The state of California requires everyone who hires employees to carry workers compensation insurance on them. This law applies whether the employees are full-time, part-time or, in some cases, sub-contractors. workers comp coverage pays for medical bills and other expenses if an employee is injured on the job or in the course of doing business for your company. When employees are hurt on the job, they may suffer minor injuries or major, disabling or even crippling injuries, depending on the type of accident they experience. Employees could be injured:

• In a car accident while driving or riding as a passenger on company business or in a company vehicle
• By a tool or machine owned by your company or used as a part of your employee’s normal work routine
• By a substance that sickens or injures him or her from one of your work locations
• By a fellow worker who fails to observe safety procedures or other rules regarding the safe handling of tools or substances in the workplace
• In an accident caused by faulty wiring or structures in or around your workplace or even in a location to which you send your employees

Because worker’s compensation is such a vital part of doing business in California, Gregg Stapp Insurance Services offers a wide variety of different types of workers compensation coverage with plenty of options for businesses of all sizes and types. No matter what type of business you run, Gregg Stapp can help you find the coverage you need to protect yourself, your business and your employees. Anyone with a business must consider options for workers compensation coverage carefully in order to find the best coverage at the best prices, and Gregg Stapp Insurance Services can help in this search. We will find a workers compensation policy for your particular company, job and field and will help you protect your workers with the right insurance coverage.

Workers compensation began as an effort to ensure that workers who were injured on the job would still be able to provide for their families as well as paying for the medical care necessary to get them back to good health as soon as possible. Soon after workers compensation insurance became available, states began passing laws that required employers to provide this coverage for their workers. However, workers compensation is actually designed to protect both the employees and the employer. The employees gain protection and payment for the costs associated with an injury while the employer gains protection from lawsuits brought by employees who need their medical bills paid for on-the-job injuries. While workers compensation does not necessary apply to the owner of the company unless he or she is also an employee, it benefits business owners by giving them peace of mind that their employees will be protected in the event of an injury or work-related illness.

workers compensation policies cover a variety of types of costs, including:

Medical care. workers compensation policies require employees to use approved doctors and medical care facilities in order to receive full coverage for their treatment. If an employee goes to an approved doctor, the policy generally pays one hundred percent of all costs, including office visits, emergency room treatment, medication, test, x-rays, scans, blood work and other forms of treatment. Some workers comp policies will even pay for alternative treatment such as chiropractic and herbal medicine, although many insist on traditional medical treatment. You can examine various workers compensation policies to determine which ones provide various types of treatment. You may also be interested in looking at specialized policies for particular types of work environments where certain injuries are more likely than others.

Rehabilitation and therapy. workers comp can pay for physical therapy, occupational therapy and even psychological counseling if these therapies are ordered by a medical professional. Workers should be sure to follow all the requirements of the policy in order to have these types of treatments paid for.

Disability. Employees who are permanently disabled by an accident may be entitled to payments from a workers compensation policy for the duration of their disability. In some cases, this is a temporary condition that does not allow them to work; however, in some cases, the disability is permanent. A worker may be entitled to other forms of disability if the problem is permanent. Every policy should be examined carefully to determine how temporary and permanent disability is handled.

Death. If a worker is killed on the job, workers comp policies may have a provision for a death benefit to be paid to the family. This payment is an attempt to compensate the family for the loss of income of the worker and can add up to a substantial sum over time.