The state of Florida’s workers’ compensation system suffered another blow Thursday when the Florida Supreme Court ruled another part of the state’s workers’ compensation insurance system is unconstitutional.
In a 5-2 decision, the Florida Supreme Court struck down a law limiting payments to injured workers for two years, instead ordering that the payments for injured workers should last five years.
Justices Judge Barbara Pariente, Chief Justice Jorge Labarga, Peggy Quince and James E.C. Perry all concurred with the decision while Justices Charles Canady and Ricky Polston dissented. Justice R. Fred Lewis concurred in result with an opinion.
The decision is a result of a lawsuit filed by Bradley Westphal, a St. Petersburg firefighter who suffered a severe back injury while working in 2009. After two years, Westphal’s benefits were cut off, even though he still was not fully recovered.
During the two years, Westphal’s benefits were called “temporary total disability” benefits, but later applied for permanent disability benefits. A compensation claims judge ruled that Westphal’s request was premature because it had not yet been determined if he had reached the “maximum medical improvement,” creating a coverage gap.
“The statute cuts off a severely injured worker from disability benefits at a critical time, when the worker cannot return to work and is totally disabled but the worker’s doctors—chosen by the employer—deem that the worker may still continue to medically improve,” Justice Barbara Pariente explained in the opinion.
As a result of his injury, Westphal experienced extreme pain and loss of feeling in his left leg below the knee, which required multiple surgeries and eventually a spinal fusion to heal. Westphal’s doctors told him he couldn’t work.
The decision could have a widespread impact on businesses in Florida and how much they pay for workers’ compensation insurance since they’ll have to pay for more years of insurance for injured employees.
"As applied to Westphal, the current workers' compensation statutory scheme does not just reduce the amount of benefits he would receive … but in fact completely cuts off his ability to receive any disability benefits at all," read the majority opinion "It does so even though there is no dispute that Westphal remained a severely injured and disabled firefighter under active treatment by doctors the city selected for him."
In April, the Florida Supreme Court made another ruling on the case which said limiting attorneys’ fees in workers’ compensation cases was unconstitutional.
The ruling brought mixed opinions, primarily from labor groups, plaintiffs attorneys, insurance companies and small business owners.
Logan McFaddin, regional manager for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI), said the decision could harm businesses in Florida.
”PCI and our members are disappointed in todays decision as it could significantly destabilize Floridas business environment,” he said. “We continue to support the 2003 Florida workers compensation reforms that were put in place to protect the interests of employees, as well as help control costs for business owners. It’s important that the legal framework for accommodating the medical needs and replacement income for employees is preserved, while fostering a healthy marketplace for job creators in the state of Florida.”
Others agreed.
"Today’s decision is just one more blow from the Supreme Court that poses a very real threat to small business owners’ abilities to employ Floridians,” said Bill Herrle, Executive Director of National Federation of Independent Businesses in Florida. “It will almost certainly cause workers’ compensation costs to increase. " Following the decision, NCCI announced they will be reevaluating their recent workers’ comp rate filing, which was already looming over the small business community and threatening to force skyrocketing workers’ comp rates in Florida.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
