Over the last twelve years, our law firm has successfully won well over a hundred police officer, deputy sheriff, park ranger and State Fire Marshall hypertension claims all over the State of Maryland. I have personally had the privilege of representing many police and other law enforcement officers who are active or have retired. Recently, the counties and the State, through their workers’ compensation insurers, have been attempting to settle these claims. Since a settlement involves giving up some of your future rights, I thought that this would be a good time to provide you with a summary of the issues which you may consider and our philosophy on representing law enforcement officers.

Maryland law contains a presumption that all police and other law enforcement officers, as defined under the law, who have hypertension are presumed to have it because of their job. However, for the claim to be covered under Workers’ Compensation, you must have a "disablement". A disablement usually means lost time from work, but also can mean an impact on your ability to work even if there is no lost time or, in some circumstances, the need to take medication to prevent an impact on your ability to work.

1. Your condition is not related to the job – They try to prove this by showing a family history of heart-related conditions, smoking, minimal service time, congenital conditions, obesity, and/or a history of heart disease before your employment. They almost always lose this argument because of the way the workers’ compensation statute was written, old case law and the recent Court of Appeals and Court of Special Appeals decisions in the Pirrone and Shankle cases (both of which were won by our law firm – a copy of the decisions will be provided to you upon request); or
2. You have not had a "disablement" – They will try to argue that because you have lost little or no time from work you have not had a "disablement". Usually, they will lose this issue. However, even if they win with this argument it does not mean you cannot ever file a claim. It just means that you have to wait until your condition worsens to the point that you do suffer a "disablement";
3. You waited too long to file a claim – This is why, when in doubt, it is best to file a claim and let the Commission decide if it is too soon;

When your hypertension case is covered under Workers’ Compensation, you are entitled to:

1. Lifetime treatment for the condition, including 100% prescription reimbursement;
2. If you miss time from work, and administrative leave is denied, two thirds of your average weekly wage up to the maximum ( $722.00 in 2003);
3. Permanent disability benefits which may amount to several thousand dollars or more;
4. Future rights to re-open your claim should your condition worsen or cause a heart attack!

Workers’ Compensation is about protecting your future as well obtaining money for your disability now. Therefore, we rarely agree to settle cases as opposed to obtaining permanent disability benefits, when appropriate. When you settle your case you give up future rights. A settlement is not always in your best interest! Hypertension claims are usually fought very hard by the employer. Why? Because they are concerned about their future exposure! Therefore, they try to settle the cases if they can. We generally refuse to do so for active employees (claims for those that have retired have different considerations because of retirement set-off issues). We prefer, in almost all cases when the chances of success are sufficient, fighting for victory at the Commission and, if necessary, on appeal to settling for a relatively small amount and risking your future. This has been our law firm’s philosophy. So far, we believe our clients have greatly benefited by our aggressive stance.

Recent Settlement Policy By Prince George’s County And The Risk To You!

For quite some time, Prince George’s County has offered to settle many hypertension claims for $2,000.00 and lifetime medical treatment (it remains to be seen if this will continue in the future). Furthermore, the County made it clear that if their settlement offer was not accepted, they would fight the claim. This approach is often followed by other counties, jurisdictions, the State and workers’ compensation insurers. This is some of what you should know, and discuss with your attorney, when deciding whether or not to accept the offer:

1. If you do not settle, and you win your claim, you may receive a disability award which would result in several thousand dollars paid to you;
2. If you do not settle, and win your claim, you will have lifetime medical treatment and the right to re-open your case for five years if your condition worsens;
3. If you settle your case and your hypertension worsens, you will not be able to re-open your case, and probably will be precluded from filing a new claim;
4. If you settle your case and have a heart attack or other cardiovascular problem in the future, the County will try to rebut the presumption when you file a new claim by saying it was caused by your hypertension case which, you of course, settled! This is a powerful argument with an uncertain outcome;
5. The law in Maryland creates a very large hurdle for your employer to overcome if they choose to fight your case;
6. Many of the claims that are lost are due to the fact that there was no "disablement". This means that your claim was filed too soon and you can file a new claim if your condition worsens. This is not really a loss!

We believe that law enforcement officers should be empowered with knowledge of their workers’ compensation rights. Certainly, there are many times when settlement is appropriate in a Workers’ Compensation case. However, often times-it is not. Since each case is unique, it is not only important that you discuss the issue with your attorney, it is also important that you understand the issues!

Alan B. Gross, Esquire
301-670-7030
abg2424@aol.com