Quote of the day
"This is a civilian who dedicated himself to the search and rescue operations and ultimately the cleanup like no one else in the Giuliani administration. Where's the humanity? Humans shouldn't treat humans like this."
Joe Lhota, former New York City mayoral official, about the Bloomberg administration's refusal—since dropped—to pay workers' comp benefits to a former deputy mayor and Ground Zero emergency supervisor
Bay State Defendants Deny Massive Workers’ Comp Fraud
Two officers and six employees of a Massachusetts-based firm accused of fraudulently filing workers’ compensation claims, including at least one in San Diego, plead not guilty to insurance fraud charges. California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi says the defendants “ripped off” State Fund to the tune of $600,000. San Diego Union-Tribune
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Officials Probe Possible Fresno Fraud
Insurance fraud investigators are focusing on payroll records in connection with possible workers’ compensation violations at a Fresno trucking company. KFSN-TV (Fresno)
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NYC to Pay Sept. 11 Medical Benefits of Former Giuliani Aide
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg orders city attorneys lawyers to drop their appeal of a favorable Workers Compensation Board ruling and instead pay the medical benefits of a former deputy mayor who supervised emergency response at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and may have developed asthma as a result.
Go to the full story by Sewell Chan, New York Times
Go to the full story by Maggie Haberman and Carl Campanile, New York Post
[With Photo]
‘Bama Court Candidate Wrote the Book on Workers’ Comp
Though he’s never before been a judge, 41-year-old Republican candidate for the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals Terry More contends that the 5,000 hours he spent writing a two-volume treatise on workers’ compensation would provide the court with much-needed workers’ comp expertise. By Eric Fleischauer, Decatur (Ala.) Daily
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A.M. Best Affirms Safeco Rating
A.M. Best Co. affirms the financial strength rating of “A” and the issuer credit ratings “a+” of Seattle-based Safeco Insurance Companies. Workers’ Comp Executive
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Self-Insurance a Recipe for Disaster, Say NSW Officials
In Australia, the government of New South Wales says federal plans to allow large companies to self insure for workers compensation will be “a disaster for workplace safety.” Townsville Bulletin (Australia)
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Bay State Comp Costs’ Upward Trend Slows: Study
Costs per workers’ compensation claim rose 8 percent for claims evaluated mid- 2004 with an average of 12 months’ maturity, according to a new study by the Cambridge, Mass-based Workers Compensation Research Institute, contrasted with more rapid annual growth of 9 to 11 percent in the two prior years. Workers’ Comp Executive
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