A physician-assigned percentage that measures permanent loss of bodily function after an injury has healed as much as expected, usually at maximum medical improvement.

An impairment rating is a medical measurement, not a direct statement about whether someone can work. Doctors often use the AMA Guides to estimate how much function was permanently lost in a body part or in the body as a whole. For example, a hand injury might receive a 10% impairment rating, while a back injury might receive a whole-person rating. The number is meant to quantify lasting physical damage, not pain alone, and not automatically lost wages.

In a Mississippi injury claim, especially a workers' compensation case, the rating can strongly affect settlement value and the dispute over permanent partial disability. But Mississippi does not treat the rating as the only answer. Under the Mississippi Workers' Compensation Law, Miss. Code Ann. § 71-3-17 (2024), benefits depend on the type of injury and, in many cases, the worker's loss of wage-earning capacity. For a scheduled member such as an arm, hand, leg, or foot, the rating may help calculate loss of use against a fixed number of benefit weeks. For unscheduled injuries, such as many back or neck claims, the Mississippi Workers' Compensation Commission may weigh the rating alongside work restrictions, job history, and actual earnings. That distinction matters in severe Gulf Coast injury cases where damaged infrastructure and heavy-duty work can limit return-to-work options.