In Missouri the employer has the right to select the treating physician, surgeon, chiropractor or other provider. If you have doubts about that doctor, put them in writing and keep going to your appointments.
The second thing to know is that the filing deadline is tied to payments. A Claim for Compensation must reach the Division within two years of the injury or of the last benefit payment. If your employer never filed its injury report, the window stretches to three years.
Missouri weekly benefits for injuries from July 1, 2026
Temporary total disability pays two-thirds of your average weekly earnings. For injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, the Division's memo sets the top weekly rate at $1,294.71. You hit that ceiling if you earned $1,942.07 a week or more. The smallest weekly check the law allows is $40.
Permanent partial disability, paid for a lasting loss once you heal, tops out at $678.18 a week for the same injury year.
The first 3 days are unpaid unless the disability lasts longer than fourteen days. Past that point, those days are paid back. To estimate your own number, try our weekly pay calculator.
| Weekly check | two-thirds (66 2/3%) of your average weekly earnings |
|---|---|
| Weekly cap, injuries July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 | $1,294.71 |
| Weekly minimum | $40 |
| Weekly wage that reaches the temporary total cap | $1,942.07 |
| Waiting period | first 3 days unpaid, paid back if you are disabled longer than 14 days |
Missouri deadlines, in the order they arrive
30 days: written notice. Give your employer written notice no later than 30 days after the accident. The Division warns that reporting late may jeopardize your benefits.
Two years: Claim for Compensation. Counted from the injury or the last payment or three years if the employer did not file its report.
20 days: application for review. After a judge issues an award, the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission reviews it if you apply within twenty days of the award date.
Missouri insurer said no? Your options
Some disputes surface right after the injury. For those, the Division's Dispute Management Program offers mediation. It is voluntary and it happens before anyone files a formal Claim for Compensation.
When mediation does not fit, the Claim is your tool. Not sure what the insurer's letter means? Run it through our letter explainer or read our guide on checks that stopped.
The Division's toll-free line is 800-775-2667.
When your Missouri employer picks the doctor
Because the employer controls the choice, you may never have met the doctor before. Go to every visit anyway, describe each symptom in plain words and ask for a written copy of your work restrictions before you leave. If the insurer later cuts off your temporary total checks, those notes are usually the first records an attorney asks to see.
What a Missouri workers comp lawyer can charge
Missouri's statute frames the limit as fairness. Every attorney fee is subject to regulation by the Division or the Commission and is limited to charges that are fair and reasonable. Ask any attorney to put the fee terms in writing before you sign.
People also ask
What if my employer never reported my injury?
Then you have three years instead of two, counted from the injury or the last payment, to file your Claim for Compensation with the Division.
What is the smallest weekly check in Missouri?
The law sets a floor of $40 a week.