JCC Keeps Hip Claim Compensable Under 120-Day Rule

In Gold v. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc./CCMSI, OJCC Case No. 22-015531FJC, the claimant slipped and fell at work and later disputed whether her bilateral hip condition remained compensable after the employer/carrier denied future hip treatment and diagnostic imaging.

Judge Frank Clark found the employer/carrier had accepted and authorized hip treatment without invoking the 120-day pay-and-investigate procedure or reserving the issue by diagnosis. Because treatment for the hips had been provided for more than 120 days before the October 17, 2025 denial, the order held that the bilateral hip injuries remained compensable by operation of law.

The JCC credited Dr. Hussamy on the claimant's current need for care, granting continued pain-management treatment, MRIs of both hips, and TPD from October 4, 2025 forward upon proper DWC-19 submissions. The order denied the separate claim for penalties and interest on earlier TPD checks because the proof did not show which payments were late or when the carrier received the wage information needed to calculate them.

Source: Compensation Order