Frank joined Marshall Dennehey in 1992. As a member of the Workers' Compensation Practice Group, he has devoted his practice to representing employers from many different industries in a variety of Pennsylvania workers' compensation claims. Frank has successfully defended construction companies, food service companies, nursing homes, pharmaceutical companies, retail stores and supermarkets in cases involving hearing loss due to exposure, occupational noise, psychiatric injuries from abnormal working conditions, injuries from contact with toxic chemicals in the workplace and fatalities.
Frank's articles on important Pennsylvania workers' compensation cases frequently appear in well-known employer publications, such as the A.M. Best Insurance Digest, Counterpoint and the Pennsylvania Self Insurers' Association newsletter. He is a writer and editor of the firm's What's Hot In Workers' Compensation, a monthly update on significant developments in Pennsylvania workers' compensation law. Frank has also given numerous presentations and seminars on critical developments in Pennsylvania workers' compensation law to various employer and insurance industry groups, as well as to his colleagues.
Frank received his undergraduate degree from Villanova University in 1986. He attended the Widener University School of Law and obtained his juris doctor in 1989. In law school, Frank was a staff writer for the Delaware Law Forum and was selected to sit on its editorial board.
Frank is an active member of the workers' compensation sections of the Pennsylvania and Montgomery Bar associations. He also has a long association with the Upper Merion Lacrosse Club as a member of the board, as well as with the King of Prussia Soccer Club, where he has served as a soccer coach in the boys travel soccer program for many years.
Representative Cases
· School District of Philadelphia v. WCAB (Hennegan), 751 A.2d 729 (Pa. Cmmwlth. 2000)
· McKinney v. WCAB (Decision Data), 752 A.2d 928 (Pa. Cmmwlth. 2000) (rev. per cuiam, 770 A.2d 326 (Pa. 2001))
Published Works
· "Independent Contractor or Employee: Supreme Court Rolls Over Controversial Commonwealth Court Decision Holding That Federal and State Motor Carrier Regulations Require Finding of Employment," Defense Digest, Vol. 7, No. 2, April 2001
· "Decisions Impact Workers' Comp Benefits: Court Focuses on Release Agreement, Length of Employment," The Legal Intelligencer, March 2001
· "Lykins: The Supreme Court Eliminates Unemployment Compensation Credit for pre-Act 44 Injuries," Counterpoint, January 1999
· "Act 44 and Pre-Amendment Injuries: Banic Breaks the Mold," P.S.I.A. Workers' Compensation Newsletter, March 1996
Classes/Seminars Taught
· Speaker, Ethical Considerations in Workers' Compensation, Montgomery Bar Association, 2000
· Speaker, Interplay Between Workers' Compensation and Liability, Insurance Society of Philadelphia, 1999
· Speaker, Act 57 and its Impact On Workers' Compensation Litigation, Pottstown Hospital, February 1998
Past Employment Positions
· Law Offices Of John Paul Curran, Esquire, Philadelphia, 1990-1992
· FELA Personal Injury Firm, Associate Attorney
Associations & Memberships
· Montgomery County Bar Association
· Pennsylvania Bar Association
Year Joined Organization: 1992
Publications
Vol. 16, No. 4, April 2012
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · April 1, 2012
Vol. 16, No. 3, March 2012
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · March 1, 2012
Special Pennsylvania Alert - Pennsylvania Chamber of Business And Industry Proposes Reforms To the Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Act
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · February 24, 2012
The Workers' Compensation Executive Committee of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry is proposing comprehensive reforms to the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act. The proposals made are aimed squarely at the high cost of...
Vol. 16, No. 2, February 2012
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · February 1, 2012
Vol. 16, No. 1, January 2012
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · January 1, 2012
SPECIAL EDITION: Top 10 Developments in 2011 Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware Workers' Compensation
Vol. 15, No. 11, November 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · November 1, 2011
Special Pennsylvania Alert - New Utilization Review Request Form (LIBC 601)
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · October 27, 2011
Starting October 24, 2011, and mandatory as of January 2, 2012, the Bureau of Workers' Compensation has authorized a new Utilization Review Request form (LIBC 601) for use in challenging the reasonableness and necessity of a...
