The WCAB has issued two noteworthy panel decisions involving home health care services in light of Neri Hernandez (en banc). In each of these decisions, which involved critically injured workers, the WCAB has signaled in very strong terms that it will not tolerate defendants' bad-faith or frivolous delays in providing or failing to provide medical treatment. Case #1: The WCAB finds the defendant, which failed to comply with its duty to conduct a reasonable and good faith investigation to determine whether home health care service benefits were due, is liable for the maximum $10,000 penalty for unreasonable delay of medical treatment...read more.

A 7/20/2004 stipulation regarding future medical treatment disputes being referred to an AME could not circumvent UR procedures, but parties were not required to follow new IMR process created by SB 863 as change in law does not supersede parties' prior stipulation

In Bertrand v. County of Orange, 2014 Cal. Wrk. Comp. P.D. LEXIS --, a WCAB panel, granting removal and amending the WCJ's order, determined that the parties could not rely upon their 7/20/2004 stipulation that all future medical treatment disputes be referred to the agreed medical examiner, Dr. Lynn Wilson, to circumvent utilization review (UR) procedures...read more.