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Showing posts sorted by relevance for query rico. Sort by date Show all posts

Friday, January 28, 2011

The RICO Consequences of Managing Health Care in Workers Compensation

It is one thing to provide workers' compensation coverage to injured employers and it is another issue how involved an employer can be in managing  medical care. That right was never addressed by the crafters of the workers' compensation system almost a century ago.

That dilemma is now being addressed by a Federal Judge in Colorado where a class action lawsuit pending against Wal-Mart for micro-managing and restricting medical care to injured workers.  Brooks Magratten, Esq, has addressed these issues in a recently authored article. "Class Action Attacks Wal-Mart Health Care Model." 25 No. 13 WJEMP 1 (Jan. 25, 2011). The landmark action has the potential to expand workers compensation medical care into the umbrella of a national universal medical care system.

The plaintiffs in the pending action, all former and present Wal-Mart employees, are seeking treble damages against the mega-corporation, with an aggregate market value of $108.8 Billion, for interfering with medical care. Judge Robert Blackburn has denied Wal-Mart's motion to dismiss, now setting the stage for a definitive test of the workers' compensation medical system nationally.

Friday, November 16, 2012

NY Worker's Compensation Board Proposes New Medical Treatment Guidelines

New York Worker’s Compensation Board’s proposed new medical treatment guidelines that will modify 2010 previously implemented.

  1. Adopt the new carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) medical treatment guidelines (MTG) as the standard of care for the treatment of injured workers with carpal tunnel syndrome;
  2. Modify current MTGs to include new maintenance care recommendations; and
  3. Implement consensus changes to simplify the process, reduce litigation and speed dispute resolution.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)
The new CTS MTG provide evidence based guidelines for the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome, the most common occupational disease experienced in the workers’ compensation system. Like the other MTGs, the CTS MTG should improve the quality of care, speed access to the most beneficial treatment, and control the use of ineffective treatment.

Maintenance Care
The original four MTGs primarily address treatment for the acute and sub-acute phases of injury, with limited recommendations for the management of chronic conditions and chronic pain. As part of its effort to develop chronic pain guidelines, the MAC re-evaluated those recommendations that relate to maintenance care, recognizing that in certain situations maintenance care (chiropractic and occupational/physical therapy) should be available. The revised MTGs will authorize an ongoing maintenance program that can include up to 10 visits per year for those who have a previously observed and documented objective deterioration in functional status without the identified treatment. To be eligible for maintenance care, injured workers with chronic pain must have reached maximum medical improvement (MMI), have a permanent disability, and meet the requirements of the maintenance care program. No variance is allowed from the 10 visit annual maximum.

The new recommendations address a major concern of both providers and payers: the high number of variance requests. To date, more than three quarters of the variance requests are for maintenance care for those with chronic pain. Injured workers will now have access to important maintenance care while payers and providers will be relieved from the administrative burden of handling individual variance requests for this care. The remainder of the chronic pain guidelines is expected to be completed by early 2013.

Process Changes
The regulations also include several changes to simplify the process, reduce conflict, and speed dispute resolution. These consensus changes are the result of suggestions from stakeholders. The changes will achieve the following:

  • enable parties to more easily choose resolution by the Medical Director’s Office, which provides faster and less costly dispute resolution;
  • clarify and simplify transmission requirements that were resulting in rejection of thousands of variance requests for technical violations;
  • allow carriers to partially grant variance requests, thereby expediting care and reducing litigation;
  • eliminate submission of duplicate variance requests;
  • reduce the number of procedures requiring C-4 Authorization, and
  • authorize submission of variance requests through a web-based portal or other technology in the future, should it become available.
  •  
In addition, several changes to the Forms C-4 AUTH, C-8.1, MG-1 and MG-2 forms that have been agreed upon with stakeholders will be implemented.  Comments on the draft forms may be sent to formsdepartment@wcb.ny.gov and will be considered if received by Monday, November 26, 2012. Final versions of the forms will be posted in early December. The parties will be expected to begin using the new forms after February 1, 2013. Old forms cannot be used to initiate new requests after March 15, 2013.

