Workers' Compensation

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Paying For Occupational Medical Care

A recent report in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine disclosed that the Government and US Taxpayer are paying the majority of the costs for occupational medical care. Even though workers' compensation insurance was designed to pay for such coverage, the majority of the bills incurred for work related accidents and injuries are actually paid by other sources.

Click here to read: Most occupational injury and illness costs are paid by the government and private payers

"UC Davis researchers have found that workers' compensation insurance is not used nearly as much as it should be to cover the nation's multi-billion dollar price tag for workplace illnesses and injuries. Instead, almost 80 percent of these costs are paid by employer-provided health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other disability funds, employees and other payers."

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Law Firm Prosperity California Style-Post Dewey & LeBoeuf

Guest Blog by

David Depaolo*

Across the nation the decline in work comp claims have caused scale back in law firms for both injured workers and carrier defense … except in California.

Applicant firms (as they are called in California) have not seen much if any attrition since 2004,when the Terminator reforms were instigated, and several have actually expanded taking up the slack of the less dedicated firms.

Defense firms have exploded with more and more defense attorneys being hired and more and more defense billable hours being charged since the prosperous 1980s.

The reason appears to be unsettled law just now coming to a point of stabilization and ancillary issues that have been generated as a consequence of regulatory changes - e.g. California's "lien laws" have created increased litigation as, in my opinion, short-sighted regulators implement strategies to treat the symptoms rather than the underlying disease.

The Dewey & LeBoeuf bankruptcy was a long time coming as the firm simply failed to curtail its spending and partner dividends when clients were pulling back in the face of the recession.

So I don't see Dewey & LeBoeuf as really representative of lower work comp filing rates.

David DePaolo is CEO, President, Editor-in-Chief of WorkCompCentral. He holds a J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law (1984), a Masters in Business Administration from California Lutheran University (1997) and a Bachelor of Arts, English, from San Diego State University (1981). Mr. DePaolo is a frequent lecturer and author his own blog, DePaolo's Work Comp World.

Kim Presbrey, A Founder of the Workplace Injury Litigation Group

Injured workers and their representatives lost a leader of the legal profession with the passing of Kim Presbrey of Illinois. Kim was one of the charter founders of the Workplace Injury Workers Litigation Group (WILG).

Throughout his career, Kim sought justice for his clients. He assisted other attorneys through his guiding leadership to advance the interests of a safer work environment.

My friendship with Kim began in the formative days of WILG and lasted throughout his entire career. He would often zealously call me late at night on the weekend just to keep me updated on important issues concerning workers' compensation so that readers of this blog could be updated on urgent developments of major significance.

Kim's passing is a major loss to the workers' compensation community. Our sincere sympathies go out to his family and friends, all of which he dearly loved.

Law Firm Bankruptcy: The Saga of Dewey & LeBoeuf

The downward spiral of workers' compensation filings has had severe economic impact throughout the legal profession. Dewey & LeBoeuf's collapse signals a major change in employment law. It is a contributing consequence of the continued decline workers' compensation claims.

Yesterday headlines announced the largest law firm bankruptcy filing in the history of the United States. Dewey & LeBoeuf. It was a law firm with a significant employment litigation practice.

The firm handled the defense of employment related matters including: discrimination complains, sexual harassment and discrimination claims. It assisted employers in the defense of claims arising out of mass layoffs and plant closing, age discrimination and disability matters. These claims are usually intertwined with workers' compensation matters, which have been the genesis for many collateral employment law related claims.

As workers' compensation laws become more restrictive, fewer employment law claims emerge. The present downward trend of workers' compensation claims continues. The consequences of this decline will impact the the practice of employment law forever.

Click here to read: Dewey's Post-Mortem Is Likely to Drag On

"Client bills can be tough enough to collect when a firm is in business. But once a firm goes under and the client-law firm relationship dissolves, collection suddenly gets much harder, say legal experts. "Suddenly, clients start complaining that the fees were too high; that the firm committed malpractice," said Jerome Kowalski, a New York-based consultant to law firms and expert on law-firm dissolutions."

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Occupational Exposure to Silica During Hydraulic Fracking

While focus has been on environmental concerns with the advent of fracking, a process to release oil and gas, a new concern has emerged over the potential occupational exposure to silica by workers who are involved in the process. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has published information focusing on these safety concerns.

Silica exposure has long been recognized as a compensable occupational condition in a majority of jurisdictions. A sandblaster who was required to use several 100 pound bags of silica each day and who, as a result of the inhalation of silica dust, developed silicosis was awarded compensation benefits in the form of both disability and medical benefits. Sharp v. Paterson Monument Co., 9 N.J.Super. 476, 75 A.2d 480 (Co.1950). The increased risk for occupational exposure to tuberculosis (TB) is recognized among healthcare and other workers exposed to persons with active TB and workers exposed to silica or other agents that increase the progression from latent to active TB. CDC Proportionate Mortality from Pulmonary Tuberculosis Associated With Occupations—28 States, 1979–1990. MMWR 1995; Vol. 44/No. 1:14-19.

Click here to read more: Worker Exposure to Crystalline Silica During Hydraulic Fracturing

"Hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” is the process of injecting large volumes of water, sand, and chemicals into the ground at high pressure to break up shale formation allowing more efficient recovery of oil and gas. This form of well stimulation has been used since the late 1940s, but has increased substantially over the last 10 years with the advent of horizontal drilling technology that greatly improves access to gas deposits in shale. Approximately 435,000 workers were employed in the US oil and gas extraction industry in 2010; nearly half of those workers were employed by well servicing companies, which includes companies that conduct hydraulic fracturing (BLS)."

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For over 3 decades the Law Offices of Jon L. Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered work related accident and injuries.

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Whose to Blame for Opioid Abuse in Workers' Compensation Claims?

English: From: United States Department of Jus...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A recent Texas case holding an employer liable holding an employed liable for a fatal opioid overdose arising out of work-related event highlights again that, the workers' compensation medical delivery system just isn't working. Efforts by Industry to "reform" the system. by limiting benefits. is a misdirected knee-jerk reaction, and not one that will address the symptoms of the problem, a failed medical delivery system.

Click here to read more: Opioid death liability falling on employers--Court rulings compel benefits payments

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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Are You My Mother?

Sorting out dependency status in a workers' compensation claim can be as confusing as the questions classic novel posed in P.D. Eastman's children's story, "Are You My Mother?" The US Supreme Court ruled, (Astrue v. Capato) that for the eligibility requirements of Social Security, that children conceived after a father's death are not to be considered a dependent. In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) will pose yet another intriguing question for the multitude of state workers' compensation programs to sort out.

Click here to read more: Supreme Court Denies Benefits for Children Conceived After Father's Death (Jurist)

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