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Commission to decide if scrapes, staph infection work-related

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MRSA

The Iowa Court of Appeals on Wednesday ordered a state workers compensation commission to determine whether the cuts and scrapes a construction worker said led to a staph infection were acquired at his work site.

In 2012, Kenneth Streit, the owner of Streit Construction Inc. who also received an hourly wage from the company, filed a claim for workers compensation benefits, alleging that his Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection arose out of and in the course of his employment, according to documents in Streit v. Streit Construction Inc. The company’s insurer denied liability.

A deputy workers compensation commissioner in 2015 held that Mr. Streit had met his burden of proving that he sustained a work injury.

In 2016, a workers compensation commissioner reversed the finding, holding that Mr. Streit failed to prove he acquired MRSA from the work site. He appealed that decision.

In reversing and remanding the case, the Iowa Court of Appeals held that the commissioner must decide the factual question of whether Mr. Streit obtained the cuts and scrapes at work before determining whether the MRSA infection was a result of those cuts and scrapes.