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Crews v. Hussman Refrigeration
Citations: 616 So. 2d 610; 1993 Fla. App. LEXIS 3862; 1993 WL 102153Docket: No. 91-3854
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; April 8, 1993; Florida; State Appellate Court
Cecil E. Crews appeals the October 15, 1991, order from the judge of compensation claims (JCC) that established a maximum medical improvement (MMI) date of July 3, 1991, and set the start date for permanent total disability (PTD) benefits to that same date. Previously, on September 4, 1991, the JCC had determined that Crews was permanently totally disabled and awarded PTD benefits starting October 2, 1989. Following a motion for rehearing by the employer/carrier, which argued that Crews had not reached MMI from both psychological and orthopedic perspectives until July 3, 1991, the JCC adopted this position in the October order. However, the record shows that Dr. John McKay, the rehabilitation psychologist, only addressed psychological MMI, and the JCC did not dismiss the findings of orthopedic specialists who indicated that Crews was permanently totally disabled by October 2, 1989. The court concluded that while there may be a disagreement regarding the psychological MMI date, it is irrelevant to the PTD benefits since Crews’s orthopedic injuries alone warranted the award. As a result, the October 15, 1991, order is vacated, and the case is remanded to the JCC with instructions to reinstate the prior order from September 4, 1991, which recognized the earlier date for PTD benefits. The decision is supported by references to relevant case law, including Amfesco Duramil Division v. Guzman and John Barley Memorial v. Gillam. Judges Booth, Smith, and Miner concurred with this decision.