What the panel ordered
Reconsideration granted; WCJ decision affirmed except amended to award 29% permanent disability without apportionment; scheduled rating not rebutted.
Applicant sought reconsideration of the March 6, 2024 WCJ decision regarding permanent disability and apportionment; the WCJ had found 23% permanent disability with apportionment and denied rebuttal of the scheduled rating.
This docket was decided more than once. Shown here is the latest released decision; we also hold December 20, 2021.
What was disputed, and how it came out
Each issue the panel decided, with the reasoning it gave. An outcome is what this panel did on this record — not a rule, and not a prediction.
The QME's apportionment analysis was found not to constitute substantial medical evidence because it failed to adequately explain the basis for apportionment percentages and the causal relationship of nonindustrial factors to disability. Therefore, the applicant was entitled to an unapportioned award based on the scheduled rating, which was not rebutted by vocational expert evidence.
From the decision · page 5Here, orthopedic QME Dr. Khasigian has identified permanent disability arising out of the injury to applicant's bilateral shoulders. With respect to the left shoulder, the QME has indicated applicant's disability is not subject to apportionment. However, with respect to the right shoulder, the QME has opined: