JCC Awards Heart-Disease Benefits After Rejecting Reverse Presumption

In Stephan Jacknowitz v. Town of Manalapan/Preferred Governmental Claims Solutions/PGCS, OJCC Case No. 25-030346BKC, the claimant, a municipal police officer, sought compensability and cardiac treatment after a July 30, 2025 heart attack and resulting coronary artery disease.

Judge Barbara K. Case found the parties stipulated that the section 112.18 heart-disease presumption applied, and rejected the employer/carrier's reverse-presumption defense. The JCC credited the claimant's cardiology IME and found the claimant had not materially departed from prescribed treatment for heart disease by declining a statin recommendation made before any CAD diagnosis.

Relying on the First DCA's Tiburcio analysis, the JCC held that elevated LDL, hyperlipidemia, and a coronary calcium score were risk factors, not a prior heart-disease diagnosis. The order granted compensability of CAD, authorized cardiology care with Dr. Michael Schechter or a comparable cardiologist, authorized the Boca Raton Regional Hospital emergency hospitalization, and awarded employer/carrier-paid fees and costs.

Source: Compensation Order