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In the recent case of State ex rel. Cambridge Home Health Care, Inc., v. Indus. Com, 124 Ohio St. 3d (2010), the Ohio Supreme Court held that the Industrial Commission's reliance on a physical therapy report to award compensation for loss of use was an abuse of discretion.
In Cambridge the injured worker applied for loss of use benefits for the total loss of use of her right hand. The Industrial Commission granted the application and ordered 175 weeks of compensation pursuant to Ohio Revised Code section 4123.57 (B). The Industrial Commission in its Order granting loss of use benefits relied solely on a report from a physical therapist.
In determining that the Industrial Commission abused its discretion in granting the loss of use benefits, the Supreme Court of Ohio determined that a loss of use award must be supported by a physician's report.
The Supreme Court indicated that reliance on a single physical therapy report is an abuse of discretion for several reasons. First, a physical therapist is prohibited from giving an opinion on impairment or disability. Ohio Revised Code Section 4755.40(A) forbids a physical therapist from making a medical diagnosis of a patient's disability.
Second, pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 4123.57 (B) every injured worker who applies for disability compensation must have an agency medical examination. Medical examination means a physician's exam based on the language in Sections 4123.53 and 4121.38 of the Ohio Revised Code.
The Court concluded that a physical therapist is not a physician. A physician is defined as an individual authorized under Section 4731 of the Ohio Revised Code to practice medicine, osteopathic medicine, or podiatry. The Ohio Administrative Code in section 4123-6-01(D) defines the term physician the same as the Ohio Revised Code but adds psychologists, dentists and doctors of chiropractic and mechanotherapy as physicians.
Based on the above reasoning, the Court vacated the Industrial Commission's Order and ordered the Commission to further consider the application for the loss of use and issue a new order.
This case defines the limited role a physical therapist has in determining an injured worker's disability or impairment.
