RECURRENCE CLAIMS

A recurrence of an injury, disease, or illness oftentimes is mistaken for a new injury. If after an injured federal worker resumes their job and experiences a spontaneous return of symptoms from a previous injury or occupational disease without an intervening cause, then one may be experiencing a recurrence of an injury. Essentially, there was no new inciting event that happened to cause the return or worsening state of the disability. In such a situation, one would file the OWCP claim as a CA-2a. However, if there was an intervening cause or identifiable event that causes the return of a worker’s symptoms, it would be a new injury claim using the OWCP  CA-1 form.