NEW CASE LAW IN IOWA REGARDING COMPROMISE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS ABSENT THE SECOND INJURY FUND

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | Nov 11, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

In Kingsbury v. Second Injury Fund, the employee settled with the employer via a compromise agreement without concurrently settling with the Second Injury Fund. As a result, the Deputy found that the settlement with the employer, absent the Second Injury Fund, made it impossible for the employee to maintain her Second Injury Fund claim. As […]

IOWA COURT OF APPEALS AFFIRMS SURVIVOR BENEFITS, RULING OVERDOSE WAS ACCIDENTAL, NOT INTENTIONAL

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | Nov 8, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

The Iowa Court of Appeals recently upheld an Agency decision to award survivor benefits to the widower of a claimant who died from a prescription drug overdose. The employer had appealed, arguing that the overdose was a suicide, which would bar survivor benefits under Iowa’s willful-injury defense (Iowa Code § 85.16(1))—a provision that excludes compensation […]

NAVIGATING THE “COMING AND GOING” RULE IN IOWA WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | Sep 25, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

In Iowa, the “coming and going” rule traditionally holds that injuries sustained by employees while traveling to and from work are not compensable under workers’ compensation.  This rule is grounded in the principle that the commute to and from the workplace is not considered to be within the course of employment or arising out of […]

IOWA WORKERS’ COMPENSATION RATE INCREASES EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2024

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | Jul 15, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

Effective July 1, 2024, the Iowa Workers’ Compensation Statewide Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) will rise to $1,137.20. The minimum and maximum weekly workers’ compensation rates are calculated using the SAWW. This is an increase from the previous year’s rate of $1,099.55. Additionally, effective July 1, 2024, the Iowa Workers’ Compensation Maximum Weekly Rate for TTD, […]

BILATERAL SHOULDER INJURIES HELD TO BE TWO SEPARATE SCHEDULED MEMBER INJURIES IN IOWA

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | May 10, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

On May 8, 2024, the Iowa Court of Appeals found that bilateral shoulder injuries are not compensated under the catchall provision and are, instead, two separate scheduled member injuries. In Nordstrom v. Pamela Cramer, the Iowa Court of Appeals found that injuries to the left and the right shoulders both arising out of the same […]

MAJOR CHANGES IN IOWA FOR HOW MULTIPLE SCHEDULED MEMBER INJURIES ARE COMPENSATED

by Baylor Evnen, LLP | Mar 29, 2024 | BLOG, IOWA WORKERS' COMPENSATION, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

On March 29, 2024, Iowa’s Supreme Court handed down an opinion in Anderson v. Bridgestone Americas, Inc. The seminal issue in the case had to do with how to compensate an employee who sustained both an arm and shoulder injury. Under the July 1, 2017 changes to the Iowa Workers’ Compensation Act, a shoulder is […]