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Tom Growney Equipment Co. v. Jouett5/20/2005
vent breaking causation for the Growney accident." The WCJ relied on Aragon v. State Corrections Department, 113 N.M. 176, 179, 824 P.2d 316, 319 (Ct. App. 1991) for his decision. Aragon addressed a subsequent non-work-related accident which aggravated a work-related injury. Id.
It is reasonable to say that an injury resulting from the concurrence of a pre-existing injury and the normal movements of everyday life is a "direct and natural result" of the original injury. It strains the meaning of "natural and direct result," however, to say that the phrase encompasses a subsequent injury precipitated by a severe and uncommon trauma. Id. at 181, 824 P.2d at 321. We believe that the WCJ relied on Aragon as an analogy or a basis for concluding that there is an insufficient causal relationship between Jouett's initial 1999 injury and his 2001 disability because of the aggravation of the injury sustained at subsequent workplaces. However, we agree with the Court of Appeals that reliance on Aragon, a case involving a subsequent non-industrial aggravation, is not particularly instructive to the present matter.
{15} The Court of Appeals concluded that Growney Equipment was liable for the workers' compensation claim for medical treatment as well as the period of temporary total disability that began on December 14, 2001. Jouett, 2004-NMCA-023, 1. We believe the authority relied upon does not support this conclusion.
{16} The Court of Appeals concluded that " he employer at the time of the accidental injury remains responsible for medical and related treatment even if the original accidental injury is later aggravated when the worker returns to work," Jouett, 2004-NMCA-023, 10, relying on McMains v. Aztec Well Service, 119 N.M. 22, 888 P.2d 468 (Ct. App. 1994). We believe that McMains does not support the determination that Growney Equipment is initially solely liable for compensation . In McMains, the worker suffered an initial injury to his lower back resulting in temporary total disability while working for his first employer, which resolved with medical treatment; he later suffered another work accident, injuring his lower back, while working for a second employer. 119 N.M. at 23, 888 P.2d at 469. The Court of Appeals in McMains concluded that the second employer "has the primary responsibility for payment of future medical benefits," and noted that, under NMSA 1978, ยง 52-1-47(D) (1991), the second employer may be able to reduce its liability "to the extent that future medical expenses are necessary as a result of Worker's accident at [the initial employer]." Id. at 24, 888 P.2d at 470. We believe that this analysis is consistent with our discussion of the issue.
{17} In Jouett, the Court of Appeals distinguished Salinas-Kendrick v. Mario Esparza Law Office, 118 N.M. 164, 879 P.2d 796 (Ct. App. 1994) from the present matter. Jouett, 2004-NMCA-023, 14. Salinas-Kendrick held that, where the initial accident occurred over a year before disability, the insurer who covered the employee at the time she became disabled, rather than the insurer who covered the employee when she was initially accidentally injured, is liable for medical and compensation benefits. 118 N.M. at 165-66, 879 P.2d at 797-98. In Jouett, the Court of Appeals stated that "there was no medical testimony in Salinas-Kendrick that the initial accident was causally connected to the subsequent need for medical treatment or to the subsequent disability." Jouett, 2004-NMCA-023, 14. The Court of Appeals then concluded that the case was thus inapplicable to Jouett's situation. Id. However, in Salinas-Kendrick, the worker suffered an initial accident in 1990; she continued to work with some pain, and, in 1991, she coul
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