A 27-year-old chemist sustains a chemical burn to the eyes in 2010 with a 14% whole person impairment. What is the rating?

• A. 14%
• B. 15%
• C. 19%
• D. 21%

Answer: (C)

In California, a permanent disability rating isn’t just the impairment percentage from AMA Guides. You start with the whole person impairment (WPI) and then apply the Permanent Disability Rating Schedule, which adjusts that impairment based on age and occupation to reflect loss of earning capacity.

Here, the eye injury yields a 14% WPI. For a 27-year-old chemist, the age- and occupation-based multiplier increases the rating above the raw impairment. The appropriate adjustment for someone this age produces a final permanent disability rating of about 19%. That’s why 19% is the correct choice.

The key idea is that younger workers with the same impairment have a higher PD rating because they have more years of earning potential at stake, which the rating schedule accounts for.