Quote of the day
"There's no deliberate delay going on. It's my experience that everybody in this program has been imbued with the sense of urgency because of so many people who are elderly."
Assistant Secretary of Labor Victoria Lipnic, regarding the government's reportedly unmet promise to compensate 5,600 sick nuclear weapons workers
Labor Department Leaves Sick Nuke Workers in the Lurch
The government still has not fulfilled its 2004 promise to compensate 5,600 sick former nuclear weapons workers, according to a Denver newspaper. The Labor Department responds that more than half of the eligible workers failed to file necessary paperwork. By Ann Imse, Rocky Mountain News [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Missouri Gov Asks for Review of State’s Second Injury Fund
Unhappy over the results of a state audit that found that Missouri’s Second Injury Fund will likely run out of money next year, Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt asks the state Division of Workers’ Compensation to perform a review. By AP via Columbia Tribune
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Stable Rate the First for Ohio Employers in a Half-Decade
For the first time in five years, the average amount private employers in Ohio pay to the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation will not increase next year. The president and chief executive of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce says the news would have been better had the bureau not overreacted to its rare coin and hedge fund investment scandals by switching most of its portfolio to bonds. By Paul Wilson, Columbus Dispatch
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Commentary: A True Grassroots Movement
The “Sixty Summits” coalition has no legislative agenda, but is seeking another kind of reform: to change professional expectations and norms in the realm of workers’ compensation and disability management. By Peter Rousmaniere, Risk and Insurance
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South Dakota Employers to See Small Rate Cut
Most employers in South Dakota should see a slight decline—about 1 percent—in worker’s compensation rates by July, as a result of a drop in the frequency of injuries even as treatment costs continue to increase. KELO-TV (Sioux Falls)
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North Dakota Agency Chief Facing Felony Charges
The executive director of North Dakota’s workers’ compensation insurer, the Workforce Safety and Insurance agency, is put on administrative leave after the state’s attorney files three felony charges against him and another agency employee. The charges are a result of an investigation stemming from several citizen complaints against the agency. By Crystal R. Reid, Bismarck Tribune
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Major WCB Report Issued in Northern Canada
After almost four years, the Worker’s Compensation Act review panel releases its report and recommendations to the Yukon Workers Compensation Health and Safety Board. By Julia Skikavich, Whitehorse Star
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Bay State Changes Take Effect Tomorrow
New procedures for issuing workers’ compensation certificates of insurance for sole proprietorships and partnerships are approved by the Massachusetts Division of Insurance and become mandatory May 1. They do not change state law, which does not require a sole proprietor or partner(s) of a partnership to purchase workers’ compensation insurance. Groton Landmark
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