Special Pennsylvania Alert - Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board v. WCAB
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · October 14, 2011
Recently, the Commonwealth Court issued a decision in a psychic injury case that is causing a stir in the workers' compensation community on a national level. In PA Liquor Control Board v. WCAB (Kochanowicz); 760 C.D., 2010;...
The Supreme Court holds that an insurer is entitled to Supersedeas Fund reimbursement for payment of a medical bill made after a request for supersedeas was denied, even though the bill was for treatment received before the supersedeas request was made.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
In this case, the claimant, who was receiving benefits for a July 1995 work injury, was seen for an independent medical evaluation (IME) on March 16, 2004. On June 1st of that year, surgery was performed on the claimant, which the claimant...
The claimant's failure to seek employment does not establish voluntary retirement from the workforce so as to warrant suspension of benefits.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
The claimant sustained a work-related knee injury and then underwent knee replacement surgery, after which she was limited to performing only full-time sedentary work. The claimant initially looked for suitable work and applied for every job lead,...
A prior utilization review Determination, finding treatment the claimant received from the same chiropractor to be reasonable and necessary, does not stop the employer from requesting utilization review of that same treatment in the future.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
In this case, the employer filed a utilization review (UR) request concerning the reasonableness and necessity of chiropractic treatment being provided to the claimant beginning December 31, 2007. Previously, a decision had been issued by a workers...
The Act does not require a workers' compensation carrier to pay the full amount of a medical provider's bill if it does not downcode the bill within 30 days of the date it was submitted.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
In this case, Jeffrey Yablon, M.D. and Vincent Ferrara, M.D. appealed a determination made by a fee review hearing officer that the workers' compensation insurer did not lose the right to "downcode" charges because more than 30 days had passed after...
Pennsylvania Supreme Court redefines what constitutes sufficient notice of a work injury.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
The claimant in this case, a 45-year employee who worked as an Air Force helmet inspector, left work complaining about intolerable pain in her hands but did not report her condition as work-related. She submitted an application for short-term...
Vol. 15, No. 10, October 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · October 1, 2011
An employer's job offer letter inviting a return to work to a previous job with modifications based on current medical restrictions, but without detailing the duties of the work, is sufficient to support a modification of benefits.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
Following an IME identifying that the claimant could return to work in a modified, medium-duty capacity, the employer notified the claimant simply that his work activities would be modified to accommodate the IME's work restrictions. When the...
A claimant's burden of proof on a reinstatement petition was not met where the claimant's evidence failed to show that the reason for a suspension of benefits no longer existed.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
The claimant sustained a work-related injury to his low back in April of 2002. Approximately two years later, he returned to his regular job with no restrictions, and his benefits were suspended pursuant to a Notification of Suspension. In June of...
In calculating a claimant's average weekly wage, §309(d) applies when the claimant is a long-term employee. The workers' compensation judge properly subtracted depreciation from commission earnings in calculating the claimant's average weekly wage.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2011
In this case, a workers' compensation judge issued a decision concerning the calculation of the claimant's average weekly wage (AWW). In calculating the AWW, the judge included substantially lower earnings from periods prior to the time the claimant...
Vol. 15, No. 9, September 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · September 1, 2011
Vol. 15, No. 8, August 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · August 1, 2011
Special Pennsylvania Alert - Important Pennsylvania Supreme Court Workers' Compensation Decisions
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · July 25, 2011
The Supreme Court Holds That an Insurer Is Entitled to Supersedeas Fund Reimbursement for Payment of a Medical Bill Made After a Request for Supersedeas Was Denied, Even Though the Bill Was for Medical Treatment Received Before the Supersedeas...
Special Pennsylvania Alert - Act 46 of 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · July 15, 2011
On July 7, 2011, Governor Tom Corbett signed House Bill 797 into law, which designates cancer as an occupational disease for firefighters. Under the new law (Act 46 of 2011), firefighters can receive workers' compensation benefits if they...
Vol. 15, No. 7, July 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · July 1, 2011
Acceptance of disability pension alone does not establish a presumption that the claimant voluntarily left the workforce so as to suspend benefits.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2011
This claimant was not working and was receiving workers' compensation benefits when he obtained a service-connected disability pension from the employer. An independent medical evaluation then determined that the claimant was capable of performing...
