Workers' Compensation

Friday, November 15, 2013

Leaders make last ditch plea for Boeing deal as Machinists remain defiant

Today's post was shared by Steven Greenhouse and comes from mynorthwest.com

BY Josh Kerns on November 12, 2013 @ 5:09 pm (Updated: 5:40 pm - 11/12/13 ) Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson and Snohomish County Executive John Lovick are urging Machinists union members to approve the proposed contract extension with Boeing to make sure the 777X is built in the Puget Sound area. But plenty of union members say they aren't swayed by the plea.

"So much depends on this vote," said Lovick. "The nation and the world are watching to see what happens. Our competitors will take advantage of any opportunity to move ahead of us."

Boeing officials have promised to build the next generation jet in Washington state if union members approve a new eight-year contract extension. Governor Jay Inslee signed several tax breaks and other incentives for Boeing into law Monday.

Union members say Boeing's demands for concessions on health care and pension equates to extortion.

"It is not an extension. It is a whole new contract," says one Boeing machinist who spoke with KIRO Radio on condition of anonymity via phone from the Everett plant, where she works on the 777. "It guts our contract. It leaves us no room for anything, ever."

The structures mechanic says along with elimination of the company pension plan in favor of a 401(k), workers are most angry with what amounts to just a six percent raise total over the next 10 years, while the top five executives received a 55 percent raise last year.

"(CEO Jim) McNerney's now making $27 million and they want to begrudge us our little...

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Attorneys argue over Okla. workers' comp lawsuit

Oklahoma's new workers' compensation law violates the state Constitution in several ways and should be struck down, an attorney for two state lawmakers and a firefighter's organization told a state Supreme Court referee Thursday.
"There are some very, very disturbing aspects," Oklahoma City attorney John McMurry said during oral arguments before referee Greg Albert. "There is a lot before the court in this particular case."
Among other things, McMurry said the law unconstitutionally delegates legislative powers and amounts to unconstitutional logrolling, or combining multiple subjects into one bill. But Oklahoma Solicitor General Patrick Wyrick and an attorney for business groups defended the law, saying it should be given a chance to work.
"The common theme is apparent here. ... How are we going to handle workers' compensation cases?" said attorney Robert McCampbell, who represents The State Chamber, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Albert said he planned to condense the attorney's arguments into a report he will present to the state's highest court next week. He said the court could decide whether to take up the case before the end of the month.
Legislation to overhaul the state's workers' compensation system was signed into law by Republican Gov. Mary Fallin in May. It was a top priority for Republican leaders who say the state's previous system was a detriment to business and industry in the...

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Lawyers resist Cuomo administration shutdown of workers comp hearing sites

ALBANY—A New York State Bar Association subcommittee is questioning a Cuomo administration plan to close eight workers compensation hearing sites, saying it would reduce access to an important legal process for sick and injured workers.

The letter is the latest example of agitation within New York's legal establishment over plans by the state Workers Compensation Board to shut down eight hearing sites, mostly in rural areas upstate, by the end of the month.

WCB officials say it will save taxpayer money without impacting potential claimants, who can phone into their hearings. But the letter, signed by eight lawyers comprising the NYSBA's special committee on the topic, says the closures are “especially disturbing” and are “not going to improve the administration of justice in the workers' compensation system.”

“While we appreciate every state agency is trying to reduce costs, the closing of these eight hearing points will create a tremendous hardship for the injured/disabled workers and their employers by requiring they travel extensive distances to attend workers' compensation hearings, resulting in increased time and travel expenses and ultimately shifting any cost savings from these closures from the Board to the injured workers and employers,” the lawyers write.

WCB spokeswoman Rachel McEneny said savings from the closures was approved in this year's budget, and is part of an ongoing effort. The goal is to save $300,000 a year,...

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Thursday, November 14, 2013

The High Price of Gas – Mileage Reimbursement for Injured Workers

Today's post comes from guest author Laurel Anderson, from Causey Law Firm.

Injured workers who are are dependent on time loss compensation payments of only 60-75% of their wages unfortunately are well used to the enormous financial losses and constraints this wage loss puts on their family budgets. With budget cuts being made by the Department of Labor & Industries which place additional burdens on workers by reducing reimbursements for the additional costs incurred as a result of an injury, it is important to be aware of what you can be reimbursed for, and what some relatively new regulations do not cover. The current mileage reimbursement rate is now 56.5 cents per mile.

