Am I required to provide my complete medical history to "workers' comp"?
In general, you are not required to voluntarily provide your workers' compensation company with your complete medical history after you've suffered an on-the-job injury; however, if you are asked about your medical history and deny any prior injuries or pre-existing conditions, your workers' compensation company may later deny your claim if it discovers evidence that you suffered from a similar prior injury or pre-existing condition.
If your Georgia workers' compensation case is in litigation, the lawyer for your workers' compensation company will take your deposition to gather all sorts of facts that is relevant to your case. One of these facts or set of facts will be whether you suffered any accidents or injuries prior to your on-the-job injury. For this reason, you will probably be asked to disclose all of your prior injuries, accidents, and medical providers.
If you are asked to provide your medical history during your deposition, you must provide honest answers to the best of your recollection. If you do not, you may undermine your own credibility and, worse, you may be charged with perjury.
Aggravations of prior injuries or pre-existing conditions are usually covered by Georgia's workers' compensation law. Of course, there are some cases where an "aggravation" may not be covered or where an aggravation that is covered is later denied for one reason or another. For this reason, we strongly recommend that you speak with a Georgia workers' compensation lawyer about your case as soon as possible. To schedule a free consultation with a Georgia workers' compensation attorney at The Bader Law Firm, please call us at 404.917.9174 or send us an email.
