Rukhsana Drahozal
v.
Envoy Air, Inc., d/b/a American Airlines Group and New Hampshire Insurance Company
Appellant
Rukhsana Drahozal
Appellee
Envoy Air, Inc., d/b/a American Airlines Group and New Hampshire Insurance Company
Attorney for the Appellant
Thomas Wertz
Attorney for the Appellee
Jean Z. Dickson and Lori N. Scardina Utsinger
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Scott D. Rosenberg, Judge. AFFIRMED ON APPEAL; AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED ON CROSS-APPEAL. Heard by Bower, C.J., and Doyle and Mullins, JJ. Opinion by Bower, C.J. (18 pages)
Rukhsana Drahozal appeals the district court’s ruling upholding the decision by the Iowa Workers’ Compensation Commissioner. She seeks a finding of permanent total disability and additional penalty benefits. Envoy Air, Inc., doing business as American Airlines Group, and its insurer New Hampshire Insurance Company cross-appeal the same ruling, claiming Drahozal only sustained scheduled injuries, did not establish an industrial disability, the commissioner should not have awarded penalty benefits, and Drahozal was not entitled to healing-period benefits. OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the commissioner’s ruling on industrial disability and healing-period benefits. We affirm in part and reverse in part the commissioner’s penalty-benefits ruling and remand to the district court with instructions.