A Fall at Work in Ohio When You Already Had a Disability: How Workers' Comp Treats It

Attorney Answer

Ohio workers' compensation covers an injury from a fall at work. For a condition you already had, it pays only if the fall substantially aggravated it, and that has to be shown with objective medical findings, not just how you feel. Your employer's investigation is not the decision on your claim, and you can file it yourself within one year.

What counts, and what doesn't. Ohio Rev. Code § 4123.01(C):

(C) "Injury" includes any injury, whether caused by external accidental means or accidental in character and result, received in the course of, and arising out of, the injured employee's employment.

The same division then lists what is not an injury:

"Injury" does not include:

(5) A condition that pre-existed an injury unless that pre-existing condition is substantially aggravated by the injury. Such a substantial aggravation must be documented by objective diagnostic findings, objective clinical findings, or objective test results. Subjective complaints may be evidence of such a substantial aggravation. However, subjective complaints without objective diagnostic findings, objective clinical findings, or objective test results are insufficient to substantiate a substantial aggravation.

So there are two parts to a claim like yours. New injuries from the fall, such as a fracture or a new tear, are covered on their own. For the earlier condition, the question is whether the fall made it substantially worse, shown by objective findings such as imaging, test results or an examining doctor's clinical findings.

Why the medical record matters now. The comparison is before and after. Records from before the fall show where your condition stood, and records made soon after show what changed. Tell your doctor exactly how you fell and what is different.

The deadline. Ohio Rev. Code § 4123.84(A):

(A) In all cases of injury or death, claims for compensation or benefits for the specific part or parts of the body injured shall be forever barred unless, within one year after the injury or death:

(1) Written or facsimile notice of the specific part or parts of the body claimed to have been injured has been made to the industrial commission or the bureau of workers' compensation;

An employer can question a claim. The claim itself is decided through the workers' compensation system, and you don't need your employer's approval to file it.

What you can do

1. Report the fall to your employer in writing, if you haven't, and keep a copy.

2. See a doctor and describe both the fall and your earlier condition, including what has changed since the fall.

3. Gather the medical records from before the fall that show where your condition stood.

4. File the claim with the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation yourself, naming every part of your body affected.

5. Even if you are handling this yourself, you would be best served by a brief phone consultation with a local Ohio attorney before you act. Most lawyers offer a short initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts — and on how your court actually handles this — is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. A workers' compensation claim must be started within one year of the injury under Ohio Rev. Code § 4123.84(A), most simply by notice to the Bureau of Workers' Compensation of each part of the body that was hurt. Have a lawyer or the bureau confirm your claim is on file well before then.