The employer's issuance of a box four notice of workers' compensation denial does not estop the employer from denying a work place injury.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2011
The employer issued a notice of workers' compensation denial, acknowledging that a low back injury took place but denying that the claimant was disabled as a result of the work injury. The claimant then filed a claim petition. During litigation of...
A request for utilization review by the employer does not constitute an admission of causation or prohibit the employer from denying causation.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2011
The claimant began receiving workers' compensation benefits for a work-related low back strain and sprain pursuant to a Notice of Temporary Compensation Payable that later converted to a notice of compensation payable. Later, the claimant began to...
Vol. 15, No. 6, June 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · June 1, 2011
Vol. 15, No. 5, May 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · May 1, 2011
Minimal findings identifying the basis of a workers' compensation judge's decision on the credibility of a treating physician and a claimant's disability are sufficient to uphold a claim petition.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant, who received 500 weeks of partial disability benefits for coal workers' pneumoconiosis, petitioned for total disability benefits, which were granted by the workers' compensation judge on the basis of the claimant's medical evidence. On...
An employer is not precluded from seeking a termination or suspension of benefits on a date prior to the date of the notice of compensation payable.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant was injured in a car accident while working as a probation officer. She began treating with a panel chiropractor, who subsequently found her to be fully recovered from the work-related strains and sprains as of October 19, 1995. However...
Claimant's failure to provide notice of a work injury within 120 days as required by section 311 of the Act warrants denial of claim petition.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
A claim and penalty petition were denied by the workers' compensation judge and affirmed by the Appeal Board and Commonwealth Court. The workers' compensation judge had found that the claimant failed to establish through substantial, credible...
Vol. 15, No. 4, April 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · April 1, 2011
Although the claimant's petition to review was not filed within 3 years of the last payment of compensation, the employer's petition to terminate benefits was. Therefore, the workers' compensation judge did not err in expanding the claimant's injuries.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant sustained a work-related injury on January 31, 2003. Thereafter, the claimant received workers' compensation benefits pursuant to a notice of compensation payable (NCP) issued by the employer. The NCP described the work injury as a...
A report issued by the employer's medical expert that contained a critical typographical error is not competent evidence to support a workers' compensation judge's expansion of the claimant's injuries.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
Following the claimant's work injury, the employer filed a petition to terminate the claimant's benefits. The claimant challenged the petition and also filed a Review Petition, seeking to expand the nature of the work injury to include...
The court invalidates the results of an ire because the ire physician did not use the most recent edition of the AMA guides.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
Following the claimant's work injury, the employer requested an Impairment Rating Examination (IRE) within the time frame that would allow the employer to obtain self-executing relief. The results of the evaluation were that the claimant had a 13%...
A claimant who was injured after voluntarily jumping down a flight of stairs during his lunch hour is not in the course and scope of his employment and is not entitled to workers' compensation benefits.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant, who was employed as a cook with the employer's food service department, also worked in the employer's housing department during the summer. On the day of his injury, he was cleaning dorm rooms. While walking from a dorm to the dining...
A fee review petition is held to be timely when filed within 90 days of billing date.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant's treating physician disputed the insurer's payment of services by filing an application for fee review under section 306(f.1) (5) of the Act 85 days after the original billing date. The Bureau granted the fee petition. The insurer...
A state police officer involved in the horrific death scene investigation of an infant failed to establish abnormal working conditions in order to state a claim for psychological injury.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2011
The claimant, an investigator for the Pennsylvania State Police, was involved in homicide investigations by providing forensic and photographic services. One case he investigated ("Baby Jane Doe") involved a baby girl found in a plastic big near a...
Special Pennsylvania Alert - The Employer's Issuance of a Box Four Notice of Workers' Compensation Denial Does Not Stop the Employer From Denying a Work Place Injury
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · March 4, 2011
The employer issued a Notice of Workers' Compensation Denial, acknowledging that a low back injury took place but denying that the claimant was disabled as a result of the work injury. The claimant then filed a Claim Petition. During...
