Robert H. Wood v. General Electric Company

COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA
Present: Judges Elder, Bumgardner and Lemons
ROBERT H. WOOD
MEMORANDUM OPINION *
v. Record No. 2037-98-3 PER CURIAM
FEBRUARY 2, 1999
GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY AND
ELECTRIC MUTUAL LIABILITY
INSURANCE COMPANY
FROM THE VIRGINIA WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION
(Robert H. Wood, pro se).
No brief for appellees.
Robert H. Wood ("claimant") contends that the Workers'
Compensation Commission ("commission") erred in finding that Dr.
Charles Ashworth was not his authorized treating physician, and,
therefore, employer was not responsible for the cost of medical
treatment rendered by Dr. Ashworth and by Dr. William E. Frank,
upon referral from Dr. Ashworth. Upon reviewing the record and
appellant's opening brief, we conclude that this appeal is
without merit. Accordingly, we summarily affirm the commission's
decision. See Rule 5A:27.
In denying claimant's request that employer be held
responsible for the cost of medical treatment rendered to
claimant by Drs. Ashworth and Frank, the commission found as
follows:
Although he was treated several times by
the employer's plant physician, Dr. Robert J.
*
Pursuant to Code § 17.1-413, recodifying Code § 17-116.010,
this opinion is not designated for publication.
Glenn, Mr. Wood notes that his employer did
not give him a panel from which to choose an
authorized physician. He reasons that
because he was not given a panel he could
choose Dr. Ahsworth [sic] to be his
authorized physician.
The fact that Mr. Wood was not given a
panel did not give him the right to choose
Dr. Ashworth as his treating physician. In
1987, the Commission held that Dr. Glenn
became Mr. Wood's treating physician.
Because of that opinion, Mr. Wood's treating
physician was Dr. Glenn. Therefore, Dr.
Ashworth's treatment and the referrals by him
are not the employer's responsibility.
The commission's 1987 opinion held that Dr. Glenn was
claimant's treating physician. That opinion was not appealed,
and, therefore, became final. In general, absent a referral from
Dr. Glenn, the authorized treating physician, claimant was not
entitled to change treating physicians except by permission from
the commission or the employer. See Shenandoah Prods., Inc. v.
Whitlock, 15 Va. App. 207, 210, 421 S.E.2d 483, 485 (1992). No
evidence showed that claimant sought permission from the
commission or employer to seek medical treatment from Drs.
Ashworth or Frank. Accordingly, because Dr. Ashworth was not an
authorized treating physician, any referral of claimant by Dr.
Ashworth to Dr. Frank would also have been unauthorized. Based
upon this record, the commission did not err in refusing to hold
employer responsible for the cost of medical treatment rendered
1
to claimant by either Dr. Ashworth or Dr. Frank.
1
We note, as did the commission, that the documents
submitted by claimant after the commission's decision did not
qualify as after-discovered evidence, and, therefore, we did not
consider them on appeal.
- 2 -
For these reasons, we affirm the commission's decision.
Affirmed.
- 3 -