February 5, 2009

Dear Family and Friends,

Kevin recently saw the orthopedic surgeon and got the results of his MRI. Thereis a bulging disc at L2 (lumbar spine) as well as a tear in the casing around the disc which might be pressing on a nerve, all of which could be causing his neuropathy. The doctor believes this is all a result of the accident but also believes there is no course of action to be taken at this time. He told Kevin that he was fortunate that he is not experiencing any pain with it and also told him he should not do any heavy lifting.

Kevin has had another appointment with the internist as well but there is really nothing noteworthy to report. He did encourage him to continue working out andto try to keep losing weight.

Now to the confusing part. As you may remember, back in September Kevin was declared "permanent and stationary" and at that time Worker's Comp. decreased his monthly income until final settlement could be made. However, a couple of the new doctors he has been seeing say he is not permanent and stationary but that he is "temporarily disabled". Kevin is permanently disabled but"temporarily disabled" is another one of those terms Worker's Comp. uses that means there is more the doctors feel they can do for him before they are ready to release him. So, Kevin's lawyer has tried to get Worker's Comp. to reinstate Kevin as "temporarily disabled" and to retroactively increase his monthly salary back to what it was before he was declared "permanent and stationary". At present they have refused. So on February 17, Kevin, along with his lawyer, has a hearing before the Worker's Comp. attorneys to try and persuade them to reinstate Kevin as "temporarily disabled". We would appreciate your prayers in that regard.

Grace and Peace,
Tami