Worker Who Lost Accommodated Job May Seek Reopening of Claim

The Iowa Court of Appeals ruled that a worker may be entitled to reopening a claim — even under circumstances unrelated to the injury — so long as the continued inability to work is proximately caused by the injury. Debra Stuart worked for Dickten Masch Plastics LLC. She suffered injuries in a workplace fall and filed a workers’ compensation claim. Stuart later settled her claim, based on a permanent partial disability of 35% of the body as a whole, resulting in weekly benefits of $403.38 for 175 weeks. Stuart kept working full time at Dickten Masch in a pos...