the insurance company questions one of your prescriptions, you may need a note or report from your treating doctor to explain the necessity for the medication. This may happen more often for non-prescription meds, strong painkillers or psychiatric mediations, or medical supplies. For example, the insurance company could question whether you need the most expensive kind of crutches or a brand name, non-generic medication.
If you are having trouble receiving the medications or supplies that you need to heal, seek out a local workers’ compensation lawyer for assistance. You may need legal help to secure your workers’ compensation benefits.
Are you in need of a workers’ compensation attorney in Minnesota? Joe Osterbauer, Esq. and the Osterbauer Law Firm stand up for injured Minnesota workers’ rights. Joe’s 27 years of workers’ compensation experience and his team’s speedy service combine to get clients the results they need. To schedule a free consultation, visit Osterbauer Law Firm online or call Joe’s office at (612) 334-3434.
