What the panel ordered
Petition for Reconsideration denied; lien dismissal affirmed.
Lien claimant RMS Medical Group filed a Petition for Reconsideration of the Supplemental Findings and Order of January 31, 2024, which denied penalties and interest and dismissed the lien. The WCJ had previously found the reasonable value of medical charges and payment by defendant, and the Petition was reviewed by the WCAB panel.
What was disputed, and how it came out
Each issue the panel decided, with the reasoning it gave. An outcome is what this panel did on this record — not a rule, and not a prediction.
The lien claimant did not establish entitlement to penalties and interest because the corrected bill was paid timely within 45 days, and earlier bills were not determinable for reasonable value.
From the decision · page 3Lien claimant contends that it should receive penalties and interest based on the date that it first submitted its bills to defendant. However, at the initial trial in April 2022, the earlier bills were admitted into evidence and considered by the WCJ. The WCJ found that there was no substantial evidence regarding the reasonable value of lien claimant's reasonable medical treatment services. (5/19/22 F&O, Finding of Fact no. 7, p. 2.) Thus, since the WCJ found that he was unable to determine the amount owed to lien claimant based on those earlier bills, we cannot base any penalties and interest for defendant's failure to pay the amounts on the earlier bills.