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BOUCHER v. PEERLESS PRODUCTS5/3/1996
Peerless Products, Inc., and Home Indemnity Company (Peerless) appeal from an order of the Workers Compensation Board (Board) reversing the order of the administrative law judge (ALJ) which denied an award for permanent partial disability and allowed an award for medical expenses incurred and future
medical compensation. The facts surrounding Boucher's accidental injury at Peerless are not at issue, and there is no dispute that the parties stipulated before the ALJ that if an award for permanent partial impairment was made, it would be a 9.2% permanent partial disability to the body as a whole. Peerless contends the Board erred in awarding a permanent partial disability benefit because the injury did not cause Boucher to miss any time from work. Peerless also contends that the Board erred in affirming the ALJ's award of future medical compensation because Boucher had not shown a need for future medical treatment.
Boucher works as a plant manager for Peerless. In November 1993, while stopped at a stoplight on his way to a company meeting, Boucher's car was hit from behind by another car. At the time, Boucher was not treated for any injury. He later developed pain and discomfort in his neck which required medical attention. Boucher did not miss any work because of the accident or his ensuing injury.
Boucher attended physical therapy sessions two to three times per week for approximately 4 weeks following the accident. As of the time of the hearing before the ALJ, he had not seen a doctor for 10 months. Boucher still has problems of stiffness and restricted mobility with his neck that he did not have before. His condition does not prevent him from performing his duties as a plant manager. At the hearing, Boucher testified that he can no longer lift certain objects that he used to be able to lift at the plant, but this inability does not affect the performance of his duties.
The parties stipulated to the ALJ that an employer-employee relationship existed between Peerless and Boucher, that Boucher's injury arose in the course of employment, that Peerless had notice of the injury, and that jurisdiction exists under the Kansas Workers Compensation Act. The issues before the ALJ were whether Boucher was entitled to an award for the 9.2% permanent partial disability and whether Boucher was entitled to an award for possible future medical expenses. Boucher had requested an award for future medical expenses in case his condition should worsen and he needed medical attention.
The ALJ denied Boucher's claim for permanent partial disability.
The ALJ ruled that Boucher's future medical expenses should be compensated based upon the following reasons:
"Normally, whether a claimant will need future medical treatment must be determined from the testimony of physicians who have had an opportunity to treat or examine the claimant and is based on their expressed expectations of such a need. Here there is evidence that following the conservative treatment by Dr. Whitehead, the claimant has not received any medical treatment for an extended period and while he reports difficulty in doing some of the physical tasks associated with his employment, he does not express any particular activity which severely aggravates his complaints. On the other hand, Dr. Tillema expresses his opinion that he would not have sustained the present disability but for the preexisting cervical condition and since this injury has evidently increased that preexisting cervical disability, an award of future medical compensation should be made in the event that it does require additional medical treatment."
On review, the Board rever
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