Court of Appeals Holds That Section 85.34(7) Apportionment Provisions Only Apply to Preexisting Disability, Not A Preexisting Condition
Newton Community School District v. Hubbard-McKinney , No. 22-0030 (Iowa App. Feb. 22, 2023) In this claim, Ms. Hubbard-McKinney suffered an injury to her leg, which resulted in a 9% impairment. The parties also agreed that of the 9% impairment, 7% of the 9% was attributable to a preexisting condition and 2% was directly caused by the fall at work. Defendants argued that it was not responsible for that portion of the disability relating to the preexisting condition. The commissioner rejected this argument and awarded claimant the entire 9% impairment. The Court indicated that the issue was one of apportionment and noted that the pre-2017 case of Warren Props. v. Stewart , 864 N.W.2d 307, 315 (Iowa 2015) referred to 85.34(7) as a rule of apportionment. On appeal, the employer relied on the language in 85.34(7) that an "employer is not liable for compensating an employee's preexisting disability that arose out of an in the course of employment . . . from causes unrelated...