Vera, Patricia

Patricia Vera, a quality control inspector employed by Bumble Bee Foods for nearly 24 years, claimed cumulative orthopedic and internal/hypertension injuries during the period May 24, 1995 through May 8, 2017. After her termination, defendant raised the post-termination defense under Labor Code section 3600(a)(10). The WCJ had found the claim non-compensable, but the Board, on reconsideration, focused on the exception in section 3600(a)(10)(D), which preserves a claim where the section 5412 date of injury postdates the notice of termination or layoff. The Board found that applicant did not receive medical advice that work caused orthopedic injury and disability until Dr. Sirakoff's report dated August 21, 2017—after her termination—so the date of injury postdated the termination. The Board rescinded the F&O and substituted a new finding that the claimed injury is compensable under section 3600(a)(10)(D), deferring all other issues including specific body parts and industrial causation, and recommended development of the medical record via a PQME or AME.