The start of a new year is the perfect time to review your list of panel providers. Make certain that your list meets the requirements of at least six designated health care providers. At least three of the providers must be physicians and no more than four can be a coordinated care organization. At least one provider on the list must be a chiropractor. The list must include the names, addresses, phone numbers, and areas of medical specialties of all health care providers and be …
Continue ReadingAuthor: Stacy A. Tees
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Declares IRE Provision of the Workers’ Compensation Act Unconstitutional
On June 20, 2017, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court found Section 306(a.2) of the Workers’ Compensation Act to be unconstitutional. The decision in Protz v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Bd. (Derry Area School District) means that indemnity benefits are no longer subject to a cap.
In the majority opinion authored by Justice Wecht, the court determined that the General Assembly’s delegation of authority to the American Medical Association (AMA), a private entity, was unconstitutional. The General Assembly must not only make “basic policy choices,” but it must …
Continue ReadingPost-Accident Drug Testing: Part 6 — Pennsylvania
Under the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act, Act 44 excludes from coverage injuries that would not have occurred but for the intoxication of the employee. Mahon v. WCAB (Expert Window Cleaning), 835 A.2d 420 (Pa.Cmwlth. 2003). The burden of proof is on the employer and is two-pronged. First, the employer must establish that the employee was intoxicated either from drugs or alcohol. Second, the employer must establish that the use either caused the injury or was a major and very substantial contributing fact to the …
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