South Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

In a recent decision, the First District Court of Appeal in Florida addressed a worker’s compensation claim revolving around one individual’s heart disease. On appeal, the court had to decide whether the individual qualified for benefits based on a Florida statute stating that if a plaintiff departs from his doctor’s prescribed course of treatment, he may not be eligible for compensation. According to the court, the individual here did not significantly depart from his doctor’s prescribed course of treatment, and thus he was entitled to the benefits he requested.

The court began by examining the facts of the case: the plaintiff here was a deputy sheriff who suffered shortness of breath and chest pain on an overnight shift in February 2019. He was admitted to the hospital for a heart attack and immediately underwent an arterial stent implant procedure.

The plaintiff sought compensation for the injury, and his employer argued that he should not be entitled to compensation because he failed to follow his doctor’s prescribed course of treatment. Under Florida law, if a plaintiff in a worker’s compensation case significantly departs from the physician’s course of prescribed treatment, that plaintiff’s employer may not be responsible for compensating him after an injury.

Florida workers’ compensation law is designed to allow for workplace injuries to be addressed and relieved efficiently and without undue difficulty for the injured employee who seeks treatment. In reality, offering functional workers’ compensation coverage costs employers and providers money, and they will often delay or deny coverage to prop up their bottom line and save money. The Florida Court of Appeals recently addressed a claim by an employee that their employer willfully ignored the legal requirements of state law in order to delay offering the plaintiff the care they were entitled to.

The plaintiff in the recently decided case was an employee of the defendant, a Florida car dealership when she was injured on the job. Under her employment contract, she was directed to seek treatment using her employer’s workers’ compensation coverage. After her initial care, the woman’s doctor prescribed a home health aide to assist her with everyday duties during her recovery. Although the plaintiff was prescribed a home health care assistant, the defendant repeatedly notified her that the prescription was not detailed or accurate enough, and refused to pay for the care.

Pursuant to Florida workers’ compensation claim procedure, the plaintiff brought her request for coverage to a Florida Judge of Compensation Claims (JCC), who agreed with her employer that the prescription was not detailed enough to warrant coverage for the home health assistant. After the procedural rejection, the plaintiff brought the case to the Florida Court of appeals. The plaintiff argued that the doctor prescribing the care to her was clear and specific that she needed home health assistance, and the only ambiguity was the amount of care she would need, which could be determined based on an evaluation by the provider.

Workers’ compensation, sometimes known as workers’ comp, is a type of insurance that provides wage replacement and medical benefits to qualifying Florida employees who suffered injuries or illness in the course of their employment. Employers offer this benefit in exchange for the employee’s relinquishment of their right to sue the employer for civil negligence.

Although the legislative intent of workers’ compensation appears as an employee benefit, in practice, workers’ compensation often benefits employers, specifically those employers who have particularly hazardous work environments. Those who have suffered injuries at the workplace should consult with an attorney to determine the steps to take to preserve their rights to workers’ compensation benefits and potential third-party claims.

Steps to Take After a Workplace Injury

After a workplace injury, employees should report the accident or illness to their employer as soon as possible, but no later than thirty days after the incident. Then, the employer should report the injury to the insurance company no later than seven days after their knowledge. If they fail to do so, the employee has the right to report the injury to their insurance company. Employees should always seek medical treatment authorized by their employer or insurance company.

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In a recent decision, the First District Court of Appeals in Florida issued an opinion in an appeal involving a cancellation fee charged by the Employer/Carrier’s (E/C) independent medical examiner (IME). According to the record, Claimant was required to attend the independent medical examination while wearing a mask by the E/C. The parties did not dispute that Claimant attended the examination while wearing a mask. However, the E/C stated that by bringing a videographer to record the examination without prior notice, causing the IME to refuse to conduct the examination while being filmed, Claimant became responsible for half of the IME cancelation fee under section 440.13(5)(d), Florida Statutes (2019). E/C’s claim states that this is due to the fact that Claimant’s actions amounted to a “constructive no-show” by behaving in a manner that caused the IME to cancel the examination.