When money is tight, making sure you receive everything you are entitled to under your claim is important!

Injured workers are always entitled to receive travel and/or wage reimbursement if they are asked to attend an IME (Independent Medical Exam). However, we have noted that more recently both the Department and self-insured employers are failing to provide workers with the form necessary to be reimbursed gas mileage for what are often not insignificant distances. Many workers are unaware they can have their wages reimbursed as well if they miss time from work. The form can be found online here. When self-insured employers do not provide our clients with a reimbursement form when sending out IME notices, we will send out the Department’s standard form.

More difficult to decipher are the rules allowing for travel reimbursement for medical treatment or vocational services. A different form must be filed to obtain reimbursement for these expenses. At Causey Law Firm, we insure that our clients are reimbursed for travel for vocational meetings which take place in our office. Parking is expensive in Seattle, and that cost can be reimbursed to you directly. Some law firms charge a fee on travel reimbursement expenses, but we do not.

While injured workers have the right to treat with their own preferred provider, travel reimbursement is only paid for regular treatment visits if there is no adequate treatment provider within 15 miles of their home AND if the claims manager has pre-authorized the travel. Travel reimbursement is now limited for regular medical treatment visits by the so-called “15 mile rule”. Thus, if your pre-authorized provider is 30 miles from your home, reimbursement will only be provided for the last 15 miles each way of that trip. As with medical appointments, regular visits to meet with a vocational counselor are only covered after that 15 mile threshold has been reached. If you are approved for a formal vocational retraining plan, however, mileage may be fully reimbursable through your plan with necessary signatures and paperwork submitted through a vocational rehabilitation counselor.

Many workers are unaware of their right to apply for reimbursements, which can be submitted to the Department for a period up to one year of the date of travel. The Department’s general guidelines can be seen here. When money is tight, making sure you receive everything you are entitled to under your claim is important!

Photo credit: Eric Fischer / Foter / CC BY

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Boeing Workers Reject Labor Deal in Washington State

Today's post was shared by The New York Times and comes from www.nytimes.com

Members of a union representing thousands of Boeing employees voted late Wednesday to reject a controversial labor deal that would have cut compensation but have kept assembly of the company’s new 777X jets in Washington State, raising the chance that Boeing will move more production away from its traditional manufacturing base in the Seattle area.

In a ballot that was seen as a bellwether for the state of organized labor in America, 67 percent of the members of the local branch of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers voted against the eight-year contract extension, according to a statement posted on the union’s website.

“We preserved something sacred by rejecting the Boeing proposal,” Tom Wroblewski, the local president of the union, said in the statement. “We’ve held on to our pensions and that’s big. At a time when financial planners are talking about a ‘retirement crisis’ in America, we have preserved a tool that will help our members retire with more comfort and dignity.”

Boeing, which last week had threatened to relocate assembly of the highly anticipated new jet model to other locations if the union contract failed to pass, expressed regret over the result.

“We are very disappointed in the outcome of the union vote,” Ray Conner, the president and chief executive of Boeing’s commercial aircraft division, said late Wednesday in an emailed statement....

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Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Professionalism and Caring for Medicaid Patients — The 5% Commitment?

Today's post was shared by NEJM and comes from www.nejm.org

Interview with Prof. Sara Rosenbaum on the health care safety net, Medicaid expansion, and access to care.

Interview with Prof. Sara Rosenbaum on the health care safety net, Medicaid expansion, and access to care.

Medicaid is an important federal–state partnership that provides health insurance for more than one fifth of the U.S. population — 73 million low-income people in 2012. The Affordable Care Act will expand Medicaid coverage to millions more. But 30% of office-based physicians do not accept new Medicaid patients, and in some specialties, the rate of nonacceptance is much higher — for example, 40% in orthopedics, 44% in general internal medicine, 45% in dermatology, and 56% in psychiatry.1 Physicians practicing in higher-income areas are less likely to accept new Medicaid patients.2 Physicians who do accept new Medicaid patients may use various techniques to severely limit their number — for example, one study of 289 pediatric specialty clinics showed that in the 34% of these clinics that accepted new Medicaid patients, the average waiting time for an appointment was 22 days longer for children on Medicaid than for privately insured children.3
Physicians have good reasons for not accepting Medicaid patients, as I learned from direct experience as a member of a nine-physician primary care practice in California. We accepted Medicaid patients, but it was difficult. Medicaid's payment rate was very low — we lost money on each Medicaid visit. When referrals were necessary, we often had to personally ask specialists to accept our patient....

