Quote of the day
"It was a good bill ... Now it's hog-housed into not a very good bill, so I urge that we kill it and send it on its way."
North Dakota State Rep. Bill Amerman, about a bill that initially was intended to give the governor control of appointments to the state's Workforce Safety and Insurance board
North Dakota Reps Vote Down Altered Bill
North Dakota state representatives overwhelmingly reject legislation that began as an attempt to restore the governor’s control over the state’s workers’ compensation agency. Bill changes that sought to establish the agriculture and insurance commissioners and attorney general as a screening committee for prospective Workforce Safety and Insurance board members altered the legislation into a bill that even its sponsors disdained. By AP via Bismarck Tribune
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Delaware Supremes Uphold Doctor’s No-Work Order
The Delaware Supreme Court holds that a doctor’s no-work order is good enough for a workers’ compensation claimant to receive total disability benefits for a back injury, even if no medical basis is shown for it. By John O’Brien, Legal Newsline [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Q&A: Advice to Injured Worker on Paying Doctor
An injured worker asks about the procedure when a doctor requests payment before the uncontested workers’ compensation claim goes through. By Bruce Williams, Ventura County Star
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South Carolina Panel Examines Loss Cost Multiplier
In South Carolina, where reforming workers’ compensation insurance is a top priority for business, a state senate subcommittee contends that the “loss cost multiplier” may be part of the reason workers’ compensation insurance rates have recently skyrocketed. An industry spokesman responds that trial lawyers on the panel are using the multiplier as a diversion from true reform. By Zane Wilson, Myrtle Beach Sun
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Opinion: Spitzer’s Big Deal
Last week’s workers’ compensation reform deal in New York, which several legislatures and governors have failed to accomplish, is expected to help save the system enough to justify a rate cut of between 10 percent and 15 percent, putting the state more in line with the rest of the country with respect to rates and injured worker benefits. Elmira Star-Gazette
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Editorial: NYC Mayor’s Critical Role on Behalf of Ground Zero Responders
Once reportedly a skeptic about so-called “Ground Zero disease,” New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg stands to play an important role in convincing the federal government to take some responsibility for Sept. 11 responders who are now seriously ill. Bloomberg advocates $150 million a year for three health centers that already treat police officers, firefighters and others made sick by the attacks. New York Times via The Day (New London, Conn.)
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