A Special Workers’ Compensation Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court of Tennessee held that under the recently enacted pain-management provisions of Tenn. Code Ann. § 50–6–204(j) (2014), pain-management physicians whose offices are within 175 miles of the injured...
The failure, on the part of an injured employee, to abide by lifting restrictions could not alone be sufficient to constitute an independent intervening cause that would relieve his or her employer (or carrier) from the responsibility for continued workers’...
Acknowledging that the statutory presumption of correctness afforded the opinion of an independent medical evaluator who had been selected from Tennessee's Medical Impairment Registry ("MIR") could be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence, an...
Applying the 4-part test described in Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law , § 34.01, et seq. , a Tennessee appellate court affirmed a state trial court’s determination that an employer failed to show that one of its healthcare workers willfully...
Reversing a decision of a state chancery court that had found an injured worker’s death due to acute oxycodone overdose, coupled with alcohol use, to be compensable, the Supreme Court of Tennessee held that the actions of the worker, in taking more of his...
Key takeaways from a recent Tennessee case for both injured workers and employers When do an injured worker’s actions, which led to a tragic overdose of opioids in the Kilburn case, constitute an independent intervening cause and thereby release the employer...
In an unpublished opinion, the special appeals panel of the Tennessee Supreme Court has affirmed a finding that an injured employee was entitled to permanent and total disability benefits in spite of the fact that a functional capacity evaluation (FCE) indicated...
This article surveys recent legal trends in the states of Maryland, New Mexico, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin as explained by our workers’ compensation experts below. MARYLAND: Four of the hottest topics in Maryland are as follows: 1. Opioid use and...
CDC Posts Annual Workers Memorial Day 2016 Message . CDC Examines Impact of Hearing Loss on Quality of Life . CDC Examines Convenience Store Compliance to Reduce Workplace Violence . AZ: ICA Discusses Implementation of RBRVS-based Fee Schedule . CA: Lawsuit...
Senators Slam Obama Directive for Sick U.S. Nuclear Workers . AK: WCD Posts Director’s Interpretation on Issues Impacting Medical Fee Schedule . AZ: Governor Signs SB 1323 Pro Se Vexatious Litigant . CA: WCAB Chairman Ronnie Caplane to Retire From State...
Where a widow sought workers’ compensation death benefits on behalf of herself and her son—the step-son of the deceased worker—and the widow died while the claim was still pending, the trial court erred when it granted the employer’s motion for summary judgment...
Experts Identify Top 10 Issues to Watch for Workers’ Comp in 2016 . EEOC Seeks Comments on Proposed Enforcement Guidance on Workplace Retaliation . Insurance Information Institute President Dr. Robert Hartwig to Step Down . Obama Budget Would Invest...
Lyft Settles Calif. Lawsuit for $12.5M, Drivers Still Not Classified as Employees . Price Wars Between Insurers and Drug Companies Impact Patients’ Healthcare . AMA Recommends Changes to CDC’s Proposed Opioid Prescription Policy . AK: WCD Posts...
A Tennessee nurse, who contended she suffered a mental breakdown and PTSD after attending a work-related conference did not establish that the level of stress he experienced at the conference was abnormal, extraordinary, or unusual, held a special workers’...
By Jennifer C. Jordan, Esq., General Counsel, MEDVAL, LLC The National Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference generally serves as a pretty good barometer of what the industry focus will be in the upcoming year and it is evident that 2016 will be...