If you’re collecting Social Security disability benefits and workers comp, there will be an offset—meaning you will receive your full workers compensation benefit, however, your disability benefit may be lowered in some respect on account of you receiving workers compensation benefits.

The other interaction that’s important: if you’re on Social Security Disability or, for whatever reason, are eligible to receive Medicare as a form of your health insurance, you want to be very careful to ensure that Medicare is not paying for any of your medical treatment that relates to your work-related injury. That should always be paid by the workers compensation insurance company, but in all cases, it should never be paid by Medicare—at least while your case is still active.

It’s also important to consider Medicare’s interest, because you are legally required to by federal law when settling your case. If people are on Medicare or entitled to Medicare, then you’ve got to be able to show that you took into account Medicare’s future interest—meaning, what did you put aside from your settlement to pay for medical treatment for the work injury into the future so that Medicare is not doing that. And of course, there are companies and vendors that will do that and advise you and come up with these MSA’s—or Medicare Set-Aside agreements or accounts—and that’s a very important part in interplay with workers compensation as well for people who are on disability.