Kiesha Birdsong — ADJ18926429

Applicant Kiesha Birdsong claimed injury to multiple body parts while working as a customer service/billing representative for TalentBurst, Inc. from June 2022 through December 2023. After trial on the issue of injury AOE/COE, the WCJ found the medical reporting (from both PTP Dr. Furman and QME Dr. Kim) was inadequate to constitute substantial medical evidence and ordered development of the record by returning to QME Dr. Kim for supplemental reporting correcting clerical errors and addressing causation. Defendant petitioned for reconsideration, arguing the QME reporting violated Labor Code section 4628 (a strict liability statute), that such violation precluded returning to the QME, and that applicant failed to meet her burden of establishing injury AOE/COE. The Board, treating the petition under the removal standard because only interlocutory findings were challenged, denied reconsideration, concluding the record did not establish a section 4628 violation or 'ghostwriting' since Dr. Kim attested and testified he personally reviewed the medical records. The Board found no abuse of discretion in the WCJ's decision to develop the record through supplemental QME reporting.