Quote of the day
"Nobody running for insurance commissioner who wants consumers' trust should take a dime from any insurance company."
Douglas Heller, Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, about Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante
Bustamante Keeps Some Insurers’ Donations
Despite promising to return donations from insurance companies, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante has kept tens of thousands of dollars from them and accepted money from others he will oversee if he is elected state insurance commissioner Nov. 7. Bustamante has defended his acceptance of money from bail bond companies and workers’ compensation attorneys. By Dan Morain, Los Angeles Times
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Doctors, Lawyers, Employers Way Ahead of Workers in Comp Fraud
While falsified claims by employees make up the bulk of workers’ compensation fraud cases, the big money fraud is perpetrated by medical professionals, experts tell Lancaster-area business leaders. “Less than 10 percent of the fraud is committed by injured workers, and 90 percent is committed by everyone else,” says Laura Clifford, executive director of the Employers’ Fraud Task Force. By Lisa Wahla Howard, Antelope Valley Press
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Homeowners’ Association Has Workers’ Comp Question
In a question-and-answer format, the Fort Myers News-Press discusses whether a Florida homeowners’ association needs to carry workers’ compensation insurance for its common area. By Joe Adams, News-Press (Fort Myers)
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Comp Reform Proposal Fails for Lack of Signatures
Backers of a proposal that sought to eliminate certain changes to workers’ compensation rules approved earlier this year by the Ohio Legislature lose an appeal to get the issue on the November ballot. Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell decided previously that supporters did not have enough petition signatures for the proposal. By AP via Akron Beacon Journal
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South Carolina Businesses Feel the Squeeze
Around 80 Charleston, S.C.-area business owners gather to listen to two of the state’s most powerful lawmakers discuss how they will attempt to solve the problem of high workers’ compensation rates during the 2007 legislative session. Regarding workers’ comp costs, one roofer says, “We’re getting pinched, and not just a little bit.” By Peter Hull, Charleston Post and Courier
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Unshackle Upstate Gets Help from Bank, Insurer
M&T Bank and Excellus BlueCross Blue Shield will contribute $150,000 toward Unshackle Upstate’s campaign to convince New York legislators to approve reforms intended to improve the state’s business climate, including workers’ compensation reform. By Ben Rand, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
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Opinion: Wisconsin Insurance Commish Did Right by Small Biz
Wisconsin’s small business owners who use professional employer organizations can applaud a recent decision by Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Jorge Gomez to hold off implementing new, overly restrictive rules governing how PEOs secure workers’ compensation coverage. By Milan Yager, Small Business Times (Milwaukee)
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