United States Department of Labor 

Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board 

__________________________________________ 

L.M., Appellant 

and 

U.S. POSTAL SERVICE, BULK MAIL 

CENTER, Memphis, TN, Employer 

__________________________________________ 

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Docket No. 15-1026 

Issued: August 11, 2015 

Appearances: Case Submitted on the Record

Appellant, pro se 

Office of Solicitor, for the Director 

DECISION AND ORDER 

Before: 

CHRISTOPHER J. GODFREY, Chief Judge 

PATRICIA H. FITZGERALD, Deputy Chief Judge 

JAMES A. HAYNES, Alternate Judge 

JURISDICTION 

On April 2, 2015 appellant filed a timely appeal from a December 3, 2014 merit decision 

of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP). Pursuant to the Federal 

Employees’ Compensation Act1

 (FECA) and 20 C.F.R. §§ 501.2(c) and 501.3, the Board has 

jurisdiction over the merits of this case. 

ISSUE 

The issue is whether appellant has more than one percent permanent impairment to each 

leg.2

 1

 5 U.S.C. § 8101 et seq. 

2

 Appellant submitted new evidence on appeal. The Board has no jurisdiction to review new evidence and can 

review only evidence that was before OWCP at the time of the final decision on appeal. 20 C.F.R. § 501.2(c)(1). 
2

FACTUAL HISTORY 

On April 22, 2004 appellant was a 53-year-old maintenance mechanic. On that date he 

filed a traumatic injury claim (Form CA-1) alleging that he sustained a back injury in the 

performance of duty on April 19, 2004. Appellant reported that he was on a conveyor belt lifting 

a table when the belt began to move, causing him to twist and strain his back. OWCP accepted 

the claim for a lumbar strain and temporary aggravation of lumbar spondylosis. Appellant 

returned to work in a part-time modified position and received intermittent wage-loss 

compensation. 

Appellant received treatment from Dr. Rommel Childress, a Board-certified orthopedic 

surgeon. In a report dated November 15, 2011, Dr. Childress stated that appellant was then 

working two days per week, primarily performing office duties. He stated that appellant had L5 

and S1 radicular problems, with episodes of his legs feeling weak. Dr. Childress indicated that 

appellant was considering disability retirement. 

OWCP requested that a medical adviser provide an opinion as to any permanent 

impairment to a scheduled member of the body. In a report dated December 23, 2011, the 

medical adviser stated that a May 28, 2008 nerve conduction study (NCS) showed an S1 

radiculopathy with normal motor function. He opined that under the July/August 2009 edition of 

The Guides Newsletter, appellant had one percent impairment to each leg. 

Dr. Childress responded on February 2, 2012 that he disagreed with the medical adviser 

and would send a detailed report. In a report dated May 5, 2014, he opined that appellant had 

nine percent permanent impairment to each leg under the American Medical Association, Guides 

to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (hereinafter the A.M.A., Guides). Dr. Childress 

stated that appellant had a documented S1 radiculopathy, and the impairment was based on 

motor and sensory deficits. 

OWCP referred the report of Dr. Childress to an OWCP medical adviser for review. By 

report dated June 11, 2014, the medical adviser noted the prior December 23, 2011 report. He 

indicated that there had been no change from the May 28, 2008 study and opined that appellant 

had one percent permanent impairment to each leg. 

In a report dated October 30, 2014, Dr. Childress responded and explained that he had 

used Table 16-12 of the A.M.A., Guides to find that appellant had nine percent bilateral leg 

impairment. He stated that he had placed appellant in class 2 for the sciatic nerve. 

The case was again reviewed by an OWCP medical adviser. In a report dated 

November 21, 2014, the medical adviser stated that a peripheral nerve impairment of a spinal 

nerve is properly determined under The Guides Newsletter. The medical adviser noted 

electromyogram (EMG) studies from 20113

 and 2008 showed a bilateral S1 nerve root sensory 

deficit, and under Table 2 of The Guides Newsletter the impairment was 1 percent for class 1, 

grade E. 

 3

 The record contains a September 1, 2011 EMG/NCS report from Dr. Hafiz Elahi, a Board-certified neurologist. 
3

By decision dated December 3, 2014, OWCP issued a schedule award for one percent 

permanent impairment to each leg. The period of the award was 5.78 weeks from 

September 13, 2014. 

