Opinion ID: 2064642
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Medical Proof of Change of Condition

Text: A petition for review of incapacity addresses itself to change of circumstances since the time of the earlier determination... of the employee's disability.... Dufault v. Midland-Ross of Canada, Ltd., Me., 380 A.2d 200, 203 (1977). The employer who petitions for review of incapacity bears the burden of proving that the employee has regained some work capacity. Dailey v. Pinecap, Inc., Me., 321 A.2d 492 (1974). A claim of changed condition can be established only by adducing expert medical testimony which bear[s] directly upon the comparison between his former and his present disability. 3 Larson, Workmen's Compensation Law ch. XV, § 81, p. 470 (1976). While comparative medical evidence is required, it is not necessary that the comparison be made by a single physician who has personally examined the employee both at the time of the earlier decree and at the time of the hearing on petition for review. It is entirely appropriate for a doctor who has recently examined the employee to acquaint himself with the employee's previous condition by reviewing the medical reports made by other physicians. It is not necessary that the second physician personally agree with the findings or evaluations of the first physician. If the second physician is asked to assume, hypothetically, the validity of the findings of the prior examining physician, he may then give his opinion as to whether or not a change in condition has occurred, based on that assumption. One authority succinctly summarized the correct rule [2] as follows: [O]ne of the strongest kinds of evidence is of course the testimony of a doctor who has examined the claimant and evaluated his disability at both relevant times in the comparison. But except in special cases such as relative degree of disfigurement, it is not mandatory that the doctor testifying for a change in condition have personally examined the claimant at the time of the first award. His opinions may be based on proper hypothetical questions.... 3 Larson, Workmen's Compensation Law ch. XV, § 81.33, p. 524 (1976). See also State Compensation Fund v. Industrial Commission of Arizona, 113 Ariz. 65, 546 P.2d 801 (1976); American Mutual Liabilities Insurance Co. v. Grimes, 100 Ga. App. 51, 109 S.E.2d 837 (1959); Florek v. Board of Education, 18 N.J.Super. 425, 87 A.2d 381 (1952); Ryan v. Grinnell Corp., R.I., 362 A.2d 127 (1976). In the case at bar, the voir dire examination of Drs. Egan and Greene revealed merely that they had no personal opinion of their own regarding Van Horn's previous condition, since they had not personally examined Van Horn until a time well after the November 12, 1975 decree. The voir dire did not establish that they were still unfamiliar with Dr. Parisien's findings. Any such reading of the voir dire is inconsistent with the whole purpose for continuing the first hearing; and it is directly contradicted by the specific representation made by Hillcrest's counsel to the commissioner. The cautious tenor of the doctors' testimony may reflect simply a legitimate concern for their own professional reputations and a desire not to mislead the commissioner into thinking that they had any personal knowledge of Van Horn's previous condition or that they were willing to vouch for the accuracy of Dr. Parisien's previous findings. [3] But they were not required to adopt Dr. Parisien's diagnosis as their own. They were entitled to give their opinions on a change of condition in response to a hypothetical question based on the assumption that Dr. Parisien's assessment was correct. [4] The employer should have been permitted to present the testimony of its medical experts. Accordingly, we must remand this case to the commission to permit the employer to obtain a decision on the merits of its contention that Van Horn has regained some work capacity. Because the medical evidence may have grown stale during the pendency of this appeal, the employer should be accorded the opportunity to have further medical examinations of the employee. The entry must be: Appeal sustained; Pro forma decree of the Superior Court vacated; Remanded to the Workers' Compensation Commission for reinstatement of employer's petition for review of employee's incapacity and for further proceedings consistent with this opinion; and It is further ordered that the employer pay to the employee an allowance of $550 for his counsel fees, plus his reasonable out-of-pocket expenses for this appeal. POMEROY and WERNICK, JJ., did not sit.