Iowa Workers' Compensation

In Pella Corp. v. Winn , No. 14-0771 (Iowa App. May 6, 2015), the Court of Appeals addressed issues concerning the date of injury in the context of a cumulative injury, and notice issues associated with the date of injury.  Claimant was awarded benefits by the agency, but the district court concluded that the agency had failed to use the correct legal test in determining the date of the cumulative injury.  The district court remanded the case to the agency and found that the employer was entitled to assert an untimely notice defense on appeal.  The Court of Appeals agreed with the district court that the correct legal test was not used, but also finds that the notice defense could not be considered on remand. Claimant had a left shoulder injury and returned to work after that injury.  She began having problems in the right shoulder and saw a nurse practitioner for the problem on June 1, 2010.  Following an MRI, a rotator cuff tear in the right shoulder was als...

In Wal-Mart Stores v. Johnson , No. 10-0358 (Iowa App. Jan. 20, 2011), the Court of Appeals affirmed the award of permanency benefits awarded by the commissioner.  Claimant's treating physician, Dr. Hlavin, had concluded that claimant's neck, shoulder and arm problems were due to her work activities.  The employer denied benefits, and sought to have claimant attend a defense medical examination with Dr. Boulden.  Claimant refused to attend, arguing that there was no right to an 85.39 examination in a denied claim.  The employer filed a motion to compel  attendance, and in the meantime, Dr. Boulden denied causation in a records review evaluation. The deputy denied defendants' request for an 85.39 exam, and a motion to reconsider on the same subject was denied.  At hearing, the deputy made an oral ruling that the employer was not entitled to the 85.39 exam.  The deputy found a 40% industrial loss.  In the written decision, the 85.39 issue was not ...