Quote of the day
"That's their bread and butter. And their butter is low."
UCLA health policy researcher Gerald Kominski, about workers' compensation doctors who, according to a new study, receive on average 13 percent below the Medicare fee schedule for visits
Study: Some Comp Claimants Satisfied, Others Not So Much
In the first such study since the reforms, the DWC and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research find that most injured workers are satisfied with medical treatment they receive in the workers’ compensation system, but that those with the worst injuries have the most complaints. The study also finds that injured African American, Latino and Asian American workers are less satisfied than are whites. By Tom Abate, San Francisco Chronicle
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Critics Blast Army for Soldiers’ Disability Ratings
The Army is deliberately shortchanging troops on their disability retirement ratings to hold down costs, according to veterans’ advocates, lawyers and service members. While the numbers of people approved for permanent or temporary disability retirement in the Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force have stayed relatively stable since 2001, the number of Army soldiers approved for permanent disability retirement has plunged by more than two-thirds. By Kelly Kennedy, Navy Times
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Rhode Island’s Beacon Mutual Taps New COO
The board of directors of Dominant Rhode Island workers’ compensation insurer Beacon Mutual names a new chief operating officer. Providence Business News
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Alberta Jailbirds Can No Longer Smoke Nicotine Patches
In response to an occupational health and safety complaint last year by a provincial employees’ union, inmates at Alberta prisons no longer will be allowed to smoke cigarettes made from nicotine patches. The union contends the smoke causes severe respiratory symptoms among prison staff and has resulted in about 20 workers’ compensation claims. By Max Maudie, Edmonton Sun
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EMC Insurance 4th-Quarter Profit Falls
Property and casualty insurer EMC Insurance Group Inc. reports that its fourth-quarter profit dropped 40 percent from the same period in 2005, as the number of premiums written fell. The drop in premiums was attributed to reduced participation from workers’ compensation insurer Employers Mutual. Yahoo! Finance
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Former Ohio Legislator May Face Charges in BWC Fallout
Based on a preliminary investigation, former Ohio state senator Jeffry Armbruster may face criminal prosecution for allegedly contacting the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation about reducing his company’s premium rates while he was serving in the state legislature. The misdemeanor charge carries a penalty of up to six months in jail and/or a $1,000 fine. By James Drew and Steve Eder, Toledo Blade [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Entrepreneur Finds Niche Business in Workers’ Comp Bureaucracy
A Tennessee entrepreneur discusses his firm, which obtains insurance payments for hospitals, clinics and other health care businesses in exchange for a cut of the reimbursement. The service saves businesses the hassle of processing claims for workers’ compensation. By Daniel Connolly, Memphis Commercial Appeal [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…