Vol. 15, No. 3, March 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · March 1, 2011
Vol. 15, No. 2, February 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · February 1, 2011
Special Pennsylvania Alert - New Bureau Workers' Compensation Forms
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · January 31, 2011
Effective February 1, 2011, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers' Compensation has mandated the use of two new forms involving settlements via Compromise and Release Agreements. Prior forms will no longer be accepted as of that date...
An order granting a penalty petition, based on a failure to make payment, is vacated when there was no finding as to whether proper notice of correct address was given and no determination was made whether the employer acted with reasonable diligence.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant filed a penalty petition for late payment of a settlement that was part of an approved Compromise and Release Agreement. The decision approving the settlement was circulated on October 17, 2008, and the settlement payment was made on...
The pro-rata reimbursement rate being paid to the claimant during a grace period also applies to periods when the claimant receives partial disability benefits due to a return to work at reduced wages.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
Following the claimant's work injury, he received a third party recovery, and a Third Party Settlement Agreement was executed. Pursuant to that agreement, the employer was to reimburse the claimant $216.88 per week for a period of 1,353.6 weeks. The...
An insurer is entitled to a supersedeas recovery of the portion of attorney's fees incurred to obtain the third party recovery.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The workers' compensation insurer sought to obtain supersedeas fund reimbursement for the amount of attorney's fees incurred to obtain a third party recovery. The court held that attorney's fees incurred under section 319 to obtain a third party...
Supreme Court holds that the employer does not need to present evidence of earning power to change a claimant's status from total to partial disability under section 306(a.2) of the Act based on an impairment rating evaluation.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
Section 306 (a.2) of the Act authorizes an automatic change of disability status from total to partial when an employer obtains an Impairment Rating Evaluation ("IRE") within 60 days after a claimant has received 104 weeks of total...
The claimant's employment is principally localized in Pennsylvania when evidence is presented that the claimant spent a substantial part of his work time in the Commonwealth.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant was a truck driver who was injured in an accident that occurred in Vermont. The claimant received workers' compensation benefits in the state of Ohio. However, the claimant filed a claim petition requesting benefits under the...
The Supreme Court holds that a claimant seeking a reinstatement of suspended benefits must prove that earning power is again adversely affected by the disability and that the disability is a continuation of that which arose from the original claim.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant sustained an injury to his low back while working for the employer. The claimant later returned to work for that employer in a modified, light-duty position. Later, the claimant voluntarily left this light-duty position to begin work at...
An employer's eleventh hour refusal to proceed with a compromise and release agreement does not violate the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant was injured while working for an employer that was under sub-contract with a general contractor, and the claimant was paid benefits. Later, the case was mediated, and an agreement was reached to settle the claim. At the mediation...
Vol. 15, No. 1, January 2011
What's Hot in Worker's Comp · January 1, 2011
SPECIAL EDITION - Top 10 Developments in 2010 in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware Workers' Compensation
The employer is not entitled to a suspension of the claimant's benefits when the employer did not provide sufficient evidence to show that under the totality of circumstances the claimant intended to terminate her career.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
In this case, following the claimant's work injury, she returned to light-duty work for the employer. Thereafter, while traveling to an appointment for treatment for her work-related injury, the claimant was involved in a car accident and sustained...
A finding of full recovery in an administrative hearing for act 632 benefits collaterally estops the claimant from contesting a termination petition.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant worked as a manager in the commissary of the Camp Hill State Correctional Facility. She was identified on a "hit list" created by the prisoners and was verbally assaulted by inmates. She filed a psychiatric claim, which was accepted as...
Commonwealth Court holds that employer did not meet burden of proof that widow entered into common law marriage so as to warrant termination of widow's benefits under section 307 of the Act.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant in this case received workers' compensation benefits as a result of the death of her husband. The employer filed a termination petition to stop payment of benefits because the widow was involved in a meretricious relationship with...
Testimony from a physician who performed an IME of a claimant after the employer filed a petition for review of a utilization review determination can still be considered by the court.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2011
The claimant filed a utilization review Request, seeking to increase unskilled home assistance that was being provided to her. The reviewer found that the increase in assistance was reasonable and necessary, and the employer filed a Petition for...