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Malignant Mesothelioma Treatment (PDQ®)

Today's post was shared by Linda Reinstein and comes from www.cancer.gov

Malignant mesothelioma is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the lining of the chest or abdomen.

Malignant mesothelioma is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells are found in the pleura (the thin layer of tissue that lines the chest cavity and covers the lungs) or the peritoneum (the thin layer of tissue that lines the abdomen and covers most of the organs in the abdomen). This summary is about malignant mesothelioma of the pleura.

Respiratory anatomy; drawing shows right lung with upper, middle, and lower lobes; left lung with upper and lower lobes; and the trachea, bronchi, lymph nodes, and diaphragm. Inset shows bronchioles, alveoli, artery, and vein.

Respiratory anatomy; drawing shows right lung with upper, middle, and lower lobes; left lung with upper and lower lobes; and the trachea, bronchi, lymph nodes, and diaphragm. Inset shows bronchioles, alveoli, artery, and vein.

Being exposed to asbestos can affect the risk of malignant mesothelioma.

Anything that increases your chance of getting a disease is called a risk factor. Having a risk factor does not mean that you will get cancer; not having risk factors doesn’t mean that you will not get cancer. Talk to your doctor if you think you may be at risk.

Many people with malignant mesothelioma have worked or lived in places where they inhaled or swallowed asbestos. After being exposed to asbestos, it usually takes a long time for malignant mesothelioma to form. Other risk factors for malignant mesothelioma include the following:

Possible signs of malignant mesothelioma include shortness of breath and pain under the rib cage.

Sometimes the cancer causes fluid to collect around the lung or in the abdomen. These symptoms may...

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The Chemical Safety Improvement Act Falls Short: Open Letter to Congress

Today's post was shared by Linda Reinstein and comes from www.huffingtonpost.com

2013-11-13-karunajaggar.jpg

To: Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy
I am writing to express serious concerns about the Chemical Safety Improvement Act, in advance of tomorrow's hearing, S. 1009 Chemical Safety Improvement Act.
Breast Cancer Action is a national, feminist grassroots education and advocacy organization that works to address and end the breast cancer epidemic. Breast Cancer Action is committed to reducing involuntary exposures to toxins that are linked to increased risk for breast cancer.
Breast Cancer Action recognizes that the current congressional interest in the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) represents an important opportunity to pass landmark cancer prevention legislation. After years of work, along with our partners, for strong regulation of toxic chemicals we are heartened to see widespread agreement that TSCA is a top priority for the current Congress.
However, we recognize that some proposed changes to current law do not adequately protect public health. We believe that the Chemical Safety Improvement Act (CSIA) as it is currently written falls short of the reforms that are needed to stop breast cancer before it starts. This bill in its current form not only lacks key requirements to protect people and our planet from toxic chemicals, but if implemented, could actually weaken the few strong toxic chemical regulations that currently exist.
In short, Breast Cancer...

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FDA Proposes Letting Generic-Drug Makers Change Labels

Today's post was shared by FairWarning and comes from online.wsj.com

The Food and Drug Administration proposed allowing generic drug companies to change drug labels after getting reports of bad reactions in patients, a step that could open the generic industry up to greater potential legal liability.
In 2011 and again this year, the Supreme Court issued rulings that shielded generic drug makers from consumer personal-injury lawsuits, even though the justices have allowed similar product-liability claims against makers of branded drugs.
The step Friday by the FDA means that generic companies—which sell about 84% of the prescription drugs by volume in the U.S.—would have the same ability to change their labels as brand companies. The FDA would review any proposed changes, as it already does with changes to branded-drug labels.
"Our effort is to keep all the labels the same, and to level the playing field," said Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA's center for drug evaluation and research. The proposal, she said, "would change current procedures, where only the brand companies can unilaterally put certain safety information in the label."
The Generic Pharmaceutical Association reacted cautiously, saying it is concerned that multiple labels on the same drug "could drive up costs…and should be approached very carefully."
Some of the leading makers of generic drugs include Hospira Inc., HSP +0.55%Hospira Inc.U.S.: NYSE^$38.74 +0.21+0.55% Nov. 12, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 2.36MAFTER HOURS^$38.58 -0.16-0.43% Nov. 12, 2013...

