Covering Members Of Your Family with Insurance

How To Manage Your 3-Day Wait Period

by Billie Hughes

Any insurance that mirrors worker's compensation is very helpful to the injured person. It's also subject to intense scrutiny to ensure the injured person isn't malingering. The Defense Base Act states that injured parties have to go through three days of no compensation before becoming eligible. If you find yourself waiting out that three-day period, here's how to handle it so that you know for sure whether you can go back to work or not -- and the insurance company knows that you're telling the truth.

The Three-Day Wait

The Defense Base Act allows military personnel on defense bases overseas to receive compensation similar to that of worker's comp through the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (HLWCA). One feature of that Act that the Defense Base Act follows is the three-day waiting period. Basically, for three days after your injury, you get no compensation. If you still can't go back to work due to the injury on the fourth day, then compensation begins (or at least the record-keeping of eligible days does). You still won't get pay for those three days until your inability to go back to your duties surpasses 14 days. (So if you are out 7 days, you get compensation for 4; if you are out 15 days, you get compensation for 15.)

The three-day wait period covers the initial main shock and rebound of the injury. It gives your body time to let those injuries show up -- many times, the trauma of the initial accident causes your adrenaline to go into overdrive, masking symptoms. It also gives your body -- and the base doctor -- a chance to work on the initial symptoms and possibly get you to the point where you can actually go back to work.

Report All Problems and Seek Evaluation

Over the three days, monitor for any changes in how you feel. Record them and notify your doctor or whichever medical personnel is handling your case. Don't be surprised if you feel worse on Day two or three than you did on Day one. That's your body's adrenaline levels calming down, and your inflammatory response revving up. (That's a part of healing.) Any changes you notice give the medical personnel a record of how your body is reacting to the injury and will help them decide whether you can head back to work later on.

Avoid Social Media

Just like with personal injury cases and regular worker's comp, it is possible that insurance company employees will lurk in your social media accounts for any sign that you are doing just fine. Even innocuous posts can start off a storm of misunderstandings; for example, if you've hurt your leg and post about cleaning up your place, that could be easily misunderstood as showing you're getting much better, even if that "cleaning" is you sitting down and sorting through papers. Post once that you'll be away from social media for a time, lock down your accounts through your privacy settings, and stay off.

Try to Get Better

Actually showing an effort to heal and get better works for you no matter what. Either you do heal and get better (always a plus), or you don't get better, which demonstrates that you really do need more time off plus compensation. No one can argue if you follow all medical instructions, rest, take prescribed medications, and so on, and still don't get better enough to go back to work.

It's always best if you recover. In the meantime, you don't want anyone accusing you of trying to make your injury seem worse than it is. Those three days are a critical waiting period that makes your future path much clearer. For more information, contact your local Defense Base Act insurance company.

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