An employer may properly issue a notice of compensation denial to accept a claimed work injury for medical purposes only.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
In this case, following the claimant's work injury, the employer issued a Notice of Compensation Denial ("NCD"), indicating that investigation was ongoing, pending receipt of medical documentation. Later, the employer issued a corrected NCD,...
Claimant's good faith effort in applying for jobs is not a factor when an employer seeks a modification of benefits based on residual earning capacity.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
Following the claimant's work injury, the employer filed a modification petition, alleging that the claimant had a residual earning capacity. The employer presented evidence from a vocational counselor, who testified that he identified five jobs...
A workers' compensation judge's dismissal of a modification petition on the basis that an IME more than six months old rendered the job referrals invalid is arbitrary and not supported by substantial evidence.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
The claimant in this case was injured in 1994. The employer filed a petition to suspend/Modify Benefits, alleging that work was available to the claimant and the claimant failed to make a good faith effort to pursue the jobs that were referred. The...
Reimbursement payments made by an insurance carrier to a township employer during a time the claimant's benefits were suspended do not constitute an admission of liability for the claimant's disability compensation.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
Following injuries sustained by the claimant in a work-related motor vehicle accident, the claimant returned to work light duty. The claimant's benefits were suspended by a Notification of Suspension. Eventually, the claimant resumed his pre-injury...
Judge's determination that the claimant was not within the scope of employment when injured while undergoing tuberculin test as part of the hiring process is upheld.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
The issue in this case was whether the claimant was within the scope of employment when she had an adverse reaction and fell while undergoing a tuberculin test required as part of the application for work with the employer. The Judge found that the...
A claimant's review petition to amend a notice of compensation payable that is not filed within the statutory limitation period is subject to being dismissed as time barred.
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
Following the claimant's work injury, a notice of compensation payable (NCP) was issued describing the injury. Five years after the NCP was issued, and four years after the claimant's benefits were suspended upon her return to work with no loss of...
An employee's fall in a parking lot, located between buildings leased by the employer, while intending to leave the premises for an unpaid lunch is held to be within the scope of employment under §301(c)(1).
Law Alerts · October 1, 2010
The employer argued that an employee who left the workplace to take an unpaid lunch break and who slipped and fell on the surface of a parking lot not owned or leased by the employer was not "on the premises" thereof and, thus, was outside...
When is "payment" of compensation made pursuant to a temporary notice of compensation payable so as to require five days notice to stop payment?
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
This case involved the situation where a Notice of Temporary Compensation Payable was issued to a claimant along with a check in payment of the initial wage loss. The employer then decided that the injury was not disabling and issued a stop payment...
A workers' compensation judge's decision crediting medical testimony that included a description of injury beyond that described in the notice of compensation payable is binding in a subsequent termination petition.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
In this case, the Commonwealth Court reinforced the recent Supreme Court decision in Cinram Manufacturing, Inc. v. WCAB (Hill), 975 A.2d 577 (Pa. 2009), that a workers' compensation judge may expand the scope of the accepted injury without a claim...
Employer subject to penalty for continuing nonpayment of medical expenses while litigating petition to review URO that found medical treatment reasonable and necessary.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
The employer challenged the imposition of a penalty for violating the Act for failing to pay medical bills which were determined by a utilization review to be reasonable and necessary during the time that the employer's UR Review Petition was in...
Commonwealth Court clarifies that a utilization review challenge to physical therapy treatment need not name each individual therapist who provides treatment.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
Since the decisions in Schenck v. WCAB (Ford Electronics), 937 A.2d 1156 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2007), and Bucks County Community College v. WCAB (Nemes), 918 A.2d 150 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2007), employers have been faced with the challenge that a utilization review...
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court holds that a furlough allowance is not a severance benefit and, therefore, the employer is not entitled to a credit for it against workers' compensation payments under section 204 (a) of the Workers' Compensation Act.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
The claimant, a member of the passenger service employees' union, sustained a work injury to his right knee. The claimant filed a claim petition seeking partial disability benefits for a limited period of time and total disability benefits...
The medical provider's failure to provide the URO with the password to access encrypted medical records does not satisfy the requirement of section 127.464 to provide the URO with the claimant's medical records.
