How the Georgia system works
Georgia employers with three or more workers must carry coverage. The system runs through the State Board of Workers' Compensation (SBWC), with disputes heard by administrative law judges and appeals to the Board's Appellate Division and the courts. No-fault rules apply: the question is whether the injury arose out of and in the course of your work.
Every deadline that matters
| What | Deadline | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Notify your employer | 30 days from the injury | Same-day written notice remains the standard that protects you; late notice is Georgia's most-used early denial. |
| File with the State Board (Form WC-14) | Generally 1 year from the injury | One of the shorter filing windows among big states — and telling your employer is not filing. File the WC-14 yourself. |
| Keep benefit rights alive | 2 years from the last income payment (for renewed wage claims) | Past payments create their own clocks; if checks stopped and you're worse, dates control your options. |
The posted panel of physicians
Georgia employers control early treatment through a posted panel — typically at least six physicians listed on a poster at the workplace. The rules that matter:
- Choose from the panel for non-emergency care, and know that you're entitled to one change to another panel doctor without anyone's permission.
- Emergencies go anywhere. ER care is covered regardless of the panel.
- An invalid panel frees you. If the panel wasn't properly posted, explained, or composed as the rules require, the treatment-control restriction may not bind you — a common and winnable fight. Photograph the poster (or its absence) early.
- The authorized treating physician steers the claim. Their opinions on restrictions and ability to work drive your checks, which makes your one free change a strategic asset — spend it deliberately.
The benefits — and the caps
| Benefit | What it pays |
|---|---|
| Medical care | Authorized treatment for the injury — capped at 400 weeks from the date of injury for non-catastrophic claims (lifetime for catastrophic). |
| Temporary Total Disability (TTD) | Two-thirds of your average weekly wage within the state maximum, while you're unable to work — generally capped at 400 weeks for non-catastrophic injuries. |
| Temporary Partial Disability (TPD) | Two-thirds of the wage gap when you're back at lighter, lower-paying work — capped at 350 weeks. |
| Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) | Scheduled weeks based on your impairment rating and the body part, paid after wage-loss benefits end. |
| Death benefits | Dependent support within statutory limits plus burial expenses. |
"Catastrophic" injuries (severe brain and spinal injuries, amputations, severe burns, blindness — and injuries that prevent you from performing your prior work and any available suitable work) escape the 400-week caps: lifetime medical and extended income benefits. The label is requested, fought, and litigated — and for seriously injured workers it's worth more than almost any other single issue in the claim. If your injury may never let you return to real work, get professional help pursuing the designation early.
How Georgia disputes get resolved
- 1
WC-14 filed
The form that both opens your claim at the State Board and, when needed, requests a hearing.
- 2
Hearing before an ALJ
Testimony and medical evidence before an administrative law judge, usually within months; many cases mediate and settle along the way (settlements need Board approval).
- 3
Appeals
To the Board's Appellate Division, then the courts — each on short, strict deadlines.
Free official help
- State Board of Workers' Compensation — forms (including the WC-14), claim assistance, and an ombudsman-style help line for unrepresented workers: sbwc.georgia.gov.
- Coverage verification — check whether your employer carries insurance via the Board's online search.
Anything touching catastrophic designation, panel-validity fights, denied claims, and all settlements. Fees are capped (generally 25% of recovered benefits, Board-approved) and consultations are typically free.