The judge of compensation claims (JCC) agreed with the claims made by the E/C, finding the cancellation was entirely of Claimant’s making as she did not provide notice that she would bring a videographer. Subsequently, the JCC granted the E/C an “award of taxable costs of $900.00 for one half of a cancellation fee charged by the E/C’s IME” under section 440.13(5)(d).

The appellate decision acknowledges that Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.360(a)(1)(A) “requires that the person to be examined must advise if the examination is to be recorded or observed by others, and shall include, inter alia, the number of people attending and the method or methods of recording,” but points out that “no corollary for this exists in the workers’ compensation rules or statutes.” In fact, the appellate court decision highlights the JCC’s broad discretion to award costs in such cases, and states that “generally, if a claimant can show good cause for the failure to attend an IME, no sanctions are awarded.” The appellate opinion further states that “the JCC must also ensure that the cancellation fee was properly charged, and the amount was appropriate under the circumstances.” Finally, the appellate decision points out that section 440.13(5)(d) “provides that payment of half of the no show fee” attaches if “the employee fails to appear for the independent medical examination,” but makes no mention of the “constructive failure to appear” that the JCC cites to. Ultimately, the appellate opinion finds that Claimant should not be charged with paying half of the IME cancellation fee under the facts presented.

Most Florida employers are required to have workers’ compensation insurance to cover the medical expenses of an employee who was injured while working. Workers’ compensation insurance guarantees that all medical treatment for work-related injuries will be paid for on behalf of the employer, following Florida law. Workers’ compensation insurance also can cover additional expenses and accommodations that may need to be addressed as an injured employee returns to work. Although workers’ compensation laws and insurance are designed to insulate workers from the consequences of an injury, many employers and employees do not have a full understanding of what is covered, and how to make a claim. The Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation website has a workers’ compensation section that addresses many of these questions.

Florida workers’ compensation insurance covers all of the medical bills that were incurred from an on-the-job injury. Additionally, employees are entitled to ⅔ of their usual wages if they are unable to work for over 7 days. To start the process of using workers’ compensation coverage for medical care, an injured employee should report the injury to their employer as soon as possible after the injury. Failure to report an injury within 30 days may result in the denial of an otherwise eligible claim. Within 7 days of receiving the report from their employee, your employer should notify their insurance company of the claim. If an employer is refusing to cooperate, the employee also may notify the insurance company themselves.

After a workers’ compensation claim has been opened, the injured worker should be able to receive all medical treatment that was ordered by the doctor. This includes any inpatient or outpatient care, physical therapy, prescriptions, and other ancillary care related to the injury. Compensation for lost work is also available, but may only cover anywhere from one to 104 weeks, depending on the facts of each case. Injured workers may also be eligible for other benefits through the federal government’s social security program, however, coverage limits do apply.

If a worker is injured on the job, there may be many avenues of relief for them to receive treatment and compensation. In the event of a purely accidental injury, the first line of coverage for an injured worker is workers’ compensation insurance. This insurance will pay for treatment and lost work expenses for an injured employee of the policyholder. Workers’ compensation coverage is desirable because it covers injured employees regardless of fault. Workers’ compensation coverage does not generally pay out as much as would a negligent or intentional tort claim.

In Florida, an injured worker may be able to pursue a personal injury claim against their employer or any other negligent party who caused the worker’s injuries. A personal injury claim may include higher amounts of damages for things like disability/disfigurement, pain and suffering, and other special damages. Because personal injury claims allow larger awards than workers’ compensation claims, injured Florida plaintiffs may want to pursue a personal injury claim instead of a worker’s compensation claim when appropriate. The Florida Court of Appeals recently rejected an injured plaintiff’s attempt to recover damages for her workplace injury through a personal injury claim.

The plaintiff in the recently decided case was the project manager for one construction company on a construction site. Employees for the defendant, another subcontractor on the job, moved a staircase from in front of the plaintiff’s trailer and failed to return it before leaving. After the plaintiff arrived at her trailer in the early morning, she didn’t see the missing staircase, fell over 3 feet, and was injured. The plaintiff pursued a worker’s compensation claim with her employer as well as a personal injury claim against the company that employed the workers who moved the staircase.