Law Alerts · July 1, 2010
The Commonwealth Court affirmed a decision of the Workers' Compensation Appeal Board that a medical provider's mailing of a CD-ROM with the claimant's complete records, whose contents were inaccessible to the URO due to an encrypted password that...
An employer is not required to prove that a notice of ability to return to work is sent on a specific date in order to establish that the notice was promptly provided as required by §306 (b) (3) of the Act.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
This is a case that was reconsidered by the Commonwealth Court after the court granted a Petition for Reconsideration of a July 29, 2000, opinion. In this case, following the claimant's work injury, a Functional Capacity Evaluation ("FCE") was...
A workers' compensation judge has discretion under § 314 (a) of the Act to suspend wage loss and/or medical benefits of a claimant who refused to attend an independent medical examination.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
In a case of first impression, the Commonwealth Court held that a workers' compensation judge has discretion under §314 (a) of the Act to suspend medical benefits, in addition to wage benefits, where a claimant refuses to attend an independent...
A claimant who accepts a buyout from the employer while on modified duty is entitled to a reinstatement of temporary total disability benefits.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
In this case, following the claimant's work-related left knee injury, he returned to work for the employer in a light duty capacity. Thereafter, the claimant had knee surgery and was released to return to work with restrictions. The claimant was...
An employer does not, per se, engage in unreasonable contest when it files a penalty petition against the claimant.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
Following the claimant's work injury, the claimant settled a related third party case while receiving benefits. In March 2007, a workers' compensation judge found that the employer was entitled to reimbursement of its accrued subrogation lien and a...
A claimant who accepts a buyout from the employer while on modified duty is entitled to a reinstatement of temporary total disability benefits.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
In this case, following the claimant's work-related left knee injury, he returned to work for the employer in a light duty capacity. Thereafter, the claimant had knee surgery and was released to return to work with restrictions. The claimant was...
An employer does not, per se, engage in unreasonable contest when it files a penalty petition against the claimant.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
Following the claimant's work injury, the claimant settled a related third party case while receiving benefits. In March 2007, a workers' compensation judge found that the employer was entitled to reimbursement of its accrued subrogation lien and a...
A claimant who refuses to undergo a drug detox program to be weaned off medications taken for a work injury is subject to suspension of benefits.
Law Alerts · April 1, 2010
The Court upheld a suspension of benefits where the claimant refused to undergo a detoxification program that would wean her off toxic doses of medication taken for the work injury. The employer petitioned to terminate compensation benefits the...
Two separate and distinct work injuries do not equal two consecutive 500-week periods of partial disability.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2010
The claimant was a registered nurse at Allegheny General Hospital. On February 24, 1996, she suffered a work-related injury to her shoulder, which was accepted via a notice of compensation payable ("NCP"). The claimant returned to work performing...
An employer is obligated to pay for modifications to a claimant's bathroom, as well as repairs necessitated by the substandard construction of those modifications.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2010
The claimant suffered a low back injury and was unable to use his legs. He was confined to a wheelchair as a result of his injuries. Following the claimant's injury, the employer loaned the claimant money to purchase a house. The employer made...
There is no requirement under the Act that the specialty of a physician who performs an impairment rating evaluation be directly related to the nature of the claimant's work injury.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2010
In this case, following her work injury, the claimant underwent an Impairment Rating Evaluation ("IRE"). The IRE physician determined that the claimant had an impairment rating of 15%. The employer then issued a Notice of Change of Workers'...
The claimant must present medical evidence to defeat a modification petition where the employer's medical expert testifies that the claimant may work 40 hours a week and up to 10 hours in any single day.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2010
The claimant sustained a work-related injury to her low back and was awarded total disability benefits after filing a claim petition. The employer's doctor released the claimant to perform sedentary work, 40 hours per week, and the employer made a...
The Supreme Court reverses the Commonwealth Court and holds that an earning power assessment performed in the area where the claimant resides is insufficient to justify a modification of benefits under §306 (b) of the Act.
Law Alerts · January 1, 2010
In this case, the claimant sustained a work-related injury while working for the employer in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The claimant was a West Virginia resident. Following the injury, the employer filed a petition to modify/Suspend the claimant's...