Pressley v. Southwestern Freight Lines

Outcome

Excerpt

1. Workers' Compensation — occupational disease — coccidioidomycosis — increased exposure than general public The Industrial Commission did not err by awarding plaintiff truck driver workers' compensation benefits for an occupational disease under N.C.G.S. § 97-53 for his contraction of coccidioidomycosis Page 343 and finding that plaintiff's work as a truck driver required him to travel to California where he had an increased risk of being exposed to the disease compared to the general public, because: (1) the term "general public" pertains to the general public of North Carolina; and (2) coccidioidomycosis is not generally contracted in North Carolina. 2. Workers' Compensation — occupational disease — coccidioidomycosis — exposure during course and scope of employment The Industrial Commission did not err by concluding that there was competent evidence to support its finding that plaintiff truck driver likely was exposed to the occupational disease of coccidioidomycosis in October 1991 while in the course and scope of his employment, because: (1) the fungus is not present in the soil in North Carolina but solely in the southwestern United States, including California where plaintiff's employer required him to carry goods; and (2) although it is possible to be exposed to the spores and have asymptomatic infection which might not become symptomatic until one to three weeks later, plaintiff did not visit his brother who lives in Arizona during his trips in October 1991.