SUSAN K. MUSTA, Employee/Respondent,
v.
MENDOTA HEIGHTS DENTAL CTR., and HARTFORD INS. GRP., Employer-Insurer/Appellants.
No. WC19-6330
Minnesota Workers Compensation
Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals
November 10, 2020
JURISDICTION
- SUBJECT MATTER. As the parties stipulated that the medical
marijuana dispensed to the employee was reasonable and
necessary to relieve the effects of the employee’s work
injury, the compensation judge’s award of reimbursement
is affirmed, but the findings made regarding the federal
preemption issue arising under the Controlled Substances Act,
21 U.S.C. § 801 et seq., are stricken as the
compensation judge had no subject matter jurisdiction to
consider that issue.
Thomas
D. Mottaz, Coon Rapids, Minnesota, for the Respondent.
William M. Hart, Julia J. Nierengarten, Meagher & Geer,
P.L.L.P., Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Kassi Erickson Grove,
Law Offices of Steven G. Piland, Overland Park, Kansas, for
the Appellants.
Determined by: Sean M. Quinn, Judge Patricia J. Milun, Chief
Judge David A. Stofferahn, Judge Gary M. Hall, Judge Deborah
K. Sundquist, Judge
Compensation Judge: Kirsten M. Tate
Affirmed.
OPINION
SEAN
M. QUINN, Judge.
The
employer and insurer appeal the Findings and Order of a
compensation judge awarding reimbursement to the employee for
her out-of-pocket expenses incurred in purchasing medical
cannabis. We affirm.
BACKGROUND
The
employee, Susan Musta, suffered a work injury to her neck on
February 11, 2003. She has undergone numerous medical
modalities to treat her symptoms including surgery,
chiropractic care, medical management, physical therapy, and
injections. For some time, she was taking a long-term opioid.
On February 2, 2018, a compensation judge found that
long-term opioids were not reasonable and necessary treatment
because they were no longer effective, that the prescriptions
did not comply with the treatment parameters, and that a
departure from the treatment parameters was not appropriate.
There was no appeal.
...
