• worker image by Robert Kelly from Fotolia.com
  
  The Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission offers resources to assist the public with issues pertaining to workers' compensation. One service that the agency provides is mediation. If you and your employer have a worker's compensation issue, you can use the mediation service to resolve the dispute. The mediation service is offered to the public free of charge.
  
  

Workers' Comp Requirement

• Virginia law requires all employers to provide their employees with workers' compensation insurance. Employers can insure themselves or use a private insurance carrier. However, the state of Virginia may allow your employer to forgo workers' comp insurance if there are a limited number of employees. One such example applies to non-agricultural employers with less than three employees. These employers do not have to provide their workers with this benefit. Similarly, this requirement does not apply to employers with domestic workers.
  
  

Medical Services

• Virginia does not impose any monetary or time limits for medical services from workers' comp claims. However, you must choose your medical provider from your employer's list of approved physicians, which may include chiropractors. If the list includes chiropractors, you may receive chiropractic treatment for your injuries.
  
  

Wait Period

• There is a minimum wait period in Virginia of seven days before receiving benefits. If your injury does not extend beyond this wait period, you may not file for workers' comp benefits.
  
  

Death Benefits

• Under Virginia workers' compensation law, employers must pay death benefits to the family of an employee whose death resulted from a workplace injury. According to the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission, only "a surviving spouse, children under 18, children under 23 enrolled full time in an accredited educational institution, parents in destitute circumstances or other qualifying dependents may be entitled to wage loss benefits." The state also imposes a burial allowance on employers, which may include out-of-state transportation to the place of burial. As of June 2010, the maximum death benefit amount was $10,000, with a maximum transportation cost of $1,000.