Workers' Compensation

Recent Posts

Tennessee: Pain Alone Cannot Constitute Second Injury, No Disqualification After Violating Lifting Weight Limits
Posted on 11 Apr 2021 by Thomas A. Robinson

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’... Read More

Pennsylvania: Benefits Terminated in Spite of Claimant’s Continuing Pain
Posted on 26 Jul 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

A Pennsylvania appellate court found substantial evidence supported the Board’s decision to terminate compensation benefits in spite of the fact that the claimant credibly testified that he continued to experience pain resulting from the work-related... Read More

Wyoming: Claimant Deemed at MMI Despite Continued Use of Spinal Cord Stimulator to Reduce Pain
Posted on 19 Jul 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

The Supreme Court of Wyoming affirmed a finding by the state’s Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) that a workers’ compensation claimant had reached MMI—with a resulting end to TTD benefits—despite a medical treatment plan... Read More

MO: Commission Thwarts Statutory Reform For 'Objective' Findings
Posted on 22 Nov 2011 by Martin Klug

Statutory reform in Missouri requires that objective findings trump conflicting subjective findings. When a doctor concludes claimant can work based on FCE results but claimant state he can't, does the FCE "objective" findings control? ... Read More

Comfortably Numb: The Impact of Prescription Pain Medications on the Proper Determination of Permanent Disability
Posted on 19 Jan 2012 by Calif. WCAB Noteworthy Panel Decisions Reporter

It may be an unfortunate reality but narcotics are a common aspect of medical treatment within the workers’ compensation system. As pain is an extremely individual experience, it is difficult if not impossible to assess whether the medications prescribed... Read More

A New Mediation Track to Combat Opioid Use by Injured Workers
Posted on 3 Nov 2015 by Deborah Kohl

Massachusetts’ new pilot program aims to break the emphasis on opioids On October 23, 2015, attorneys and judges from Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire gathered at Gillette Stadium to discuss a variety of workers’ compensation... Read More

Arizona: Liberal Construction of Comp Statutes Allows Court to Ignore Pain Requirement in Hernia Case
Posted on 10 Oct 2014 by Larson's Spotlight

An Arizona appellate court affirmed a decision of the state’s Industrial Commission awarding benefits for a hernia that was unaccompanied by pain in spite of a clear statutory requirement that the immediate cause of the hernia must be a severe strain... Read More

Alabama: Court Approves Award for Erectile Dysfunction Medication in Spite of Rule Limiting Such Awards
Posted on 11 Sep 2015 by Larson's Spotlight

An Alabama appellate court affirmed an award for a prescription medication in the form of a “time release” medication for erectile dysfunction that an employee contended was associated with his use of prescription narcotics to manage pain... Read More

Nebraska: Wyoming Coroner’s Report Not Entitled to Full Faith and Credit
Posted on 13 Feb 2015 by Larson's Spotlight

A Wyoming county coroner’s report that listed the cause of death as an accidental overdose of medications an injured worker was taking to relieve pain following a compensable injury is evidence to be considered, but it is not entitled to full faith... Read More

California: WCAB Affirms Medical Treatment in the Form of Sleep Number i8 Bed
Posted on 14 Mar 2015 by Calif. WCAB Noteworthy Panel Decisions Reporter

In Carnes v. Auto Zone, Inc., 2015 Cal. Wrk. Comp. P.D. LEXIS --, a split panel WCAB affirmed the WCJ’s order that the defendant authorize medical treatment in the form of a Sleep Number i8 bed based on the reporting of the applicant’s treating... Read More

Morbidity, Disability, Cost, Pain & Distress: Exposing the True Burden of Workers’ Compensation
Posted on 30 Jul 2017 by Karen C. Yotis

By Karen C. Yotis, Esq., Feature Resident Columnist, LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter A resolute new analytic essay about the substantial impact that the underestimation of workers’ comp risk has on national welfare and public... Read More

Five Recent Workers’ Comp Cases You Should Know About (11/11/2011) – New York City Auditor Was Not Engaged in "Recovery" Activities Following 9/11 Attacks
Posted on 11 Nov 2011 by Larson's Spotlight

Larson's Spotlight on 9/11 Claim, Average Weekly Wage, Pain and Permanent Total Disability, Intentional Tort Claim, and Bad Faith. Larson's surveys the latest case developments that you need to know about. Thomas A. Robinson, the staff writer... Read More

New Mexico: Court Approves Injured Worker’s Use of Medical Marijuana
Posted on 23 Jan 2015 by Larson's Spotlight

Where an injured worker who had sustained work-related back injuries unsuccessfully sought “conventional” treatment for pain and discomfort and subsequently turned to the use of medical marijuana, the employer and insurer could be required... Read More

CWCI Summarizes 2011 California Workers’ Comp Enacted Legislation
Posted on 18 Oct 2011 by California Workers' Compensation Institute

The California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) has completed a review of 2011 legislation signed by Governor Brown and flagged 20 workers’ compensation related bills that were enacted this year. They include: AB 55, Gatto: Extension... Read More

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome as a Central Nervous System Disorder
Posted on 28 Nov 2014 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

A case study from California A case handled by this author involved the diagnosis of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) from a lower extremity industrial injury. The WCAB upheld a trial judge’s decision that a WPI rating can exceed the maximum... Read More