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Ohio Court of Appeals Addresses Compensability of Psychiatric Conditions
The Ohio Court of Appeals recently revisited the legal standard applicable to the compensability of psychiatric conditions allegedly sustained as part of a workplace injury.In the Armstrong case, the injured worker was a dump truck driver who was working as part of a road crew performing road improvements on I-70 outside of Columbus. The injured worker sustained injuries to his neck, back and shoulder when a passenger van rear-ended his dump truck at a high rate of speed. While seated in the cab of his truck and looking to the rear, the injured worker actually saw the collision happen. After the collision, the injured worker saw that the van was under his truck and that the van driver’s head was bobbing up and down. Fearing a fire, the injured worker left his truck and noticed that the van driver’s chin was on his chest, with blood coming from his nose. Unfortunately, the van driver was dead.
Shortly after the accident, the injured worker began having nightmares about the accident and panic attacks while riding in a car. Additionally, he had bouts of sadness and crying spells when thinking about the van driver and his family. The injured worker was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and sought to add this psychological condition to his workers’ compensation claim. The condition was additionally allowed by the Industrial Commission and the employer appealed into court.
At trial, the injured worker’s treating psychologist testified that the injured worker developed PTSD from witnessing and being a part of the accident. The psychologist who testified for the employer agreed that the injured worker had developed PTSD, but testified that PTSD should not be allowed in the workers’ compensation claim as PTSD did not develop from the physical injuries sustained by the injured worker as a result of the accident.
The trial court determined that PTSD did not arise out of the injured workers’ physical injuries and therefore was not compensable. On appeal, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision and held that a psychiatric condition is only compensable if it was started by and resulted from a physical injury suffered by an injured worker.
The Armstrong decision affirms the legal principle that psychiatric conditions are only compensable if the condition arises from a physical injury. Unfortunately, this principle is often overlooked in the adjudication of contested workers’ compensation claims.
If your company has questions or concerns regarding the compensability of psychiatric conditions, please do not hesitate to contact Scott Gedeon or any of the experienced workers’ compensation attorneys at RBS.