When Inflation Hits Workers’ Compensation

How a renewed inflationary cycle is reshaping premiums, medical delivery, and disability benefits across the U.S. workers' compensation system.

Medical Records Fees Reshape Claims

The cost of obtaining medical records in New Jersey workers’ compensation cases has been significantly restructured. Senate Bill 2253—signed into law by Governor Phil Murphy as P.L. 2022, c. 114, effective September 22, 2022—slashed the permissible fees that hospitals and licensed health care professionals may charge for copies of medical and billing records. Three years on, a January 5, 2026, regulatory amendment to N.J.A.C. 8:43G-15.3 has updated hospital licensing standards to bring administrative rules into full alignment with the statute, closing a gap that had persisted since 2011.

Hemp, Medicare, and Workers' Compensation

A federal district court in the District of Columbia has dismissed a challenge to a novel Medicare hemp-access program, ruling that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue. The decision in Smart Approaches to Marijuana v. Kennedy (D.D.C. May 22, 2026) has significant implications for healthcare providers, insurers, and workers' compensation practitioners navigating the rapidly evolving landscape of cannabis-related medical treatment.

Single Payer’s Workers’ Compensation Gamble

For more than a decade, this blog has tracked what I have called “The Path to Federalization,” the steady, incremental expansion of federal authority over what was once an exclusively state-run workers’ compensation system. From the World Trade Center Health Program in 2010 to the Affordable Care Act’s Libby Care pilot, from Supreme Court validation of the individual mandate in 2012 to the Medicare Secondary Payer offset debate, each chapter has added a new stone to that path. California’s 2026 gubernatorial race is laying the boldest stone yet.

Gig Workers Without a Safety Net

How the Platform Economy Is Reshaping Workers’ Compensation Claims

$7M Settlement Changes Everything

NJ's Landmark Workers' Comp Victory for 1,000+ Delivery Drivers

Construction Site Falls: Who Pays?

When Donald Hoiland stepped on a fist-sized rock at a Jersey City construction site in November 2017, he couldn't have known his injury would spawn three consolidated appeals that would clarify critical questions about contractor liability, indemnification, and workers' compensation protections in New Jersey.

Older Drivers: Fatal Crash Risks

Workers age 55 and older who drive as part of their jobs face a troubling reality: they are twice as likely to die in work-related crashes compared to their younger colleagues. This sobering statistic has profound implications for workers' compensation systems nationwide as America's workforce continues to age.

Essential Workers Face Long COVID

Long COVID: Understanding Vulnerabilities for Workers and Legal Protections

Healthcare Crisis Threatens Workers' Compensation

The American healthcare system is approaching a breaking point that will have profound implications for employers and workers' compensation insurers. As healthcare costs spiral out of control and insurance becomes increasingly unaffordable, a growing number of workers are entering the workplace with untreated medical conditions that will significantly amplify the severity and cost of work-related injuries.

Amazon's Misclassification Strips Workers' Safety Net

When a back injury should mean temporary disability benefits, but instead means choosing between rent and recovery—that's the hidden cost of worker misclassification. New Jersey's recent lawsuit against Amazon exposes how labeling employees as independent contractors strips away critical workers' compensation protections, leaving injured workers financially vulnerable during their most precarious moments.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Long COVID

 New Jersey Workers' Compensation Benefits for Long COVID: A Comprehensive Update

Understanding Your Rights Under New Jersey's Enhanced Protections for Essential Workers

NJ Fights Worker Misclassification

Worker misclassification has become a significant battleground in New Jersey, with state labor officials taking increasingly aggressive action against employers who improperly classify employees as independent contractors. Recent enforcement actions demonstrate the state's commitment to protecting workers' rights and ensuring access to crucial benefits.

Workers' Compensation Breakdown

Professor Michael C. Duff's law review article "Reverberations of Magna Carta – Work Injuries, Inkblots, and Restitution" presents a scathing indictment of America's workers' compensation system. His central argument: workers have been "unconstitutionally undercompensated" for over a century, creating what amounts to a constitutional crisis hiding in plain sight.

Navigating Physician Payment Changes

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has recently unveiled its proposed rule for the Calendar Year (CY) 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). This proposal outlines significant changes that will shape how physicians are reimbursed for their services going forward, and stakeholders will need to understand the potential implications.

Remember the Dead, Fight for the Living

International Workers' Memorial Day, observed annually on April 28th, serves as a crucial reminder to honor those who have lost their lives or been injured at work and to advocate for safer working conditions for all.

Google Antitrust Ruling: Reshaping Workers' Comp Tech Landscape

On Monday, a federal judge ruled that Google had acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in online search. This landmark decision strikes at the power of tech giants in the modern internet era and may fundamentally alter how they do business.

Insurance Snafu Leaves Trucking Company on the Hook

A New Jersey appellate court held that an insurance company failed to terminate coverage properly, and the injured worker was classified as a special employee. 

The Long Legacy of COVID-19 Disability

The legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic persists. There exists a continuing need for long-term treatment and disability. While state benefit systems such as workers’ compensation have made an admirable attempt in many jurisdictions to provide benefits, a significant gap and non-uniform delivery of benefits continue to exist among jurisdictions. Federal efforts are expanding to provide necessary research and treatment protocol resources. 

Protecting workers from electronic monitoring, tracking, and management

Automated technological tools are being deployed to monitor, surveil, manage workers, and defend workers’ compensation claims. The Biden Administration has focused on this issue and requested information to create an advanced understanding of these tools' design, deployment, prevalence, and impacts.