Quote of the day
"There is a misconception that a broken arm costs the same in Columbus, Ohio, as it does in Los Angeles, California."
Tiffany Himmelreich, spokeswoman for the 170-member institution Ohio Hospital Association; the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation is proposing to dramatically overhaul the way it pays hospitals for treating injured workers
A.M. Best Gives Majestic Insurance Co. Positive Outlook
Ratings bureau A.M. Best Company improves its outlook on Majestic Insurance Company from stable to positive. Workers’ Comp Executive
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Ohio BWC to Reform Hospital Reimbursement Program
The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation plans to overhaul the way it pays—or, some would argue, overpays—hospitals for treating injured workers. By paying hospitals the amount the federal government pays under Medicare, officials say Ohio could save $60 million a year. By Catherine Candisky, Columbus Dispatch
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Guilty Plea Expected from Former BWC CFO
Terrence W. Gasper, the former chief financial officer at the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, is expected to plead guilty today to federal and state corruption charges. Gasper resigned in 2004 in connection with the bureau’s MDL Capital Inc. hedge fund investment debacle. In other scandal-related news, a U.S. district court judge dismisses some individual directors of MDL from the state attorney general’s suit against the hedge fund. By Mark Niquette, Columbus Dispatch [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
The Hidden Costs of Smoking in the Workplace
Advocacy groups say workplace smoking not only affects smokers and employers: nonprofit organization WorkingSmokeFree.com lists 14 ways employee smoking increases employer costs, including health and life insurance costs and claims, lost productivity and absenteeism, maintenance costs, worker’s compensation costs, property damage and the effects of secondhand smoke on nonsmokers. And the American Lung Association links smoking to increased workplace accidents. Cincinnati Business Courier
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Workers Allege Retaliation for Filing Comp Claims
Two individuals file suit in notorious St. Clair County, Ill., alleging that their former employer and the trucking company that bought it first gave them humiliating work assignments and then fired them in retaliation for filing workers’ compensation claims. By Ann Knef, Madison County Record
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Beacon Shows R.I. Chambers the Money
Dominant Rhode Island workers’ compensation insurer Beacon Mutual provides hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in discounts and other financial support to Rhode Island’s chambers of commerce, which may explain why chamber leaders generally are reluctant to speak out about the embattled insurer. By Lynn Arditi, Providence Journal
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Blogworld: The Nurse Who Cared Too Much
Workplace health and safety blogger Jordan Barab says the sad tale of Wyoming nurse who injured herself while single-handedly trying to help a “two-person lift” patient go to the bathroom indicates that some workers’ comp systems are going from bad to worse. By Jordan Barab, Confined Space
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