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WVAJ president says personal injury lawyers holding nursing homes accountable

Today's post was shared by Legal Newsline and comes from legalnewsline.com

Heartland of Charleston

Heartland of Charleston

Heartland of Charleston

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (Legal Newsline) – Bernie Layne speaks from his experience as a personal injury lawyer and family member when he addresses the importance of representing the elderly and their relatives in nursing home cases.

Layne, the president of the West Virginia Association for Justice and a partner with Mani Ellis & Layne in Charleston, explains that he went to law school after witnessing the vulnerability of the disabled and elderly during his work with the Title 19 Medicaid Waiver Program in southern West Virginia.

He also contends that his area of litigation became important to him after his own grandfather, who was restrained to a bed in a nursing home, choked to death while eating breakfast.

“There are laws to protect those in our nursing homes, but policing them is not something that our government is willing to do or capable of doing,” Layne said.

“If nursing homes are following the law, have adequate staffing and are not putting their profits ahead of residents’ safety, they have no concerns.

“But if they’re not, as civil attorneys, we have the ability to ensure that those nursing homes not following the law will be held accountable for it.”

Not everyone in West Virginia shares Layne’s perspective, especially in the wake of the $91 million verdict in the Heartland of Charleston case. In recent years, the case not only called into question the state’s...

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Redefining the Minimum Wage

Today's post was shared by Steven Greenhouse and comes from www.nytimes.com

Business has been brisk at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, with a record number of passengers spending record amounts of money eating and shopping. But for an estimated 6,500 workers at the airport and its nearby hotels, car rental agencies and parking lots, the activity has not translated into economic security, let alone prosperity. Wages for airport-related jobs average an estimated $11 an hour, ranging from less than $10 an hour for airline contractors, like baggage handlers and cabin cleaners, to about $13 an hour for car-rental employees.

That could soon change. Although the votes are still being tallied, the people of SeaTac, the small city south of Seattle where the airport is, have shown support for a ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage of the airport’s transportation and hospitality workers to $15 an hour, starting Jan. 1.

That would make the minimum wage at Sea-Tac airport considerably higher than Washington State’s minimum of $9.19 an hour. It would be more than the $12.93-an-hour minimum at the San Francisco International Airport, which was enacted in 2000. And it would blow away the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour, in place since 2009, and exceed a proposal in recent legislation, sponsored by Congressional Democrats and supported by President Obama, for a new federal minimum of $10.10 an hour.

All of which makes $15 an hour sound too high. Hardly. Over the last half-century, American workers have achieved productivity gains that...

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Wisconsin Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Collective Bargaining Law

Today's post was shared by Steven Greenhouse and comes from www.nytimes.com

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday heard arguments on the constitutionality of a 2011 law that all but eliminated collective bargaining for most public employees.

The law, which prompted large protests and thrust the Republican administration of Gov. Scott Walker into the national spotlight, has divided the state along partisan lines for more than two years. The latest battle has centered largely on a broad legal question: Can state lawmakers so significantly curtail collective bargaining that union membership is made less desirable?

“I don’t believe the two ships pass in the night,” J. B. Van Hollen, the attorney general of Wisconsin, said when asked by a judge about the dueling legal theories. “I believe they collide.”

Mr. Van Hollen argued that group bargaining was not a constitutional guarantee but rather a “benefit” permitted by lawmakers. He added that he believed state officials had a “bigger ship” and would win in the end.

The law, which led to a failed attempt to remove Mr. Walker from office last year, has been challenged by a teachers union in Madison and by a labor group representing employees of the city of Milwaukee. Both plaintiffs contend that the measure violates freedom of association rights and equal protection of the law by subjecting unionized public employees to burdens not faced by their nonunion colleagues.

