Law Office of Alan Tysinger

Extent of injury disputes in Texas Worker’s Compensation

San Antonio attorney Alan Tysinger discusses disputes over the extent of injury in Texas Worker’s Compensation claims. Extensive injury issues can be of several types. Generally the concept is that the insurance carrier agrees that you were hurt on the job, but disputes additional or more specific diagnoses. Extensive injury... Read more →

Appeal No. 211971: Improper Appointment of Designated Doctor

There is a new AP case out that may be of some help in cases where the designated doctor is not properly appointed (not qualified, for example). The case involves when you have a DD improperly appointed and there is no expedited CCH so the exam takes place. If the... Read more →

Texas Workers' Compensation Impairment Rating Finality: Impairment Rating and Extent of Injury

Appeal No. 191874-s—Implications of finality for extent of injury A decade and a half ago, the Appeals Panel issued a decision on the finality of an impairment rating at the end of the first quarter of supplemental income benefits. In that case, my client was an employee of the Alamo... Read more →

How should I handle a recorded statement with the workers’ comp adjuster?

How should I handle a recorded statement with the workers’ comp adjuster? The recorded statement is a dangerous scenario for an injured employee. It can help to clarify confusion created by an employer’s inaccurate report of the injury. Yet it also can be used by an underhanded adjuster to deny... Read more →

Aggravation Injury Denied in Court Case

In the Worker’s Compensation arena, what many injured employees fail to understand is that the concept of aggravation is a critical factor in determining what injuries are work related and which are not. The insurance carriers will often deny injuries as pre-existing, when in fact the employee had no previous... Read more →

San Antonio Firefighters Fight for Health Protections and Better Workers' Compensation Treatment

Recently the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio Firefighters union litigated the next collective bargaining agreement through a series of arbitration hearings. Among the topics involved was the potential for changes in the way the City administers workers' compensation claims. As SAFD healthcare costs have risen, workers' compensation... Read more →

Legal Issues in Mental Health Claims Continued (Part V): Scientific Validity

III. DSM-V AND SCIENTIFIC VALIDITY ISSUES The DSM-V is now being introduced to the psychiatric community, to mixed reviews. There are controversies that involve several aspects of the changes involved to this “bible” of mental illness. Dr. Joel Paris, MD summarizes some of the controversial points: Is the DSM-V system... Read more →

Legal Issues in Mental Health Claims Continued (Part IV): Repetitive Mental Trauma

(4) Repetitive Mental Trauma As discussed above, repetitive mental trauma injuries are not covered as compensable under the Workers' Compensation Act. However, this does create an apparent loophole in the system, in which actions that are arising out of the employment resulting in injury to an employee are tortious, but... Read more →

Legal Issues in Mental Health Claims Continued (Part III): Mental Trauma: TBI and Direct and Natural Result, or “Follow On” Injuri

(2) Traumatic Brain Injuries Traumatic brain injuries give rise to psychiatric diagnoses, but because of their origin in organic brain injuries they are not included in typical discussions of mental trauma, which are based not on the field of medical specialty involved, such as psychiatric care, but rather on whether... Read more →

Legal Issues in Mental Health Claims Continued (Part II): PTSD

(B) Mental Trauma Injuries (1) Post Traumatic Stress Post traumatic stress disorder is the classic mental trauma injury, by definition arising out of a single event and typically connected with a shocking event or circumstance that causes those involved in the claims process to recoil. But at the margins, PTSD... Read more →