JUNUS A. REASON, Employee/Appellant,
v.
ELL Z TRUCKING, INC., and AM. INTERSTATE INS. CO., Employer-Insurer/Respondents
and
NORTHSIDE CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC, FRANK WEI, M.D., and INJURED WORKERS’ PHARMACY, Intervenors.
No. WC18-6220
Minnesota Workers Compensation
Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals
May 2, 2019
APPEALS
– NOTICE OF APPEAL. This court lacks jurisdiction to
consider an issue briefed but not listed by specific finding
or order or identified as an issue raised on appeal in the
appellant’s notice of appeal pursuant to Minn. Stat.
§ 176.421.
CAUSATION
– SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE. Substantial evidence in the
form of a medical opinion with adequate foundation supports
the compensation judge’s determination that the
employee’s 2015 work injury was not a substantial
contributing factor in his claimed disability.
Lorrie
Bescheinen, Fishman, Carp, Bescheinen & Van Berkom, Ltd.,
Plymouth, Minnesota, for the Appellant.
Joshua
Steinbrecher, Heacox, Hartman, Koshmrl, Cosgriff, Johnson,
Lane & Feenstra, P.A., St. Paul, Minnesota, for the
Respondents.
Determined by: David A. Stofferahn, Judge, Patricia J. Milun,
Chief Judge, Sean M. Quinn, Judge
Compensation Judge: Grant R. Hartman
Affirmed.
OPINION
DAVID
A. STOFFERAHN, Judge.
The
employee appeals the compensation judge’s finding that
his work injury is not a substantial contributing factor to
his ongoing disability, and the denial of his claims for wage
loss benefits and payment of intervention claims. We affirm.
BACKGROUND
The
employee, Junus A. Reason, was working as a truck driver for
ELL Z Trucking on July 9, 2015, when he was injured in a
roll-over accident. He was transported to Regions Hospital
where he was treated primarily for left leg pain and hematoma
development. No fractures or dislocations were identified and
his CT scan results were normal. The employee was treated
with pain medication and discharged the following day. He
received follow-up care at Hennepin County Medical Center
(HCMC) for the left leg hematoma. The employee also treated
regularly with a chiropractor at Northside Chiropractic
Clinic, where he was diagnosed with acute traumatic cervical,
thoracic, lumbar, and sacroiliac joint sprain/strain,
shoulder sprain/strain, neck strain and subluxation, knee
sprain, and multiple contusions and lacerations. The employer
and its workers’ compensation insurer admitted the
employee’s injury and paid temporary total and
temporary partial disability benefits.
The
employee’s medical records before the work injury show
a history of back pain going back to 2002. The employee was
treated at HCMC on May 30, 2002, for left leg weakness,
numbness, and low back pain that was attributed to
degenerative disc disease. The employee applied for and was
found to be eligible for Social Security disability (SSDI)
benefits as of February 2, 2002. In his application for
disability benefits, completed by the employee and dated
August 19, 2002, the employee identified the conditions that
limited his ability to work as “lower back & neck,
sleep apnea, high blood pressure, leg numbness.” The
employee received SSDI for a number of years. A trial work
period in 2004 was considered unsuccessful and the Social
Security Administration determined in 2006 that the employee
continued to be disabled and entitled to disability benefits.
It is unclear from the record whether the employee’s
SSDI benefits ceased.
The
employee sustained a work injury on February 2, 2010, in a
motor vehicle accident while working as a driver for a
different employer. That employer and its insurer admitted an
injury to the employee’s low back, neck, and right
shoulder and paid the employee 128.4 weeks of temporary total
disability benefits. The employee’s treatment following
this injury was primarily for the low back. An MRI scan done
in October...
