G.R. No. 259609, August 07, 2024
PAOLO B. DAVANTES, PETITIONER, VS. C.F. SHARP CREW MANAGEMENT INC., CLAUS-PETER OFFEN TANKSCHIFFREEDEREI (GMBH & CO.) KG, AND/OR MIGUEL ROCHA, RESPONDENTS.

FACTS

Petitioner Paolo B. Davantes, an able seaman, was hired by respondent C.F. Sharp Crew Management Inc. on May 13, 2017. He underwent a Pre-Employment Medical Examination (PEME) and was declared fit to work. On June 24, 2017, during an emergency drill under intense heat, he felt unwell. The following day, he experienced an abnormally fast heartbeat and was eventually disembarked, hospitalized in Venezuela, and underwent Coronary Bypass Graft surgery. He was repatriated on July 25, 2017. Upon arrival, he was referred to the company-designated physician, Dr. Robert Lim, who, after four months, diagnosed him with “Myocardial Infarction, Coronary Artery Disease, Hypertension” and declared him unfit to work. His personal physician, Dr. Antonio C. Pascual, also declared him unfit. The company-designated physician later gave him a final disability grading of Grade 7 (moderate residual disorder). Davantes had previously filed a complaint (NLRC-NCR Case No. 03-04582-18) which was dismissed after the parties entered into a settlement agreement; he received USD 20,900.00 and executed release documents. He later filed a new complaint on March 7, 2019, claiming entitlement to USD 102,308.00 under the CBA. The Labor Arbiter granted him disability benefits. The NLRC affirmed but modified the award, applying the POEA-SEC instead of the CBA and awarding USD 60,000.00, less the amount already received. The Court of Appeals annulled the NLRC decision, dismissing the complaint on the ground of Davantes’s concealment of his pre-existing hypertension during his PEME, as his medical history showed he was diagnosed in 2010 and prescribed Clonidine, which he did not disclose.

ISSUE

Whether the Court of Appeals correctly dismissed Davantes’s claim for total and permanent disability benefits on the ground of concealment of a pre-existing illness (hypertension) during his PEME.

RULING

No. The Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals decision and reinstated the NLRC decision with modification. The Court held that Davantes’s non-disclosure of his hypertension during the PEME did not constitute fraudulent concealment that would bar his claim. The PEME is not exploratory and does not cover all pre-existing conditions; its purpose is to determine if the seafarer is fit for sea duty at the time of examination. The company-designated physician found him “fit to work” after the PEME. His hypertension was not shown to be a prohibited or fraudulent concealment, as it was not the cause of his repatriation or his subsequent heart condition (Myocardial Infarction). The Court found that his heart disease was work-related, having manifested during the emergency drill under extreme heat. Furthermore, his disability became total and permanent by operation of law due to the company-designated physician’s failure to issue a final assessment within the 240-day period. Thus, Davantes is entitled to total and permanent disability benefits under the POEA-SEC in the amount of USD 60,000.00, less the USD 20,900.00 already received, plus attorney’s fees. The claim of res judicata was also rejected as the prior dismissal was based on a compromise, not a judgment on the merits.