Injured employees are entitled to reimbursement for the miles driven to and from work-related medical visits. The Division of Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation’s website provides additional detail about medical mileage reimbursement:
60. Can I get reimbursed for the cost of transportation to medical appointments and, if so, how much?
Reasonable transportation expenses necessary for treatment of the work injury, including mileage, parking, and tolls, are reimbursable costs. Mileage is reimbursed at the rate in effect at the time travel costs were incurred according to the mileage for privately owned vehicles set by the US General Services Administration (GSA). The past and current rates are listed on the GSA website.
61. What form do I use to request medical mileage reimbursement?
There is no special form required to request mileage reimbursement under the LHWCA. Some insurance companies have their own form which they may ask you to use. To claim mileage reimbursement, you must provide accurate documentation including the date of the travel, the destination (doctor’s office, physical therapy facility, etc.), and the mileage to and from that destination. While the LHWCA does not impose a time limit for filing mileage reimbursement requests, it is recommended that you submit your requests to the insurance carrier on a regular basis and keep copies for your records.
As of January 1, 2015, the applicable GSA rate for mileage is $0.575. That means that the injured worker will be paid $0.575 for every mile driven to obtain related and necessary medical treatment. Mileage includes any miles driven to doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, physical therapists, etc. Further, injured workers can receive reimbursement for travel-related expenses like tolls and parking.
My recommendation to injured workers: keep contemporaneous records of your medical mileage and travel expenses to make sure that you do not forget any visits.
Photo courtesy of Flickr user L’eau Bleue.
