Elizabeth Ventocilla, vs. Kaiser Permanente, Permissibly Self-insured,

(VNO 0542153) is a case in which Elizabeth Ventocilla, a data entry clerk, filed a petition for removal to the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, requesting that the appeals board rescind the Order dated March 4, 2009, wherein the workers' compensation administrative law judge (WCJ) ordered this matter off calendar. Ventocilla claimed to have sustained an industrial injury to her cervical, thoracic & lumbar spine, bilateral shoulders, bilateral upper extremities, white blood cell injury and other parts of her body while employed as a data entry clerk. The appeals board granted Ventocilla's petition for removal, rescinded the Order dated March 4, 2009, and returned the matter to the trial level for an expedited

KAISER PERMANENTE, Permissibly Self-Insured, ELIZABETH VENTOCILLA, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION APPEALS BOARDSTATE OF CALIFORNIAELIZABETH VENTOCILLA, Applicant,vs.KAISER PERMANENTE, Permissibly Self-Insured, Defendant(s).Case No. ADJ620371 (VNO 0542153)OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING REMOVAL AND DECISION AFTER REMOVAL            Applicant has filed a timely petition for removal, requesting that the appeals board rescind the Order dated March 4, 2009, wherein the workers’ compensation administrative law judge (WCJ) ordered this matter off calendar, noting: “Parties have requested PQME and discovery is ongoing.” Applicant contends that defendant has not initiated a utilization review process pursuant to Labor Code section 46101 and therefore is not entitled to obtain a panel qualified medical evaluator (PQME) on the issue of need for medical treatment. We have not received an answer from defendant.            Applicant, while employed as a data entry clerk for a period of cumulative trauma ending January 2, 2007, claims to have sustained an industrial injury to her “cervical, thoracic & lumbar spine, bilateral shoulders, bilateral upper extremities, white blood cell injury and other parts of her body.” It appears that the injury has been accepted by her employer. Her primary treating physician is Philip, A. Sobol, M.D. In a report dated January 2, 2008, Dr. Sobol requested authorization for bilateral carpal tunnel release first to be performed on the left. Defendant denied authorization, apparently because Dr. Sobol is not a member of its medical provider network (MPN) (see section 4616). However, by Stipulation and Order dated August 25, 2008, defendant released applicant from its MPN and stipulated that Dr. Sobol was designated as applicant’s 1Unless otherwise specified, all statutory references are to the Labor Code. , primary treating physician.            Nonetheless, defendant continued to refuse to authorize the surgery recommended by Dr. Sobol. On October 3, 2008, defenda

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