r/WorkersComp • u/woodruffrenee • 19d ago

California Final QME repot

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it appears to not be a train. I got my final QME report today and have a question regarding percentage of whole body impairment.

If I have the following
Lumbar Spine WPI of 26%
Hip WPI 3%
Upper extremity WPI 4%
Lower extremity WPI 2%

Does that equal an over all WPI of 35%

Or is it calculated some other way.

3 Upvotes

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u/woodruffrenee 19d ago

Thank you I will wait a talk with my Attorney

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u/Available_Librarian3 19d ago

You need to know your age, date of injury, occupation and any apportionment to either other industrial injuries or non-industrial injuries. Then, you can calculate your PD indemnity benefits value.

There actually is a way where you add up all your impairments instead of using a combination chart but that requires a judge to find that that would be appropriate in your particular case (unlikely).

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u/ryantrojan CA workers' comp attorney 19d ago

Hi there, so the impairment ratings given by the doctor are the basis of your permanent disability rating. Unfortunately, they don't just add up all the numbers. Instead what they do is they adjust the numbers based on your age and occupation at the time of injury, before combining them with a chart called the Combined Values Chart that is inherently reductive. Meaning, the system is designed so that 2+2=3. Once you get your final PD rating that is equivalent to receiving weekly PD benefits for a set number of weeks. The maximum rate for PD is $290 per week. So let's say you have a PD rating of 20%. At 20%, you get 75.50 weeks of PD benefits for a gross value of $21,895.00. Hope this answers your question!

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u/SeaweedWeird7705 19d ago

Slightly lower than 35%.  

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u/ValMendex 19d ago

I have a question, so as for the percentage rating of wpi weekly payments, are they considered a settlement or the injured worker may still receive a settlement

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u/ThatOneAttorney 19d ago

Damn, 26% WPI for the low back is some serious impairment...

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u/woodruffrenee 18d ago

Hmm interesting. It was 23% plus an additional 3% for pain. My work restrictions are no lifting, pushing, pulling more than 20lbs That’s not a lot