The following is a summary of a recent decision of a Final Compensation Order (2/18/2026). This decision can be found on the Office of the Judges of Compensation Claims website.
Case Overview
This is a Florida Workers’ Compensation case heard in Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida, with a final hearing held on February 6, 2026. The case involves a fast food restaurant employee and her employer’s insurance carrier. This case is notably complex, involving five separate accident dates spanning from November 2021 through July 2023.
Initial Injuries — Multiple Workplace Accidents
The employee sustained a series of workplace injuries while working at the same fast food establishment:
1. November 15, 2021 — Injured her left shoulder while reaching for cups on a high shelf, ultimately requiring rotator cuff surgery. A psychiatric condition (adjustment disorder with anxiety and depression) was accepted as compensable under this date of accident.
2. March 2, 2022 — Sustained a burn injury to her left hand, treated and placed at Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) in January 2024.
3. April 28, 2022 — A separate allergic reaction incident (referenced in records).
4. February 9, 2023 — Injured her lower back, treated by an orthopedic surgeon, placed at MMI in September 2023.
5. July 17, 2023 — Suffered a severe allergic reaction to a food product at work. She received emergency care, but an epinephrine overdose caused her to go into anaphylactic shock, requiring a three-day hospitalization in an intensive care unit.
Central Dispute
The primary issue at trial was whether the employer/carrier could cut off the employee’s authorized psychiatric treatment by arguing that the original November 2021 shoulder injury was “no longer” the major contributing cause (MCC) of her psychiatric condition. The carrier based this denial on a written questionnaire sent to the treating psychiatrist approximately five months after his last visit with the patient, in which the psychiatrist abruptly reversed his previously consistent opinion. The judge found this reversal illogical, unexplained, unsupported by any new clinical findings, and insufficient to constitute a legally recognized “break in the causation chain.”
The judge further found that even if the psychiatrist’s revised percentage breakdown were accepted, the combined work-related causes (shoulder injury + anaphylactic shock episode) still accounted for more than 50% of the employee’s psychiatric condition — meaning industry remained responsible for her treatment under Florida case law.
Final Compensation Outcome
The rulings were largely in favor of the employee:
1. Authorization for continued psychiatric treatment (under the November 2021 date of accident) — GRANTED. The judge ordered the carrier to authorize and schedule a return appointment with the treating psychiatrist.
2. Attorney’s fees and costs (under the November 2021 date of accident) — GRANTED. The specific dollar amount was reserved for the parties to agree upon, with jurisdiction retained by the court if they cannot.
3. Claims for psychiatric treatment authorization under the March 2022, February 2023, and July 2023 dates of accident — Denied as moot (since the claim was already granted under the November 2021 date of accident, making separate orders under the other dates unnecessary).
In short, the employee won on the central issue — her psychiatric care must continue at the carrier’s expense, and the employer/carrier must pay her attorney’s fees and costs, with the amount to be determined.
Florida Workers’ Compensation Attorney, Adam Baron
At Adam Baron Law, we offer free consultations to discuss your workplace injury. We’ll review what happened, explain your rights, and help you understand your options. We don’t get paid unless we recover benefits for you, so there’s no financial risk in calling us.
Florida workers deserve safe workplaces and fair treatment when they’re injured on the job. Contact Adam Baron Law today at 954-247-HURT to learn how we can help you get the workers’ compensation benefits you need and deserve. Your recovery and your family’s financial security are too important to leave to chance.
Adam Baron Law is based in Coral Springs, but works with injured workers across the State of Florida – including those in Hillsborough County (largely Tampa and other nearby communities).
*Adam Baron Law was not associated with the injured party, this particular case or decision.