Filing notice of temporary compensation payable paying indemnity benefits and then medical-only notice of compensation payable to stop payment does not obligate employer to also file notice stopping temporary compensation payable & notice of compensation.

Following the claimant’s September 14, 2018, work injury, the employer issued a notice of temporary compensation payable (NTCP). Thereafter, a medical-only notice of compensation payable was issued. The claimant subsequently filed a penalty petition, alleging that the employer violated the Act on the basis that they did not file a notice of stopping temporary compensation (NSTC) or/and a notice of denial (ND). The penalty petition was dismissed by the Workers’ Compensation Judge, and the claimant appealed to the Appeal Board. 

The Board identified the issue as whether the NTCP converted to a notice of compensation payable (NCP), or whether the MONCP issued properly stopped the wages and accepted liability for payment of medical expenses. The Board reversed the judge, concluding that the NTCP effectively converted to an NCP and that the the employer violated the Act. The Board also ordered a reinstatement of benefits. 

The employer appealed to the Commonwealth Court, which reversed the Board, holding that the acknowledgement of compensability accomplished by a MONCP was sufficient. According to the court, the filing of a MONCP is an acknowledgement of the injury by the employer. The court additionally noted that requiring an employer to issue an NSTC and ND along with the MONCP would only serve to confuse and misinform the claimant as to the status of his claim. 

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