Jason Schmelzer | Workers’ Comp Executive | Workers’ Comp Executive

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Division Gets Pushback, Support For Draft QME Regulations

Draft regulations to boost the training and educational requirements for qualified medical evaluators (QMEs), including anti-bias training that the Division of Workers’ Compensation agreed to require of QMEs two years ago, generated significant feedback from employers and providers alike. The Division is reviewing 20-some pages of comments in preparation for starting the formal rulemaking process. … Read More »

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Proposal To Limit Claims Investigations, Increase Medical Liability Clears Committee

The Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee approved a bill carried by its chairman (see photo) to halve the amount of time employers are allowed to investigate potential fraud in a workers’ comp claims in all cases and, in some cases, reduce the time by two-thirds. SB 335 by Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) … Read More »

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Apportionment Reform Bill Advances Over Employer Opposition

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More Presumption Bills

The Senate Labor, Public Employment, and Retirement committee advanced without opposition a bill to expand an existing workers’ comp presumption for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It will provide the presumption to more public safety officers and others involved in emergency response. Legislators also amended another presumption bill to expand coverage and yet another to make … Read More »

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Employers, Carriers Push Back Against Med-Legal Fee Proposal

California’s employers and insurance carriers are raising concerns that the Division of Workers’ Compensation’s proposed med-legal fee schedule (MLFS) update will increase costs more than is projected and, worse, create new friction points in the system. Employers assert the proposal does little to prevent billing abuse and that the Division’s proposal fails to ensure high-quality … Read More »

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Abuse Of Copy Service Rules

Employers and copy service providers over the years have aired a litany of complaints against each other over alleged billing and payment abuses. The state’s adoption of a new copy service fee schedule in 2015 eliminated some of the acrimony. But comments on the state’s proposed new workers’ comp copy service fee schedule update show … Read More »

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DWC Accepting Comments About Copy Service Fee Regs

The Division of Workers’ Compensation is taking another run at updating California’s copy service fee schedule. The agency is seeking comments on a slightly revised, year-old proposal via its informal public forum process. The update proposes the first increase in the flat rate paid for copy services – from $180 to $210 – since the … Read More »

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Three COVID-19 Presumption Bills Advance

Three bills proposing to create presumptions that cases of COVID-19 are a compensable consequence of work cleared key policy committees. However, there are still major, unresolved issues, such as the presumption’s scope and duration. One of the bills, AB 196 by Assemblyman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), initially sought a conclusive presumption of compensability, but it … Read More »

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