Assuming your employer carried workers' compensation insurance, they are legally required to file a notice of your injury with the state, if they were aware that your injury occurred. Typically, a Claim for Compensation must be filed within 2 years of the date of injury or from the last time the employer made a payment of your medical bills, or for time missed from work. In limited situations, if the employer knew about your injury, but did not file a report to the state, it may potentially be possible to have an extension of the time for filing your claim and seeking reimbursement of all medical bills. You could potentially have a personal injury claim for negligence also (depending on the specific facts), but the time deadline for filing is 5 years in Missouri, except under limited circumstances. I would highly recommend consulting with an attorney to review the facts in more detail, to make an assessment of whether one of the legal exceptions applies where you may still be able to obtain compensation for your injury. All of the relevant dates, such as when you were diagnosed, when you were injured, etc..., are extremely important and need to be reviewed by a workers' compensation attorney.
Answered on Dec 20th, 2011 at 11:20 AM