G.R. No. 164731; February 11, 2010
GOVERNMENT SERVICE INSURANCE SYSTEM, Petitioner, vs. ROSALINDA A. BERNADAS, Respondent.

FACTS

Rosalinda A. Bernadas, a public school teacher, accidentally slipped and incurred a wound on the sole of her left foot on March 3, 2000, while supervising a gardening activity at her school. Months later, a black mole appeared on the affected sole, which was later diagnosed as malignant melanoma. In 2002, she filed a claim for compensation benefits with the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). GSIS denied the claim, stating malignant melanoma was not a listed occupational disease. The Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC) upheld the denial, finding respondent failed to prove her ailment was work-related. The Court of Appeals reversed the ECC, ruling the ailment was work-connected as the injury was sustained during a school activity and the melanoma originated from the wound.

ISSUE

Whether the Court of Appeals committed a reversible error in setting aside the ECC’s Decision which denied respondent’s claim for compensation benefit.

RULING

The Supreme Court GRANTED the petition, SET ASIDE the Court of Appeals Decision, and REINSTATED the ECC Decision. The Court held that for a non-listed occupational disease like malignant melanoma, the claimant bears the burden to prove by substantial evidence that the risk of contracting the disease was increased by her working conditions. Respondent failed to provide such proof. The Court found no positive evidence that the melanoma was caused by the employment or that her working conditions increased the risk. The Court noted that while sunlight is a factor in melanoma development, it was not shown that respondent, unlike farmers or fishermen, had chronic long-term exposure necessary for the disease. Furthermore, the final pathological diagnosis revealed the melanoma was benign, with no tumor seen, which alone warranted denial of the claim.