Defendant appealed the Workers' Compensation Judge’s decision denying a termination petition based upon credit medical evidence of an injury beyond that listed on the operative document. The Commonwealth Court ruled that §413(a) allows a WCJ to amend the description of injury of his own volition if doing so is supported by credible evidence of record. 

What It Means to You

The days of obtaining a termination because the operative document lists an artificially minor injury are gone. However, this does not mean that you should blindly expand the description of injury every time a new diagnosis is obtained. Contact a C&W workers’ compensation specialist to determine the best strategy regarding the injury description issue in your case.