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Perez v. American Airlines/AMR Corp.10/18/2005
edical compensation. A party seeking additional medical compensation pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-25 must establish that the treatment is "directly related" to the compensable injury. See Pittman v. Thomas & Howard, 122 N.C. App. 124, 130, 468 S.E.2d 283, 286, disc. review denied, 343 N.C. 513, 472 S.E.2d 18 (1996). Where a plaintiff's injury has been proven to be compensable, there is a presumption that the additionalmedical treatment is directly related to the compensable injury. See Reinninger v. Prestige Fabricators, Inc., 136 N.C. App. 255, 259, 523 S.E.2d 720, 723 (1999); Parsons v. Pantry, Inc., 126 N.C. App. 540, 542, 485 S.E.2d 867, 869 (1997). The employer may rebut the presumption with evidence that the medical treatment is not directly related to the compensable injury. Reinninger, 136 N.C. App. at 259, 523 S.E.2d at 723.
The employer's filing of a Form 60 is an admission of compensability. See Sims v. Charmes/Arby's Roast Beef, 142 N.C. App. 154, 159, 542 S.E.2d 277, 281 (employer filing Form 60 pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-18(b) "will be deemed to have admitted liability and compensability"), disc. review denied, 353 N.C. 729, 550 S.E.2d 782 (2001). Thereafter, the employer's payment of compensation pursuant to the Form 60 is an award of the Commission on the issue of compensability of the injury. See N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-82(b); Calhoun v. Wayne Dennis Heating & Air Cond., 129 N.C. App. 794, 798, 501 S.E.2d 346, 349 (1998), review dismissed, 350 N.C. 92, 532 S.E.2d 524 (1999). As the payment of compensation pursuant to a Form 60 amounts to a determination of compensability, we conclude that the Parsons presumption applies in this context. Although this is an issue of first impression, we are guided by this Court's parallel analysis of the presumption of continuing disability created by a Form 21 agreement between the parties to a workers' compensation claim. A Form 21 agreement, when properly executed by the parties and approved by the Commission, is an admission of disability. See Kisiah v. W.R.Kisiah Plumbing, 124 N.C. App. 72, 77, 476 S.E.2d 434, 436 (1996), disc. review denied, 345 N.C. 343, 483 S.E.2d 169 (1997). A plaintiff is entitled to a presumption of continuing disability in this context because the approved Form 21 "is the equivalent of proof that plaintiff is disabled." Id. (internal citation omitted). It follows logically that because payments made pursuant to a Form 60 are an admission of compensability under the Workers' Compensation Act, these payments are the equivalent of an employee's proof that the injury is compensable. As compensability has been determined by the employer's Form 60 payments, the Parsons presumption applies to shift the burden to the employer.
Defendant asserts that a Form 60 cannot give rise to the Parsons presumption unless the plaintiff's claim for compensation has been "approved" by the Commission. We reject this assertion. Defendant cites to Porter v. Fieldcrest Cannon, Inc., 133 N.C. App. 23, 514 S.E.2d 517 (1999). In that case, the plaintiff's claim for workers' compensation benefits was denied by the deputy commissioner, and the decision by the deputy commissioner was affirmed by the Full Commission. Porter, 133 N.C. App. at 25, 514 S.E.2d at 520. The Court stated that, because the Commission had not "approved" the plaintiff's claim, the Parsons presumption did not apply and the plaintiff had the burden of establishing a causal relationship between the work-related incident and her medical conditions. Id. at 28, 514 S.E.2d at 521. The facts of Porter, which do not include the filing of a Form 60 by the employer, are readily distinguishable from the facts of the case at bar. Becausedefendant stipulated to the compensability of
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