When a party files a document in the world of Pennsylvania workers’ compensation, it means something. As with most areas of the law, parties are bound by what is filed. So, a recent decision by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, addressing an attempt by a workers’ comp insurance carrier to…
Articles Posted in Case Law Update
IRE Must Consider All Medical Conditions “Due To” The Work Injury
As we have addressed in a previous blog post, discussing the case of City of Philadelphia v. Turner (Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board), a Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) cannot allow the conditions considered by an Impairment Rating Evaluation (IRE) to be only those conditions formally accepted by the workers’ compensation insurance…
PA Supreme Court Upholds Coverage for all “Medicines and Supplies” Related to Work Injury
Back in November, 2023, we discussed the case of M.R. Schmidt v. Schmidt, Kirifides and Rassias, PC (Workers Compensation Appeal Board). As you may recall, this case addressed an issue regarding payment for CBD oil used in conjunction with treatment for a work-related injury. The Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) ordered…
PA Workers’ Comp Insurer Fails to Prove Injured Worker Withdrew From Labor Market
While we do not typically discuss “unreported” decisions of the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania (see this blog post on the difference between reported and unreported decisions), a recent such decision touches on an important topic – the concept of a voluntary withdrawal from the labor market, or, in normal language,…
“Specific Loss” Benefits in PA Workers’ Compensation Has Higher Benefit Rate Than Total Disability
Workers’ compensation benefits in Pennsylvania consist of three types (aside from fatal claim benefits, which are not really relevant for this discussion). These are described in detail on our website. There are wage loss benefits (also known as “indemnity”), medical benefits and “specific loss” benefits. Specific loss benefits are paid…
PA Injured Worker Unable to Add Medical Condition Related to Accepted Work Injury
As we have discussed in this blog previously, changes to an accepted work injury in PA come in two types – “corrective” and “consequential.” The difference between these two situations can make or break a case, as recently illustrated by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania in their decision in the…
DHS Lien Not Automatically Reimbursable Under PA Workers’ Comp
While perhaps not of interest to every injured worker, the subject of PA Department of Human Services’ (DHS) liens is one that appears from time to time in Pennsylvania workers’ compensation cases. And, while the injured workers may not have a huge interest, the PA workers’ compensation insurance companies surely…
PA Workers Compensation Judge Must Consider All Conditions “Due To” A Work Injury In IRE
One of the bigger “victories” by the PA workers’ compensation insurance industry against the injured workers in Pennsylvania is the Impairment Rating Evaluation (IRE) process. Under this process, after an injured worker has received 104 weeks of temporary total disability benefits, the insurance company can initiate an IRE, which can…
No Credit For Pension Benefits Against PA Workers’ Compensation Benefits Post-Retirement
The Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act (“Act”) has several “offsets,” which provide a workers’ comp insurer with a credit for other types of benefits received by an injured worker, such as unemployment compensation, Social Security Retirement (“SSR”), severance and pension benefits. These offsets were created to avoid a perceived “double dipping”…
When PA Workers’ Compensation Insurer Is Not Bound By Stipulation
When we litigate cases in the Pennsylvania workers’ compensation system, we often resolve such matters through a Stipulation of Facts. This agreement of the parties is then approved by a Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) and has the same effect as any other decision of a WCJ. This kind of resolution…