CLAIMANT PROPERLY AWARDED 100% SLU FOR FOUR AMPUTATED FINGERS AND AN ADDITIONAL 100% SLU FOR THE REATTACHED NONFUNCTIONAL THUMB.
The Third Department, over a dissent, determined claimant was properly awarded 100% schedule loss of use (SLU) for the amputation of four fingers on his right hand and an additional 100% SLU for the reattached non-functional thumb on his right hand:
… [T]he Board proportioned the loss of four fingers to the total loss of the hand as required by Workers’ Compensation Law § 15 (3) (q), and then separately evaluated the distinct and additional injury to the thumb, to which it awarded a 100% SLU. We defer to the Board’s determination to credit the sole proffered medical opinion of Paterson, and the Board’s conclusion based thereon that claimant sustained a separate and distinct injury to his thumb, which therefore warranted separate SLU determinations and awards for the thumb and the fingers … . Such result is supported by the guidelines, which contemplate awards greater than 100% for the loss of a hand (see New York State Guidelines for Determining Permanent Impairment and Loss of Wage Earning Capacity at 17, figure 2.8 [2012]) and provide that the loss of four fingers, excluding the thumb, constitutes a 100% SLU of the hand … . The guidelines, which address impairments to the thumb separately from fingers (see New York State Guidelines for Determining Permanent Impairment and Loss of Wage Earning Capacity at 12-14 [2012]), provide that “[t]he thumb deserves special consideration; it is the highest valued digit and the most important” (New York State Guidelines for Determining Permanent Impairment and Loss of Wage Earning Capacity at 17 [2012]). Under these circumstances, the Board’s determination to assign a separate SLU to the loss of the thumb and to make a distinct award is supported by the case law and the guidelines, and is not contrary to the statutory language. Therefore, we uphold the Board’s determination and affirm the amended decision. Matter of Deck v Dorr, 2017 NY Slip Op 04186, 3rd Dept 5-25-17
WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW (CLAIMANT PROPERLY AWARDED 100% SLU FOR FOUR AMPUTATED FINGERS AND AN ADDITIONAL 100% SLU FOR THE REATTACHED NONFUNCTIONAL THUMB)/SCHEDULE LOSS OF USE (SLU) (WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW, CLAIMANT PROPERLY AWARDED 100% SLU FOR FOUR AMPUTATED FINGERS AND AN ADDITIONAL 100% SLU FOR THE REATTACHED NONFUNCTIONAL THUMB)/HAND (WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW, CLAIMANT PROPERLY AWARDED 100% SLU FOR FOUR AMPUTATED FINGERS AND AN ADDITIONAL 100% SLU FOR THE REATTACHED NONFUNCTIONAL THUMB)