Issue: Under Iowa law, for purposes of summary judgment, is the determination of whether an insurer was obligated to provide alternate care an issue of fact?
| Area of Law: | Employee Law, Insurance Law, Workers Compensation Insurance |
| Keywords: | Provide alternate care; Summary judgment; Workers compensation benefits |
| Jurisdiction: | Iowa |
| Cited Cases: | 653 N.W.2d 323; 463 N.W.2d 9; 657 N.W.2d 485 |
| Cited Statutes: | Iowa Code § 85.27 |
| Date: | 01/01/2014 |
It is well established under Iowa law that when an injured worker requests payment of expenses not expressly covered by the relevant workers compensation benefits provision, Iowa Code § 85.27 TA s "Iowa Code § 85.27" , “whether an employer is obligated to provide an employee with alternate care is intensely fact driven.” Manpower Temporary Servs. v. Sioson, 529 N.W.2d 259 (Iowa 1995) TA s "Manpower Temporary Servs. v. Sioson (Iowa 1995)" ; Quaker Oats Co. v. Ciha, 552 N.W.2d 143 (Iowa 1996) TA l "Quaker Oats Co. v. Ciha, 552 N.W.2d 143 (Iowa 1996)" s "Quaker Oats Co. v. Ciha (Iowa 1996)" c 1 ; Stone Container Corp. v. Castle, 657 N.W.2d 485 (Iowa 2003) TA l "Stone Container Corp. v. Castle, 657 N.W.2d 485 (Iowa 2003)" s "Stone Container Corp. v. Castle, 657 N.W.2d 485 (Iowa 2003)" c 1 ).
When such an issue exists while summary judgment is proposed, the matter should not be determined as a matter of law but should go to the jury. See Kiner v. Reliance Ins. Co., 463 N.W.2d 9, 12 (Iowa 1990) TA s "Kiner v. Reliance Ins. Co., 463 N.W.2d 9 (Iowa 1990)" ; see also McIlravy v. N. River Ins. Co., 653 N.W.2d 323 (Iowa 2002) TA s "McIlravy v. North River Ins. Co. (Iowa 2002)" (bad faith cause of action established by “the knowing failure to exercise an honest and informed judgment.”).
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