A finding of maximum medical improvement by an IRE physician, even with the possibility of future surgery, does not render the IRE invalid.

The claimant’s February 2004 injury was originally acknowledged as a right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome and was later expanded to include a chronic lateral epicondylitis of the right elbow. The parties entered into a compromise and release agreement settling all benefits payable for the right carpal tunnel injury, but continuing the employer’s liability for the right elbow injury. The employer afterward filed a modification petition based on the results of an IRE, resulting in a determination that the claimant had reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) and suffered a whole person impairment rating of 1%. The Workers’ Compensation Judge granted the petition, but the claimant appealed to the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board, which affirmed.

The claimant then appealed to the Commonwealth Court, which held that the IRE physician unequivocally and repeatedly opined that the claimant had reached MMI, regardless of whether surgery was going to be performed in the future. According to the court, the IRE physician’s testimony as a whole established that the claimant was at MMI and this testimony was accepted by the Judge in granting the employer’s modification petition.

_{Case Law Alerts, 2^nd Quarter, April 2015}

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