Joan Estep v. Greenbrier Valley Med Center

Summary

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals affirmed the Board of Review’s decision denying Joan Estep additional temporary total disability benefits. The court held that the evidence supported the claims administrator’s determination that Estep reached maximum medical improvement and that her spinal cord stimulator procedures were for pain management rather than treatment establishing temporary total disability.

Holdings

1. Estep failed to provide sufficient medical evidence that she remained temporarily and totally disabled after December 4, 2017; the Board of Review therefore properly reinstated the closure of temporary total disability benefits.
2. The Board of Review's decision was not in clear violation of a constitutional or statutory provision, based on an erroneous conclusion of law, or clearly wrong in light of the evidentiary record.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Board of Review properly reinstated the closure of temporary total disability benefits after the claims administrator determined that Estep had reached maximum medical improvement.
2. Whether the evidence, including Estep's spinal cord stimulator procedures and continuing pain, established entitlement to temporary total disability benefits after December 4, 2017.

Disposition

affirmed