Opinion ID: 2264940
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: issue two: permanent partial disability award calculation

Text: Next, Kansas Truck Center challenges the Board's method for calculating the permanent partial disability award. Various positions are advanced as the correct outcome. The Board's majority held Redd was entitled to permanent partial disability compensation for five scheduled injuries. It issued separate awards for each of the five impairments, resulting in the following awards: (1) left hand totaled $9,650.88 for a 16 percent loss of use; (2) left forearm totaled $8,190.72 for a 10 percent loss of use; (3) left arm totaled $8,622.72 for a 10 percent loss of use; (4) right forearm totaled $8,190.72 for a 10 percent loss of use; and (5) right arm totaled $12,934.08 for a 15 percent loss of use. This resulted in a total permanent partial disability award of $47,589.12. Kansas Truck Center counters that the Board should have combined these five impairments into one whole body impairment rating, resulting in one award. It argues this calculation method is required by K.S.A. 44-510d(a)(23), which adopts the Guides. In its brief, Kansas Truck Center argues [t]he Guides' method was appropriately used by the physician experts in this case, converting [Redd's] regional impairments to a whole body impairment using the Combined Values Chart. This is similar to the position taken in the Board's dissenting opinion, which argued the Board should determine the upper extremity impairments for each separate part as done by the majority, but, then, combine the upper extremity impairments as instructed by the [Guides]. The dissenting board member did not clarify whether he believed the Guides required calculating these injuries as a whole body impairment, as Kansas Truck Center argued, or combined as separate upper extremity impairments, as done by the Mitchell panel.