Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 201499; Unpublished
Judges Doctoroff, Holbrook, Jr., and Kelly; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Work Loss Benefits: Nature of the Benefit [§3107(1)(b)]
Work Loss Benefits: Calculation of Benefits [§3107(1)(b)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous unpublished per curiam Opinion, the Court of Appeals held that plaintiff was entitled to receive wage loss benefits for her loss of income following an automobile accident for work that she would have performed as a physical therapist, even though she had failed to pass the physical therapy licensing examination and thus was not authorized to perform work as a licensed physical therapist at the time that she was injured.
Plaintiff was injured in an October, 1992 motor vehicle accident. State Farm argued that because plaintiffs temporary physical therapy license had expired, and because she had failed on four occasions to pass the test for a permanent physical therapy license, plaintiff was barred from receiving any further wage loss compensation. The trial court agreed and granted summary disposition on plaintiffs wage loss claim for the period of wage loss payments of when her license expired. The issue on appeal was whether her loss of her temporary physical therapy license "removed her from the workforce so that defendant no longer owed her work loss benefits."
The Court of Appeals held that while the plaintiff had lost her temporary license, thus disqualifying her from working as a physical therapist, she nevertheless was not disqualified from working in the field of physical therapy. The Public Health Code, MCLA 333.16215(1), authorizes unlicensed persons to practice physical therapy in the appropriate supervised setting. In fact, plaintiff did work for many years in the field, both before and after she failed her examination. Thus, defendant was obligated to pay her actual wage loss benefits, although they should be adjusted to reflect any change which resulted from the loss of the temporary license.
