Cooper, Barbara

Barbara Cooper, a nurse practitioner, sustained an industrial injury to her right knee on February 15, 2022, while employed by Lake County Tribal Health Consortium (LCTHC). The WCJ found that LCTHC maintained tribal sovereign immunity, that Tribal First as third-party administrator stood in the shoes of LCTHC, and that the WCAB lacked jurisdiction over LCTHC and Tribal First/Alliant Insurance, dismissing the case with prejudice. Applicant sought reconsideration arguing that non-tribal entities like Tribal First/Alliant Insurance are not entitled to sovereign immunity and thus the WCAB has jurisdiction over them even absent jurisdiction over the tribe. The Appeals Board denied reconsideration, holding that an insurer's liability is derivative of the employer's, so where the employer enjoys sovereign immunity, neither the insurer nor the WCAB can be reached. The Board relied on United Indian Health Services, Inc./Tribal First and the principle that employers and insurers are treated as one entity in workers' compensation claims.