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U. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

 

Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

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In the Matter of RICHARD A. CASTLE and U.S. POSTAL SERVICE,

GENERAL MAIL FACILITY, Long Beach, CA

 

Docket No. 98-1145; Submitted on the Record;

Issued February 11, 2000

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DECISION and ORDER

 

Before   DAVID S. GERSON, WILLIE T.C. THOMAS,

A. PETER KANJORSKI

 

 

            The issue is whether appellant has met his burden of proof in establishing that he sustained a recurrence of disability causally related to his previously accepted condition of temporary aggravation of allergic rhinitis.

            The Board has given careful consideration to the issue involved, appellant’s contentions on appeal and the entire case record.  The Board finds that the decision of the hearing representative of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs, dated January 5, 1998 and finalized on January 9, 1998, is in accordance with the facts and the law in this case and hereby adopts the findings and conclusions of the Office hearing representative.[1]

            The decision of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs dated January 5, 1998 and finalized on January 9, 1998 is hereby affirmed.

Dated,  Washington, D.C.

            February 11, 2000

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                            David S. Gerson

                                                                                                            Member

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                            Willie T.C. Thomas

                                                                                                            Alternate Member

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                            A. Peter Kanjorski

                                                                                                            Alternate Member


     [1] Where appellant claims a recurrence of disability due to an accepted employment-related injury, he has the burden of establishing by the weight of reliable, probative and substantial evidence that the recurrence of disability is causally related to the original injury.  Robert H. St. Onge, 43 ECAB 1169 (1992).  This burden includes the necessity of furnishing evidence from a qualified physician who concludes, on the basis of a complete and accurate factual and medical history, that the condition is causally related to the employment injury.  20 C.F.R. § 10.121(b).