Valerie Williams v Senior Lutheran Services
Safety National Casualty
Release Date: Jan 10, 2020
Venue: St. Louis
Plot Summary: A 66 year old social worker fell on her employer's icy parking lot and landed on her arm. The Commission affirmed the denial of benefits that claimant failed to establish the fall was the prevailing factor in the cause of the medical condition.
https://labor.mo.gov/sites/labor/files/decisions_wc/WilliamsValerie18-00182601-10-20.pdf
Cast
Teer, ALJ
Peterson, atty
Reynolds, atty
Wright
Aleem
Young
Comments
The employer paid about $3700 in medical bills but disputed the relationship of ongoing care to the accident and that the employer owed for a total shoulder when claimant denied her pre-existing severe arthritis caused prior symptoms.
Dr. Young indicated the accident caused a "flare up" but no new evidence of internal derangement and the symptoms flow from her severe arthrosis. Claimant scheduled a total joint replacement. Two of claimant's orthopedic surgeons reached conflicting conclusions whether she had an unusual combination of severe arthritis and a full thickness tear. The ALJ indicated the evidence did not support a finding that claimant had a 'unspecified' shoulder strain. Claimant denied prior symptoms.
The ALJ found claimant established an accident, and that the accident was only a triggering condition and failed to meet the prevailing factor standard to show injury by accident. The ALJ indicate that "it is not sufficient that the event simply aggravates a preexisting condition. See Johnson v. Indiana Western Express, Inc., 281 S.W.3d 885 (Mo.App. 2009).
