Petitioner

vs.

STATE COMPENSATION INSURANCE FUND

Respondent/Insurer for

HINES MOTOR COMPANY

Employer.

Reversed in Heisler v. State Compensation Insurance Fund, 282 Mont. 270, 937 P.2d 45 (1997)

Summary: Relying on ARM 24.29.1511 (1993), State Fund refused to pay doctor to whom claimant had switched his treatment without its prior approval. Claimant argued statute conflicted with section 33-22-111, MCA (1991), which provided freedom of choice in selection of a physician and violated his constitutional right of privacy.

Held: WCC concluded that section 33-22-111, MCA (1991) did not apply to State Fund or to self-insured employers, leaving no conflict between the statute and the regulation. The WCC also rejected claimant’s argument that the regulation violated his right of privacy. Note: this decision was reversed by the Montana Supreme Court in Heisler v. State Compensation Insurance Fund, 282 Mont. 270, 937 P.2d 45 (1997) (No. 95-485), which found an equal protection violation in a statutory scheme distinguishing between claimants on the basis of which type of insurance Plan provided their workers’ compensation coverage.

On June 1, 1995, the Court entered an Order Denying Summary Judgment wherein it rejected petitioner's legal challenges to the requirement that he obtain prior approval to change his treating physician. The Order directed that the matter be placed on the next trial calendar to determine whether petitioner is entitled to attorney fees or a penalty. Petitioner now informs the Court that he "intends to offer no further evidence or arguments regarding the issues raised in this petition" and requests that judgment be entered pursuant to the Court's prior ruling. (Petitioner's Request That the Court Enter Final Judgment Based on its Summary Judgment Order (August 29, 1995).) Accordingly,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that the petition in this matter be and is hereby dismissed with prejudice and that the Court's prior Order Denying Summary Judgment shall constitute its decision in this case.

This judgment is certified as final for purposes of appeal.

Dated in Helena, Montana, this 31st day of August, 1995.

(SEAL)

/s/ Mike McCarter
JUDGE

c: Mr. Lawrence A. Anderson
Mr. Norman C. Peterson
Mr. Joseph P. Mazurek (Courtesy Copy)