1st DCA to Rehear Westphal Case En Banc

Florida's 1st District Court of Appeal on Thursday granted a rehearing en banc of a controversial panel decision that struck down the state's cap on temporary total disability benefits.A 1st DCA panel ruled on Feb. 28 that the 104-week limit on temporary total disability compensation was unconstitutional, as applied to St. Petersburg, Fla., firefighter Bradley Westphal.The court reasoned that severely injured workers such as Westphal who reach the statutory cut-off for TTD without reaching maximum medical improvement face a "gap" in indemnity benefits since they do not qualify for perm...