Ohio: Worker’s Refusal to Undergo Psychological Testing Results in Suspension of Benefits

Where an injured Ohio worker sought disability and medical benefits based upon an alleged psychological injury yet, on the advice of his attorney, refused to undergo psychological testing by a psychologist hired by the employer, it was appropriate for the Commission to suspend the worker’s benefits for the duration of his refusal. The appellate court observed that the issue wasn’t whether the claimant had the right to refuse psychological testing; he clearly had that right. The question rather was whether such refusal was reasonable under Ohio Rev. Code § 4123.651(C). The court concluded that claimant had offered no evidence that his decision was reasonable, only that it was consistent with his attorney’s direction. Therefore, the suspension of benefits was appropriate.

Thomas A. Robinson, J.D., the Feature National Columnist for the LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter, is co-author of Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law (LexisNexis).

LexisNexis Online Subscribers: Citations below link to Lexis Advance.

See State ex rel. Calhoun v. Industrial Comm’n of Ohio, 2019-Ohio-720, 2019 Ohio App. LEXIS 770 (Feb. 28, 2019)

See generally Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 10.10.

Source: Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, the nation’s leading authority on workers’ compensation law

For a more detailed discussion of the case, see