Quote of the day
"There's no question that our patients who have physical and mental health consequences of the World Trade Center disaster have had their psychological distress worsened by the difficult interactions with the workers' compensation system."
Dr. Robin Herbert, occupational medicine specialist and incoming director of the World Trade Center Health Effects Treatment Program
Berkshire Hathaway Acquires Applied Underwriters
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. yesterday completed the acquisition of Bay Area-based Applied Underwriters, a privately-held firm that offers packages of payroll, workers’ compensation insurance and other types of insurance to companies. By AP via Bradenton Herald
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Drop in Workers’ Comp Expenses Boosts SLO County Budget
The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors plans to introduce a budget today that restores money to parks, roads and libraries and provides for new hires in public libraries, the Sheriff’s Department, probation and mental health facilities. It’s partially due to a turnaround in the county’s workers’ compensation program, which has experienced a 19 percent drop in expenses. By Bob Cuddy, San Luis Obispo Tribune
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Worker Advocates Decry New York City’s Sept. 11 Comp Hurdles
Advocates for public employees who worked near the site of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York City contend that before Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently ordered city attorneys to drop an appeal of a judge’s order granting a Ground Zero emergency responder health care benefits under the workers’ compensation system, the city typically fought such claims “tooth and nail.” By Sewell Chan, New York Times
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A.M. Best Affirms Argonaut’s ‘A’ Rating
Ratings bureau A.M. Best Co. affirms the financial strength rating of “A” and the issuer credit ratings of “a” for the Argonaut Insurance Group, of San Antonio. Workers’ Comp Executive
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Kentucky Town Struggles with Workers’ Comp
In balancing its books for the upcoming fiscal year budget, a particularly troublesome area for Covington, Ky. is its contributions to the Kentucky County Employee Retirement system and workers compensation, which have grown substantially in recent years. By Luke E. Saladin, Kentucky Post
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West Virginia Comp Commission the Model in Coercing Compliance
West Virginia tax officials, in chasing down delinquent businesses, would be wise to follow the example set by the former Workers’ Compensation Commission. Before becoming the private BrickStreet Insurance Co., it notified nearly 4,400 companies that they could lose their licenses for failing to pay premiums into the program, and nearly 78 percent came into compliance. By Lawrence Messina, AP via Herald-Dispatch (Huntington, W.V.)
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Noe’s Trial Likely to Stay Put
Judges rarely grant motions like the one filed by indicted Ohio coin dealer and once-prominent political fundraiser Tom Noe to move his trial for looting millions from Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation rare coin funds out of the jurisdiction where he allegedly committed the crimes, say some legal experts. Noe’s attorney say adverse publicity about the “Coingate” scandal has made a fair trial for their client impossible. By Christopher D. Kirkpatrick, Toledo Blade [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Crosman OHS Manager Takes Aim at High Comp Costs
An occupational health and safety manager for air- and paint-gun maker Crosman Corp. takes a unique approach to solving the company’s $1 million annual workers’ compensation problem by enrolling in a Rochester Institute of Technology ergonomics program. By Ben Rand, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Pennsylvania Assisted Living Facility Operator Cops to Comp Fraud
An Adams County, Penn. employer who operated an assisted living facility is sentenced to 60 months in “intermediate punishment” after pleading guilty to failing to carry workers’ compensation insurance. York Daily Record
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