HERNANDO SANCHEZ, APPELLANT,
v.
SECURITY SALES COMPANY AND ZURICH INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEES
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Florida appellate court reversed denial of workers' compensation medical benefits, holding that diagnostic testing costs are compensable when undertaken to determine whether symptoms may relate to a compensable injury, even if testing ultimately shows no causal connection.
Diagnostic testing costs are compensable under workers' compensation when the purpose is to determine whether symptoms may be related to a compensable injury, regardless of whether testing ultimately establishes no causal connection.
[1] Diagnostic testing costs are compensable under workers' compensation when undertaken to determine whether claimant's symptoms may relate to a compensable injury, even if…
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“[W]henever the purpose of the diagnostic test is to determine the cause of claimant's symptoms, which symptoms may be related to a compensable accident, the cost of the diagnostic test is compensable.”
Court citing Nealy v. City of West Palm Beach to establish the standard for compensability of diagnostic testing costs.
Sanchez suffered a compensable injury during surgery that caused arrhythmia. Months later, he presented to the emergency room with chest pains and was…
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JOANOS, Judge.
Hernando Sanchez appeals the final order of the deputy commissioner which denied payment of doctor and hospital bills. Sanchez argues that the bills were for medical services related to his original compensable injury.
We reverse the deputy’s denial of claimant’s request for payment of hospital and doctor bills incurred when he was admitted to the hospital for diagnostic testing involving his heart. The record reveals that, upon arrival at the emergency room complaining of chest pains, claimant was admitted to the hospital for two days of observation and testing because of claimant’s previous history of arrhythmia which arose during surgery for a compensable injury. It was determined after testing, upon claimant’s release from the hospital, that claimant’s chest pain was not related to his prior surgery for the compensable injury. However, we find that but for such prior history of arrhythmia which surfaced during the surgery, claimant might not have been admitted to the hospital for diagnostic testing. Further, “[wjhenever the purpose of the diagnostic test is to determine the cause of claimant’s symptoms, which symptoms may be related to a compensable accident, the cost of the diagnostic test is compensable.” Nealy v. City of West Palm Beach, 491 So. 2d 585, 586 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986). See also Abbott v. Price Plumbing Inc., and F.C.C.I., 500 So. 2d 698 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987), and cases cited within.
Reversed and remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion.
BOOTH and THOMPSON, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Carl v. Sumner, 526 So. 2d 1068 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988)…November, 1982. “Whenever the purpose of the diagnostic test is to determine the cause of claimant’s symptoms, which symptoms may be related to a com-pensable accident, the cost of the diagnostic test is compensable.” Sanchez v. Security Sales Co., 522 So. 2d 435, 436 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988) (quoting Nealy v. City of West Palm Beach, 491 So. 2d 585, 586 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)). In the case of Copeland Steel Erectors v. Miles, 483 So. 2d 107 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986), this court held that a claimant who injured his lower…
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Perry v. Ridgecrest Int'l & CNA Ins., 548 So. 2d 826 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989)…ptoms may be related to a compensable accident, the cost of the diagnostic test is compensable, even if it should later be determined that the claimant suffered from both compensable and noncom-pensable conditions. Sanchez v. Security Sales Company, 522 So. 2d 435 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988); Nealy v. City of West Palm Beach, 491 So. 2d 585 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986); Boykin v. American Marine Products, Inc., 395 So. 2d 1163 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981). The deputy also denied payment for past medical treatment relating to appellan…
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Bradford A. Prince v. Prince Ins. Servs. & Lumbermans Mut. Ins., 556 So. 2d 1195 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990)…lso Perry v. Ridgecrest International, 548 So. 2d 826 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989); Green Chromalloy-Turbocumbustor, 540 So. 2d 874, 876 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989); Sumner v. Gardinier, Inc., 526 So. 2d 1068, 1070 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988); Sanchez v. Security Sales Co., 522 So. 2d 435, 436 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988). To restate it, compensability of a diagnostic test does not depend upon test results which show a causal relationship between claimant’s symptoms and the compensable injury. Rather, compensability is predicated upon the pur…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Lanoris Nealy v. City OF W. Palm Beach & Crawford & Co., 491 So. 2d 585 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)
- Abbott v. Price Plumbing, Inc., 500 So. 2d 698 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987)