“If you are an employee and you choose to associate in this activity, you will be...

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Dozens Hurt in Bangladesh Garment Factory Protest

Today's post was shared by Steven Greenhouse and comes from abcnews.go.com

Riot police fired tear gas to battle thousands of stone-throwing garment workers who rampaged through two industrial towns in Bangladesh during a protest over wages Tuesday that closed at least 200 factories and left dozens of people injured, police said.

The protesters built roadblocks with abandoned vehicles and wooden logs in violence that highlighted the poor working conditions in an industry that earns Bangladesh $20 billion in exports yearly but whose workers are the lowest paid in the world.

Thousands of angry workers hurled stones at security forces and attacked factories in the towns of Savar and Ashulia outside the capital, Dhaka, Industrial Police Director Mustafizur Rahman said. At least 200 factories closed in the second day of the protest, and 80 people were injured over two days.

Authorities deployed hundreds of paramilitary border guards to help police fighting the protesters.

"We can't accept the wages that are being offered to us. This is not enough for us," said Kahirul Mamun Mintu, a protest leader at Savar. "Our movement will continue until our demands are met."

A government-appointed panel voted last week to raise the minimum wage for garment workers to 5,300 takas ($66.25) a month — a raise by 77 percent but still the lowest minimum wage in the world. The workers are demanding 8,114 takas ($100) instead.

Factory owners have not endorsed the proposal, arguing the proposed wage for an unskilled newcomer would increase production costs...

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Tuesday, November 12, 2013

How to Help Philippines Typhoon Victims

Today's post was shared by The New York Times and comes from thelede.blogs.nytimes.com

Last Updated, 4:36 p.m. | As the full scale of the devastation wrought across the islands of the Philippines over the weekend by Typhoon Haiyan came into fuller view on Monday, governments around the world have pledged aid to the victims. The Pentagon has dispatched an advance team of 90 marines and sailors, and U.S.A.I.D. has pledged emergency shelter and hygiene materials and 55 tons of food. The American Embassy in Manila has donated $100,000 for water and sanitation assistance.
Below is a list of contact information for some organizations that plan to provide relief to victims of the typhoon, called Yolanda in the Philippines. The New York Times does not certify the charities’ fund allocations or administrative costs. More information about giving, for this and other causes, is available online from the GuideStar database on nonprofit agencies.
Philippine Red Cross
The Philippine Red Cross is accepting donations and coordinating disaster relief on the ground throughout much of the central Philippines. The organization is posting updates on Facebook and Twitter.
World Food Program
The World Food Program, which provides emergency food aid to families and children, is accepting donations online and through PayPal.
Unicef
The Philippine branch of Unicef, the United Nations Children’s Fund, says that children affected by the typhoon need urgent access to drinkable water, medical supplies, food and shelter. It is accepting donations online as part of an emergency...

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FAQ: How The Health Law Impacts Federal Employees’ Health Benefits

Today's post was shared by Kaiser Health News and comes from www.kaiserhealthnews.org

Open enrollment season begins Monday for the approximately eight million federal workers and their dependents who receive health care coverage through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program or FEHB. The 2010 health law calls for some changes in that coverage. Below are some frequently asked questions and answers about how the measure will impact federal workers’ health insurance.
Q: I work at a federal agency and am enrolled in FEHB. Does the Affordable Care Act require me to purchase health insurance on the law’s new online marketplaces, known as exchanges?
A: No, you do not have to buy coverage on the marketplace. You can stay with FEHB. But if you want to shop for a health plan on the exchange, you will not qualify for a subsidy because the federal government pays up to 75 percent of the cost of your FEHB coverage.

Q: I work on Capitol Hill. Do I have to purchase coverage through the exchanges?
A: Yes. A provision of the health law, originally authored by Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, requires that, if you are a member of Congress or work on a lawmaker’s personal staff, you must obtain your health coverage through the online insurance marketplace. And, according to a recent ruling from the Office of Personnel Management, or OPM, whether or not you are employed in the D.C. Metro area, you must purchase coverage on the District of Columbia small business exchange.
“Given the location of Congress in the District of Columbia,...

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