Q: You have answered a question about AWR but this is a follow up. After being on WC leave and having surgery and My
Surgeon had me transitioning back into my reg 12 hour shift starting at 6 hours which was to end after 2 weeks and my last day before I was restriction free I was struck from behind by a forklift with a full rack(load) I landed on my just repaired knee and elbow it was so scary and besides feeling like I ran into a brick wall (very sore) the only thing that hurt after the initial soreness and what I am and my surgeon is concerned about is my knee, went back to surgeon and he is keeping me on same transition schedule until we get an MRI to see if I damaged my ACL again. So workers comp is still paying me lost wages and going off my hours and pay stubs I’m currently working, however with the amount WC is giving me and what my paycheck is after taxes and premiums I am making less then what WC was paying me when I was on leave. Can this be correct? Also is this considered a new injury and wouldn’t my average rate raise since it happened in 2022 and not 2020 like original ACL tear.
A:
Yes this should be considered a new injury. You should file a DWC-1. What is important here is that a new injury will reset the 104 week cap on TTD benefits if you can establish some additional injury from the incident. Yes, the TTD for this new claim should have a higher TTD rate than the 2020 claim because the allowed AWW has increased. However, if the TTD is related to the prior claim, it will be the same. I don't have enough information to understand what is occurring with your pay, but something is funny because you are still on modified work and therefore should be receiving the equivalent of what you earned while off work. Sometimes the combination of pay and supplement TTD is odd though.
Regards
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