Stewart v. Liberty Northwest Ins. Corp.
Annotate this CasePlaintiff suffered an injury in the course and scope of her employment with Employer. Employer's insurer (Insurer) accepted liability for Plaintiff's injury and paid wage loss and medical benefits. Plaintiff was later informed that Insurer would no longer approve or cover the expense of the pain patches she had been using for several years. Plaintiff filed a petition for expedited declaratory relief to reinstate medical benefits, seeking reinstatement of medical benefits for the pain patches as well as attorneys' fees and penalties. The Workers Compensation Court (WCC) determined that Plaintiff was entitled to continued payment of benefits for the pain patches but denied Plaintiff's request for attorneys' fees and for payment of the statutory penalty. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the WCC did not err (1) in determining Plaintiff was entitled to continued payment for the pain patches; (2) in determining Plaintiff was not entitled to reimbursement for her attorneys' fees; and (3) when it failed to impose the statutory penalty on Insurer.
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