LEGAL PRECEDENT 

5 U.S.C. § 8107 provides that, if there is permanent disability involving the loss or loss of 

use of a member or function of the body, the claimant is entitled to a schedule award for the 

permanent impairment of the scheduled member or function.4 Neither FECA nor the regulations 

specify the manner in which the percentage of impairment for a schedule award shall be 

determined. For consistent results and to ensure equal justice for all claimants OWCP has 

adopted the A.M.A., Guides as the uniform standard applicable to all claimants.5

 For schedule 

awards after May 1, 2009, the impairment is evaluated under the sixth edition.6

 

Neither FECA nor its regulations provide for a schedule award for impairment to the 

back or to the body as a whole. Furthermore, the back is specifically excluded from the 

definition of “organ” under FECA.7

 The sixth edition of the A.M.A., Guides does not provide a 

separate mechanism for rating spinal nerve injuries as impairments of the extremities. 

Recognizing that FECA allows ratings for extremities and precludes ratings for the spine, The 

Guides Newsletter offers an approach to rating spinal nerve impairments consistent with sixth 

edition methodology. For peripheral nerve impairments to the upper or lower extremities 

resulting from spinal injuries, OWCP procedures indicate that The Guides Newsletter “Rating 

Spinal Nerve Extremity Impairment Using the Sixth Edition” (July/August 2009) is to be 

applied.8 The tables in The Guides Newsletter follow the methodology used in the sixth edition 

of the A.M.A., Guides: identifying the spinal nerve, identifying the impairment class for the 

Class of Diagnosis (CDX), and then adjusting the default impairment (grade C) by grade 

modifiers based on Functional History (GMFH) and Clinical Studies (GMCS).9 The formula is 

(GMFH-CDX) + (GMCS-CDX). 

ANALYSIS 

In the present case, OWCP accepted that appellant sustained a lumbar strain and 

temporary aggravation of lumbar spondylosis. As noted above, FECA does not provide a 

 4

 5 U.S.C. § 8107. This section enumerates specific members or functions of the body for which a schedule 

award is payable and the maximum number of weeks of compensation to be paid; additional members of the body 

are found at 20 C.F.R. § 10.404(a). 

5 A. George Lampo, 45 ECAB 441 (1994). 

6

 FECA Bulletin No. 09-03 (March 15, 2009). 

7 See James E. Jenkins, 39 ECAB 860 (1988); 5 U.S.C. § 8101(20). 

8 See G.N., Docket No. 10-850 (issued November 12, 2010); see also Federal (FECA) Procedure Manual, Part 3 

-- Medical, Schedule Awards, Chapter 3.700 (January 2010). The Guides Newsletter is included as Exhibit 4. 

9

 A.M.A., Guides 533 (lower extremities) and 430 (upper extremities). A grade modifier for physical 

examination is not used since the examination findings are used to determine the CDX. The net adjustment range is 

from grade A (-2) to grade E (+2). 
4

schedule award for an impairment to the back itself. The issue is the degree of permanent 

impairment to the legs. Dr. Childress indicated that appellant had a bilateral S1 radiculopathy 

into both legs. 

Although Dr. Childress has opined that appellant has nine percent permanent impairment 

to each leg, this opinion is of diminished probative value. He attempted to apply Table 16-12 of 

the A.M.A., Guides for the sciatic nerve. As noted above, it is well established that under FECA, 

an impairment from a spinal nerve affecting the lower extremities is properly determined under 

The Guides Newsletter.10 Dr. Childress did not provide an opinion as to permanent impairment 

using The Guides Newsletter.

The only medical reports of record that do apply The Guides Newsletter are the 

December 23, 2011, June 12 and November 21, 2014 reports from OWCP medical advisers. 

These reports find that under The Guides Newsletter the permanent impairment to each leg was 

one percent. The Board notes that under Table 2 for the S1 nerve the default (grade C) leg 

impairment for mild sensory deficit is one percent. The grade E impairment, after a net 

adjustment of +2, is also one percent.11

There is no contrary medical evidence of record applying The Guides Newsletter. The 

Board accordingly finds that the weight of the medical evidence in this case supports the 

December 3, 2014 schedule award of one percent to each leg. 

Appellant may submit new and relevant evidence and request an increased schedule 

award at any time with OWCP. 

CONCLUSION 

The Board finds that appellant has not established more than one percent permanent 

impairment to each leg. 

 10 See also A.C., Docket No. 15-307 (issued April 1, 2015). 

11 The Guides Newsletter, Table 2. 
5

ORDER 

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT the decision of the Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs dated December 3, 2014 is affirmed. 

Issued: August 11, 2015 

Washington, DC 

 

 Christopher J. Godfrey, Chief Judge 

 Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board 

 

 Patricia H. Fitzgerald, Deputy Chief Judge 

 Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board 

 

 James A. Haynes, Alternate Judge 

 Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board