Insurance: How Much Is Your Arm Worth? Depends on Where You Work

There isn’t a federal minimum for worker’s compensation when it comes to losing a body part. ProPublica and NPR delve deep into the topic.

Jeremy Lewis and Josh Potter both lost their arms in similar accidents, but their monetary compensation varies by a large amount. Lewis, who lost his arm on a jobsite in Alabama, received $45,000, while across the border in Georgia, Potter received benefits that could surpass $740,000 over his lifetime.

The story includes an interactive graph that compares the “schedule of benefits” – a chart that divides up the human body “like an Angus beef chart” – of each state.

Check out how much each state will compensate for a worker’s injury at ProPublica.