Florida District Court of Appeal upholds denial of benefits to a first responder for his claims of mental injuries from work-related trauma.

The First District Court of Appeal affirmed the final compensation order below, opining that the expert medical testimony supported the judge’s denial of the claimant’s Fla. Stat. Sec. 112.1815(2)(a)(3) claim. It was held that the accident did not give rise to any need for treatment due to post-traumatic stress disorder, or any other compensable mental injury, regardless of the evidence standard used by the judge. However, the court agreed with the claimant’s assertion that claimants who are first responders can seek workers’ compensation benefits for PTSD under either Sec. 112.1815(2)(a)(3) or paragraph (5) or both.

_{What’s Hot in Workers’ Comp, Vol. 27, No. 2, February 2023 is prepared by Marshall Dennehey to provide information on recent legal developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. We would be pleased to provide such legal assistance as you require on these and other subjects when called upon. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING pursuant to New York RPC 7.1 Copyright © 2023 Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin, all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm. For reprints or inquiries, or if you wish to be removed from this mailing list, contact tamontemuro@mdwcg.com.}