Atlanta Workers Compensation Law : Atlanta Workers' Compensation Lawyer & Attorney : Seth Bader Law Firm : Construction Accidents, Repetitive Motion Injuries, Disability : Atlanta, Marietta, Roswell, Georgia

(a)  Limitation on simultaneous compensation.

If an employee received an injury for which income benefits are payable while still entitled to or receiving income benefits for a previous injury, the employee shall not be entitled to income benefits at the same time for both injuries unless because of the later injury the employee is entitled to income benefits for a permanent partial disability under Code Section 34-9-263; but the employee shall be entitled to income benefits for that injury and from the time of that injury which will cover the longest period and the largest amount of income benefits payable.  Compensation for other than income benefits shall be apportioned upon a determination of whether the need for such is attributable to the first or second injury.

(b)  Limitation on compensation for permanent partial disability.

If an employee received an injury for which income benefits are payable under Code Section 34-9-263 and has a preexisting bodily loss or loss of use as described under Code Section 34-9-263 which was increased by reason of the injury, the employee shall be entitled to income benefits under Code Section 34-9-263 only for the loss or loss of use as increased by the injury.  This limitation, however, shall not prevent the employee from continuing to receive income benefits for the preexisting loss or loss of use to which the employee is otherwise entitled under Code Section 34-9-263.

(c)  Total disability by subsequent injury.

(1)  An employee who has a prior disability as described in Article 9 of this chapter and who sustains a subsequent injury which combines with the prior injury to produce total disability shall be entitled to income benefits as provided in Code Section 34-9-261.  The loss of both hands, feet, arms, legs, or the loss of any two of them or the total loss of vision of both eyes shall be presumed to be total disability, subject to rebuttal.

(2)  An employer who makes payment under this subsection shall be entitled to reimbursement as determined under Article 9 of this chapter.

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No compensation shall be payable for an occupational disease if the employee, in the course of or in the course of entering into the employment of the employer by whom the compensation would otherwise be payable, falsely represented himself in writing to such employer as not having previously been disabled, laid off, or compensated in damages or otherwise because of such disease.

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As used in this article, the term:

(1)  "Merger of an injury with a preexisting permanent impairment" describes or means that:

(A)  Had the preexisting permanent impairment not been present, the subsequent injury would not have occurred;

(B)  The disability resulting from the subsequent injury in conjunction with the preexisting permanent impairment is materially, substantially, and cumulatively greater than that which would have resulted had the preexisting permanent impairment not been present, and the employer has been required to pay and has paid compensation for that greater disability; or

(C)  Death would not have been accelerated had the preexisting permanent impairment not been present.

(2)  "Permanent impairment" means any permanent condition due to previous injury, disease, or disorder which is, or is likely to be, a hindrance or obstacle to employment or to obtaining reemployment if the employee should become unemployed.

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