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    LABREV - Orient Hope V Jara

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    Anonymous vTBEE2
    The Supreme Court ruled that Jara is entitled to permanent and total disability compensation. [1] The company-designated physician failed to provide a final assessment of Jara's condition within 240 days of his medical repatriation, which transforms his disability from temporary to permanent under the guidelines. [2] For a company to avail the extended 240-day assessment period, the physician must justify that further treatment is needed and provide a complete evaluation, which did not occur. [3] Without sufficient justification and assessment within 240 days, disability is conclusively deemed permanent.

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    LABREV - Orient Hope V Jara

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    Anonymous vTBEE2
    264 views3 pages
    The Supreme Court ruled that Jara is entitled to permanent and total disability compensation. [1] The company-designated physician failed to provide a final assessment of Jara's condition within 240 days of his medical repatriation, which transforms his disability from temporary to permanent under the guidelines. [2] For a company to avail the extended 240-day assessment period, the physician must justify that further treatment is needed and provide a complete evaluation, which did not occur. [3] Without sufficient justification and assessment within 240 days, disability is conclusively deemed permanent.

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    The Supreme Court ruled that Jara is entitled to permanent and total disability compensation. [1] The company-designated physician failed to provide a final assessment of Jara's condition within 240 days of his medical repatriation, which transforms his disability from temporary to permanent under the guidelines. [2] For a company to avail the extended 240-day assessment period, the physician must justify that further treatment is needed and provide a complete evaluation, which did not occur. [3] Without sufficient justification and assessment within 240 days, disability is conclusively deemed permanent.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    264 views3 pages

    LABREV - Orient Hope V Jara

    Uploaded by

    Anonymous vTBEE2
    The Supreme Court ruled that Jara is entitled to permanent and total disability compensation. [1] The company-designated physician failed to provide a final assessment of Jara's condition within 240 days of his medical repatriation, which transforms his disability from temporary to permanent under the guidelines. [2] For a company to avail the extended 240-day assessment period, the physician must justify that further treatment is needed and provide a complete evaluation, which did not occur. [3] Without sufficient justification and assessment within 240 days, disability is conclusively deemed permanent.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 3

    149. ORIENT HOPE AGENCIES, INC.

    AND/OR ZEO MARINE


    CORPORATION, Petitioners, v. MICHAEL E. JARA, Respondent.

    G.R. No. 204307, THIRD DIVISION, June 06, 2018, LEONEN, J.

    Failure of the company-designated physician to render a final and definitive assessment of a seafarer's
    condition within the 240-day extended period transforms the seafarer's temporary and total disability
    to permanent and total disability.

    FACTS:

    Jara was hired by Orient Hope, on behalf of its foreign principal, Zeo Marine, as engine cadet on
    board M/V Orchid Sun.The employment contract was for duration of 10 months with a basic
    monthly salary of US$230.00. On its way to Oman, M/V Orchid Sun sank off Muscat on July 12, 2007,
    during which Jara sustained leg injuries. He was treated at Khoula Hospital in Oman and thereafter
    repatriated and admitted on August 3, 2007 at the Metropolitan Hospital in Manila. Jara was
    diagnosed to have suffered from "fracture, shaft of left ulna and left fibula." On August 28, 2007 and
    January 9, 2008, he underwent knee operations. He did not return to the company-designated
    doctor after his check up on March 17, 2008.

    Meanwhile, on March 6, 2008,Jara filed a complaint with the Labor Arbiter, insisting that he was
    entitled to total permanent disability benefits amounting to US$60,000.00.

    On May 29, 2008, Assistant Medical Coordinator Dr. Mylene Cruz Balbon of the Marine Medical
    Services of Metropolitan Medical Center issued a letter, stating that based on his last follow-up, his
    suggested disability grading is Grade 11 – stretching leg or ligaments of a knee resulting in
    instability of the joint.

    Labor Arbiter Daniel J. Cajilig found Jara entitled to compensation equivalent to Grade 11
    disability. He solely relied on the assessment of the company-designated physician. He found no
    evidence or other medical report on record to dispute the company designated physician's
    determination and to support Jara's claim.

    The National Labor Relations Commission affirmed the Labor Arbiter's award. Jara filed a Motion
    for reconsideration but it was denied by the NLRC.

    Insisting that he was entitled to permanent disability compensation, Jara elevated the matter to the
    Court of Appeals through a Petition for Certiorari under Rule 65.

    In its August 15, 2012 Decision, the Court of Appeals held that Jara was "entitled to permanent
    disability benefits because the assessment of the company-designated physician that he was
    suffering from a grade '11' disability was issued after nine (9) months or more than 120 days from
    the time he was medically repatriated.”
    ISSUE:

    Whether or not respondent Jara is entitled to permanent and total disability compensation
    considering that there was a Grade 11 disability grading given by the company-designated
    physician (YES)

    RULING:

    The prevailing rule is that a seafarer's mere inability to perform his or her usual work after 120
    days does not automatically lead to entitlement to permanent and total disability benefits because
    the 120-day period for treatment and medical evaluation by a company-designated physician may
    be extended to a maximum of 240 days.

    However, there must be a sufficient justification to extend the medical treatment from 120 days to
    240 days. In other words, the 240-day extended period remains to be an exception, and as such,
    must be clearly shown to be warranted under the circumstances of the case before it can be applied.

    Applying the case of Talaroc v. Arpaphil Shipping Corp. stressed that for a company-designated
    physician to avail of the extended 240-day period, he or she must perform some complete and
    definite medical assessment to show that the illness still requires medical attendance beyond the
    120 days, but not to exceed 240 days. In such case, the temporary total disability period is extended
    to a maximum of 240 days. Without sufficient justification for the extension of the treatment period,
    a seafarer's disability shall be conclusively presumed to be permanent and total. This Court
    summarized the following guidelines to be observed when a seafarer claims permanent and total
    disability benefits:

    1. The company-designated physician must issue a final medical assessment on the seafarer's
    disability grading within a period of 120 days from the time the seafarer reported to him;

    2. If the company-designated physician fails to give his assessment within the period of 120
    days, without any justifiable reason, then the seafarer's disability becomes permanent and
    total;

    3. If the company-designated physician fails to give his assessment within the period of 120
    days with a sufficient justification (e.g., seafarer required further medical treatment or
    seafarer was uncooperative), then the period of diagnosis and treatment shall be extended
    to 240 days. The employer has the burden to prove that the company-designated physician
    has sufficient justification to extend the period; and

    4. If the company-designated physician still fails to give his assessment within the extended
    period of 240 days, then the seafarer's disability becomes permanent and total, regardless
    of any justification.
    Accordingly, in Carcedo v. Maine Marine Philippines, Inc.,this Court declared that a partial and
    permanent disability could, by legal contemplation, become total and permanent when a
    company-designated physician fails to arrive at a definite assessment within the 120- or 240-
    day periods prescribed under Article 198 [192](c)(1) of the Labor Code and the Amended Rules
    on Employee Compensation, implementing Book IV, Title II of the Labor Code.

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