IN THE MATTER OF THE CLAIM OF: TAMRA TULLY, Claimant,
v.
SOUTHWEST HEALTH SYSTEMS, INC.[1] Employer,
and
CHA TRUST, Self-Insured, Respondents.
W.C. No. 5-062-753-001
Colorado Workers Compensation
Industrial Claim Appeals Office
February 9, 2021
CRANE
AND TEJADA PC, Attn: BETHIAH BEALE CRANE ESQ, (For Claimant)
RITSEMA & LYON PC, Attn: CRAIG CAMPOS ESQ, (For
Respondents)
FINAL
ORDER
The
claimant seeks review of an order of Administrative Law Judge
Sidanycz (ALJ) dated September 14, 2020, that granted the
respondents’ motion for summary judgment denying and
dismissing the issues of: medical benefits, authorized
provider, reasonably necessary, average weekly wage,
temporary total disability, temporary partial disability, and
maximum medical improvement (MMI). We affirm the ALJ’s
order
The ALJ
ruled on the respondents’ motion for summary judgment
and therefore did not hold a hearing. The following facts are
not in dispute. The claimant sustained a work-related injury
on January 6, 2017 The respondents filed a Notice and
Proposal to Select an Independent Medical Examiner for a
24-month Division IME (DIME). The DIME with Dr. Robert Watson
took place on January 7, 2020. The DIME physician placed the
claimant at MMI as of February 21, 2017, with no permanent
impairment. The respondents filed a final admission of
liability on February 19, 2020, consistent with the DIME
physician’s report. The final admission denied post-MMI
maintenance care and noted an overpayment amount of
$32,408.08. The claimant contends that the remarks section of
the final admission states “Respondents will take
credit for the existing overpayment of the $32,408.08 against
future benefits, if any.” The complete final admission
of liability is not in the record on review.
Based
on the final admission date of February 19, 2020, the
claimant’s deadline to file an objection to the final
admission and an application for hearing was March 20, 2020.
However, during a telephone call with the claimant’s
counsel, the respondents granted a 30-day extension of time
for the claimant to respond to the final admission. The
claimant filed an objection to the final admission and a
notice of contest with a brief list of the contested issues
on March 20, 2020. Respondents’ Exhibit B.[2] The
claimant did not file an application for hearing prior to the
April 20, 2020, deadline. As of the date of the ALJ’s
order, the claimant has not filed an application for hearing
on the February 19, 2020, final admission.
The
respondents filed an application for hearing on June l7,
2020, endorsing the issue, “Respondents seek an Order
for repayment of the overpayment claimed on the February 19,
2020 Final Admission of Liability.” The claimant filed
a response to application for hearing on July 2, 2020,
endorsing: medical benefits, authorized provider, reasonably
necessary, average weekly wage, temporary total disability,
temporary partial disability, maximum medical improvement,
and the respondents’ attempt to collect the
overpayment.
The
respondents filed a motion for summary judgment asking that
the claimant’s issues of medical benefits, authorized
provider, reasonably necessary, average weekly wage,
temporary total disability, temporary partial disability, and
MMI, be stricken because the claim was closed by the February
19, 2020, final admission of liability when the claimant
failed to timely file an application for hearing on the
disputed issues. The respondents attached exhibits A-D to the
motion for summary judgment. The exhibits included page 3 of
the February 19, 2020, final admission, the claimant’s
March 20, 2020 objection, the June 17, 2020, application for
hearing and the claimant’s July 2, 2020 response.
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