Testimony Without Competent Foundation Is Not Competent

In Southwest Airlines/Cambridge Integrated Service v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (King), the Commonwealth Court ruled that testimony by a Claimant’s medical expert was not competent to prove that the cause of the Claimant’s disability was work-related because the expert had no knowledge about the Claimant’s prior head and neck injuries, history of headaches, dizziness, concentration problems, blurred vision, and other treatment.

Medical Expert Testimony Based on Claimant Testimony May Be Competent

The Commonwealth Court, in Lancaster General Hospital v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (Weber-Brown), ruled that the testimony of two medical experts, both opining that the Claimant’s loss of vision resulted from an infection contracted in the scope of her employment, constituted competent evidence to prove that the injury was work-related. The testimony was competent, although neither expert was able to review Claimant’s medical records, which were never found, and both experts based their testimony on Claimant’s consistent statements about how she contracted the infection.

Section 440 Contest Not Reasonable Without Proof of Violation

In Yespelkis v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (Pulmonology Associates Incorporated and AmeriHealth Casualty), the Commonwealth Court was faced with a penalty petition filed by the employer. The Court, ruling on an issue of first impression, held that because there was no statutory basis for the petition, remanded the case for reconsideration of unreasonable contest attorney’s fees.