Dyna-Drill v. Wallingford

605 P.2d 1301, 1980 Wyo. LEXIS 233
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 4, 1980
DocketNo. 5169
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 605 P.2d 1301 (Dyna-Drill v. Wallingford) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dyna-Drill v. Wallingford, 605 P.2d 1301, 1980 Wyo. LEXIS 233 (Wyo. 1980).

Opinion

ROONEY, Justice.

This is an appeal in a worker’s compensation matter. Appellant-employer contends that it should have received notice of a contemplated change in the physician attending appellee-employee, and that it should have had an opportunity to object to the change prior to the district court’s authorization of the change. It objects further to the payment of the claims for medical, hospital and related services resulting from the change. This appeal is from the district court order, made after a hearing, to pay the claims.

We will affirm that order insofar as it applies to the contested claims, except for the claim of Dr. Glen L. Loveday, Jr.; the claim of Dr. Charles F. McMahon; the claim of Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital; the claim of Natrona County Memorial Hospital, dated October 13, 1978 for $361.00; the claim of Casper Radiology Group, i. e. Dr. Ronald R. Lund, dated October 16, 1978 for $16.00; and the claims of appellee dated December 4,1978, December 6, 1978 and May 14,1979 for drug expenses of $13.95, $37.50 and $166.53, respectively. As to these claims, the order will be reversed and the case remanded with direction to disapprove them as not proper for payment with worker’s compensation funds.

While in the employ of appellant, appel-lee was injured in the state of Utah on July 28, 1977. He was immediately hospitalized in Utah and then received medical, hospital and related services in Casper. Appellant did not disapprove of payment of claims for these services. Nor does it contest the fact that the injury was job related.

Inasmuch aá one of the pertinent findings of the district court relates to the need for a change in physician and for additional services, we briefly note that the record reflects the following services in Utah and Casper:

Hospitalization in a Utah hospital.
Attending physician Dr. Joseph F. Decker, Logan, Utah; consultation with Dr. Ronald J. Payne of Budge Clinic, and radiology by Dr. John W. Emmett.
Hospitalization in Memorial Hospital of Natrona County. Appellee received services on several occasions, including outpatient, therapy, x-rays, emergency room and surgery.
Attending physician Dr. Albert Y. Metz of Wyoming Neurosurgical Associates, assisted by Dr. Philip D. Gordy of Wyoming Neurosurgical Associates, and neurological consultation with Dr. Malvin Cole of Wyoming EEG Laboratory, and anesthetic by Dr. Harold S. Cavanah, and emergency room reception by resident Dr. R. Schure and Dr. Roy W. Holmes who continued consultation, and Casper Radiology Group, i. e. Dr. Ronald R. Lund with Dr. Jack A. Larimer.
Miscellaneous pharmacy claims for drugs.

[1303]*1303Appellant contends that communication with the attending physician and with Dr. Holmes was not satisfactory, that they would not administer further to his complaints, and that they would not refer him to another physician. Dr. Loveday’s name was given to appellee by a sister-in-law, and Dr. Loveday made an appointment for ap-pellee with Dr. Fred W. Schoonmaker, a Denver, Colorado, physician specializing in cardiology.1 Dr. Loveday lives and practices medicine in Thermopolis.

On March 29, 1978, appellee, acting through his wife, made application to the trial court for permission to change physicians. The court issued an order authorizing appellee to “[e]ngage exclusively the professional services of Dr. Fred Schoon-maker, St. Luke’s Hospital, Denver, Colorado.” Appellee went to Denver immediately and received medical services in Denver from Dr. Schoonmaker, at St. Luke’s Hospital, with Dr. Ian M. Happer of St. Luke’s in consultation, and Denver Radiological Group. Worker’s compensation claims were submitted by these four claimants and were objected to by appellant.

On April 2, 1978, Dr. Schoonmaker made the results of his examination available to Dr. Loveday and advised in the cover letter that he was referring the “patient” to Dr. Loveday “for future medical attention.”

Dr. Loveday then performed medical services for appellee, and he referred appel-lee to Dr. McMahon, to the Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital, to Natrona County Memorial Hospital, and to the Cas-per Radiology Group for medical and hospital services. Appellant also objected to the worker’s compensation claims submitted by these five claimants.

In support of its contention that it should have received notice of change in physician together with an opportunity to object thereto, appellant points to § 27-12-401(b), W.S.1977, which reads:

“(b) No fee for medical attention or hospital care under this section shall be allowed without notice to the employer and a hearing if requested by the employer. If no written objection to the payment of the claim is filed within ten (10) days from the date of notice to the employer, it is conclusively presumed that the employer consents to the claim and the claim may be approved by the clerk of court. If after a diligent effort has been made the notice cannot be served upon an employer, the clerk of court may allow or disallow the claims.”

The statute requires notice to the employer with an opportunity for a hearing before a claim is allowed for payment, but it does not make a similar provision with reference to a change in physician. The wording of statutory provisions in other states may require a different conclusion. In other states, the employee must submit to examination by the employer’s physician, or by the physician of the worker’s compensation department. Some states require the employer to furnish the medical treatment. See 2 Larson, Workmen’s Compensation Law, § 61.12 (1976). Our Worker’s Compensation Act is peculiar to our state. The Act requires the physician or hospital to give notice of acceptance of the case, but the choice of physician or hospital, at least initially, is that of the employee..

Accordingly, we reject appellant’s contention that § 27-12-401(b) requires notice to the employer of a change in attending physician with an opportunity to object thereto.

We agree that the statute does require notice to the employer before payment for medical attention or hospital services can be made. Appellant received notices of such services in this instance, and appellant objected to payment of some of the claims. A hearing was held in connection therewith. The trial court found in its final order:

“2. That the Casper physicians were in no way wrong in their diagnsis [sic], nor in their handling of the claimant and his [1304]*1304ailments on any technical basis, however, the Court finds that there was some need for the claimant to consult different physicians and that he received tangible benefits from doing so.”

Such findings are presumptively correct on appeal and should not be set aside unless clearly erroneous or contrary to the great weight of the evidence. Whitefoot v. Hanover Insurance Company, Wyo., 561 P.2d 717, 720 (1977); Diamond Management Corporation v. Empire Gas Corporation, Wyo., 594 P.2d 964, 966 (1979); Olson v. Federal American Partners, Wyo., 567 P.2d 710, 714 (1977);

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Bluebook (online)
605 P.2d 1301, 1980 Wyo. LEXIS 233, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dyna-drill-v-wallingford-wyo-1980.