Rodriguez, Alicia

Applicant Alicia Rodriguez, who sustained an industrial brain injury, sought reconsideration of a WCJ decision that found her May 23, 2023 Home Health Assessment Report from Sue Coleman, R.N. was self-procured outside defendant's MPN and ordered her to undergo a new home health assessment with an MPN provider. Her treating neurologist had requested a home health care evaluation, which defendant authorized on April 20, 2023, conditioned on it being obtained within the MPN. The Board first confirmed the petition was timely because defendant and counsel were served at out-of-state addresses (Texas and Minnesota), extending the filing period to 30 days. On the merits, the Board held that a home health care assessment constitutes medical treatment and that there was no basis to compel applicant to undergo another assessment because defendant made no showing under Labor Code section 4056 that the risk of treatment was inconsiderable. The Board granted reconsideration, rescinded the F&O, and substituted a new F&O removing the order compelling applicant to attend the home health care assessment, while retaining the finding that the Coleman report was self-procured outside the MPN.