 NFPA released the latest edition of its U.S. Firefighter Injury Report, highlighting data on injuries sustained by firefighters on duty that was collected from fire departments responding to the 2012 National Fire Experience Survey. Firefighter injuries have declined over the past three decades, hovering around roughly 100,000 from the early 1980’s through early 1990’s. In 2012, 69,400 firefighter injuries occurred in the line of duty.
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Today's post is shared from thetowntalk.com
A national group is recommending that Louisiana reduce workers' compensation rates by 5 percent because of fewer workplace claims among other factors. The Times-Picayune of New Orleans reports that the National Council on Compensation Insurance has filed documents with the Louisiana Department of Insurance saying businesses in the state should pay lower rates because workers' compensation claims declined in 2011. According to the Louisiana Workforce Commission, employers across the state saw lighter losses in 2010 and 2011. The NCCI says those improvements can be attributed to a decrease in the number of workplace injuries and a reduction in the average cost per claim. The NCCI recommends additional cuts in manufacturing by 7 percent, contracting by 5 percent, office and clerical by 6 percent, goods and services by 6 percent and miscellaneous industry groups by about 3 percent. If the insurance department adopts the lower rates, they would take effect May 14. |
There is an unmistakable pattern in Wheeler’s readings. The Center identified more than 1,500 cases decided since 2000 in which Wheeler read at least one X-ray; in all, he interpreted more than 3,400 films during this time. The numbers show his opinions consistently have benefited coal companies:
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Working into retirement age is changing the way workers' compensation programs must handle claims. Developing new techniques to handle aging worker claims requires new economic and social considerations. Today's post is shared from alfa.org.
A new survey reveals the financial impact the Great Recession has had on the Baby Boomer generation. 47 percent of working adults surveyed said they now expect to retire later than they previously thought, with an average retirement age of 66. This figure was nearly three years later than the respondents’ reported estimate when they were 40. Working in "Retirement"The poll, conducted by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, surveyed 1,024 people aged 50 and older nationwide. Those surveyed were asked questions about their employment status, financial situation, and plans for retirement.Overall, men were more likely than women to postpone their retirement plans. Minorities, parents of dependent children, those without health insurance, and those with an annual income of less than $50,000 were also more likely to delay their plans. Among those surveyed who had already retired, 4 percent said they were looking for a job and 11 percent are already working again. Among employed respondents, 82 percent said they were likely to seek at least part-time employment for extra income during retirement. Retirement Savings and AgeismWhen asked specifically about retirement savings, about an equal share of those surveyed felt secure about the amount of savings they have for retirement (46 percent) as feel anxious (45 percent). However, the researchers found that a significant portion of respondents gave signs of... |
Time pressure is one of the biggest reported barriers to hand hygiene compliance among healthcare workers, according to a study in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.
Of 123 healthcare workers in a Thai hospital, compliance with the World Health Organization's "five moments" of hand hygiene was 23.2 percent by direct observation and 82.4 percent by self report. In a survey, the participants identified 11 barriers to compliance: • I hurry/emergent patient conditions — 45.5 percent • I don't see any dirt/I think it's not dirty — 24.4 percent • I forget — 19.5 percent • I'm busy/too many patients — 15.4 percent • It is inconvenient — 13.8 percent • I don't care — 8.1 percent • I'm lazy — 5.7 percent • I wear gloves/no direct contact with patients — 4.9 percent • There are adverse effects of soap/cleanser — 4.9 percent • It wastes time — 4.1 percent • My hands are clean — 2.4 percent These reasons may help guide future hand hygiene interventions, according to the study. More Articles on Hand Hygiene:Study: Only 23.2% Compliance Rate With WHO's 5 Moments of Hand Hygiene5 Factors Associated With High Hand Hygiene Compliance How to Maintain More Than 85%... |
This is apropos of nothing. I happened to be fiddling around with CMS health care expenditures and decided to take a look at how spending has increased year-over-year as a share of GDP for the past four decades. (Example: If spending increases from a 16 percent share of GDP to a 16.4 percent share of GDP, that's a year-over-year 2.5 percent growth rate.)
The chart below is a rolling 5-year average to smooth out the noise. Roughly speaking, it shows a steady decrease in the growth rate. If things continue along these lines, health care spending will continue increasing until it reaches about 21-22 percent of GDP sometime in the mid-2020s. The aging of the baby boom generation might send that number a little higher, but not by a lot, I suspect. The mechanism is simple: As spending goes up, our collective resistance to higher spending increases, and that's the ultimate brake on health care expenditures. I'm willing to bet that U.S. spending on health care will never top 25 percent of GDP. It might not even top 23 percent.  |
Oregon employers next year, on average, will pay $1.63 per $100 of payroll for workers' compensation insurance. That figure covers the pure premium, the premium assessment, the Workers' Benefit Fund assessment and insurer profit and expenses. Figures above have been adjusted to reflect the 2012 mix of employment and payroll. Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services
Following two years of increases, state officials say workers' compensation insurance rates should decline for most employers in 2014. The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services said last week that the "pure premium" - the portion set by the state - will drop on average by 7.6 percent. That does not include insurer expenses and profit. It also does not include smaller taxes that cover the state's administrative costs, reserves for self-insured employers and employer groups and a fund for injured worker benefits and return-to-work programs.
Including those costs, premiums will average $1.63 per $100 of payroll in 2014, down from $1.75 in 2013, a 6.9 percent decrease, state officials said.
Actual rates will vary by industry, the insurer and by individual employer claim experience and payroll size. But the construction and manufacturing sectors, both historically hazardous industries, should see drops of 11 percent and 8.5 percent respectively, said John Shilts, the state's workers' compensation division administrator. "The performance of construction and manufacturingin... |
