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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA No. 6-839 / 06-0893 Filed December 13, 2006

BONNIE COOP, Petitioner-Appellant, vs. JOHN DEERE DES MOINES WORKS, Respondent-Appellee. ________________________________________________________________ Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Carla T. Schemmel, Judge.

Petitioner appeals the district court's affirmance of the workers' compensation commissioner's determination the employer was not required to purchase a van for her. AFFIRMED.

David D. Drake of Lawyer, Lawyer, Dutton & Drake, L.L.P., West Des Moines, for appellant. Joseph A. Quinn of Nyemaster, Goode, West, Hansell & O'Brien, P.C., Des Moines, for appellee.

Considered by Miller, P.J., and Vaitheswaran, J., and Robinson, S.J. *Senior judge assigned by order pursuant to Iowa Code section 602.9206 (2005).

2 ROBINSON, S.J. I. Background Facts & Proceedings

Bonnie Coop was formerly employed by John Deere Des Moines Works. She was injured in 1990, and subsequently developed reflex sympathetic dystrophy, which has confined her to a wheelchair. John Deere has paid for the wheelchair, home renovations, hospital beds, customized shower chairs, and nursing care twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In 1991, Coop and her husband, Winfred (Fred) Coop, purchased a 1991 Ford van for $17,864. John Deere refused to pay for the van, but paid about $7000 for modifications to the van for Coop's wheelchair. In 2001, the Coops purchased a new Dodge van for $25,863. 1 John Deere refused to pay for the van, but it paid about $22,000 to modify the van. Each van was used to take Coop to her medical appointments and other places. Coop is unable to drive, and her husband drives the van to take her to appointments. In 2003, Coop filed a petition in arbitration, seeking to have John Deere pay the cost of the two vans. At the administrative hearing, Fred Coop testified he was employed by the Metro Transit Authority. He stated a Paratransit bus was available to take Coop anywhere in the metropolitan area from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., if she scheduled the bus ahead of time. He stated he tried to get Coop out of the house about once every two weeks to help her mood. Coop testified that at the time of the accident she had a Ford Escort. She stated the van was necessary to take her to her medical appointments. She had attempted to take the Paratransit bus soon after she was injured, but the
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The old van was sold for $3500 at that time.

3 bumpiness of the ride caused her pain. All of her medical appointments are in the Des Moines metropolitan area. A representative of John Deere appeared at the hearing and stated the company had paid about $2.5 million thus far for Coop's medical needs and weekly benefits. Under Iowa Code section 85.27(1) (2003), an employer is required to furnish reasonable and necessary "appliances" for an injured worker. The deputy workers' compensation commissioner determined Coop had failed to show a van was reasonable and necessary. The deputy determined, "There is no evidence from any of claimant's health care providers that claimant's van is a medical necessity for claimant." The deputy noted, "There is no evidence from any

healthcare provider that the use of Paratransit services are harmful to claimant." The deputy concluded Coop was not entitled to the cost of the two vans as medical appliances or benefits. The deputy's decision was adopted as final

agency action by the workers' compensation commissioner. Coop filed a petition for judicial review. The district court affirmed the commissioner. The court determined the modifications to the vans replaced

physical function lost by the injury, and the employer was required to pay the cost of the modifications. Coop, however, was not entitled to reimbursement for the purchase price of the vans. Coop now appeals. II. Standard of Review

Our review is governed by the Iowa Administrative Procedure Act. Iowa Code ch. 17A; Acuity Ins. v. Foreman, 684 N.W.2d 212, 216 (Iowa 2004). We review the district court's decision by applying the standard of chapter 17A to the

4 agency action to determine if our conclusions are the same as those reached by the district court. University of Iowa Hosp. & Clinics v. Waters, 674 N.W.2d 92, 95 (Iowa 2004). We may reverse, modify, or grant other relief if a party shows the agency's action is "[b]ased upon a determination of fact clearly vested by a provision of law in the discretion of the agency that is not supported by substantial evidence in the record before the court when that record is viewed as a whole." Iowa Code

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