Lost Wages in Maryland Workers Compensation

The lost wage claim in Maryland workers ompensation law is called the (TTD) claim or temporary total disability. This lost wage claim can be temporary total or temporary partial (TPD). The amount of money paid to the injured worker is based upon an average weekly wage (AWW), for the thirteen weeks average earnings immediately prior to the injury. Oddly in Maryland an injured worker is not paid for the first three days missed until after he has missed fourteen days. That makes little sense to me, but it is the law. I always suggest to my clients to gather the pay stubs for the earnings for the thirteen weeks prior to injury just to be sure we get the AWW correct. This number impacts not only the TTD or TPD payment but can also affect the permanency award later.
Under Maryland workers compensation law the insurance company is not supposed to pay the TTD or TPD benefits until after the employee has properly filed his workers compensation claim form with the Workers Compensation Commission. You will find also that the insurance company is not supposed to terminate the TTD or TPD payments until they have filed a Termination of Benefits notice. If all goes as planned the TTD or TPD will pay until the injured worker is declared at maximum medical improvement (MMI). There are however circumstances where TTD and TPD will pay beyond MMI, such as when vocational rehabilitation is recommended.
Code, Labor and Employment § 9-621.The insurance company must pay the covered employee compensation that equals two-thirds of the average weekly wage of the covered employee, but does not exceed the average weekly wage of the state and is not less than $50. If the average weekly wage of the covered employee is less than $50 at the time of the accidental personal injury or the last injurious exposure to the hazards of the occupational disease, the employer or its insurer must pay the covered employee compensation that equals the average weekly wage of the covered employee.