Complete copies of the proposed regulations, new and revised guidelines, complete description of the process changes, draft versions of the new forms, and other information are available on the Proposed Changes to New York Medical Treatment Guidelines page of the Board’s website. The regulations will be published in the November 21, 2012 State Register.

More about workers’ compensation medical treatment

Our Journey Forward on Occupational Medical Care
Nov 09, 2012
On Tuesday, the American people expressed its support for a unified medical care program that will embrace all aspects of life, including industrial accidents and diseases. They validated, as did the Supreme Court, the ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation Jeopardy: Romney and Medical Costs
Nov 01, 2012
Planned changes by Mitt Romney to Medicare and Medicaid will have a dire effect on the regulations of the future cost of workers' compensation medical treatment. Proposed changes to the Federal program will indirectly ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Loss of Health Insurance Access: The ...
Nov 05, 2012
On the flip side, the worker's compensation insurance company is supposed to pay for reasonable medical treatment expenses related to the injury; however, the carrier usually hires an “independent” medical doctor to deny ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

RICO Case Against Wal-Mart & CMI Settles for $8 Million
Nov 14, 2012
The claim, on behalf of 7,000 Colorado Wal-Mart workers charges conspiracy with: Claims Management Inc., American Home Assurance Co. and Concentra Health Services Inc., to control medical treatment, who may have .
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Maine Passes Laws Restricting Workers Compensation Benefits

The The Bangor Daily reports that the State of Maine is in the process of legislatively restricting workers ' compensation benefits. The law overhaul's the system with the following changes:

The main elements of the program overhaul include:
• Altered eligibility requirements and the creation of a 10-year cap for employees who are permanently impaired with partial incapacity.

• The elimination of a requirement that employers must continue paying benefits during an appeal.

• A new appeals divisions with authority to create rules of procedure.

• A shortened time period in which a notice of injury must be given, from 90 days to 30 days.

• A changed maximum benefit, from 80 percent of an employee’s net weekly wages to 66 percent of gross weekly wages.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

U.S., state officials ask about asbestos

Today's post is shared from timesunion.com/
Federal and state environmental agents have interviewed the former city engineer and his assistant about the city's handling of two demolition projects involving asbestos, a person with knowledge of the matter said.
The emergency razing of 4-6-8-10 King St. in August 2013 and the tearing down of buildings at the King Fuels site in South Troy this year have drawn the attention of criminal investigators from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
The agents asked Russ Reeves, the former city engineer, and Barbara Tozzi, a former city engineering assistant, about the circumstances of the work and the handling of asbestos, the person, who wished to remain anonymous, said. The agents also queried Reeves regarding the nature of relationships at city hall and the involvement of individuals in the projects.
Stop-work orders were issued for both demolition projects by the state because of concerns about procedures for dealing with asbestos in the 19th-century structures.
The questions were similar to those asked by the FBI when one of its agents interviewed Reeves earlier this year. The state Labor Department also has investigated the asbestos removal.
The city's request for proposals for the development of the Scolite site on the Hudson River in South Troy also was discussed in the latest interview, the person said.
Reeves resigned as city engineer, saying that city officials were not concerned about public safety when the...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]

Saturday, February 10, 2018

Just Published: 2018 Update - Gelman on Workers' Compensation Law

Jon Gelman’s newly revised and updated 2018 treatise on Workers’ Compensation Law is now available from by West Group of Egan, MN within the next few weeks. The treatise is the most complete work available on NJ Workers’ Compensation law and integrated with WESTLAW™, the "most preferred online legal research service.'"

Friday, November 14, 2014

System Fails to Provide Appropriate Care for Non-Catastrophic Injuries

Todays post is authored by Melissa Brown* of the California Bar.

The October issue of the American Journal of Industrial Medicine confirms what our clients have been experiencing since the California legislature began “reforming” medical treatment access in 2003: the system fails to provide appropriate care for non-catastrophic injuries. (See Franklin, G., et al., “Workers’ Compensation: Poor Quality Health Care and the Growing Disability Problem in the United States,” American Journal of Industrial Medicine, October 2014). The reforms, which include reliance on “evidence-based” medicine and utilization review, often results in increased permanent disabilities and a shift of compensation to Social Security, Medicare and other state and federal disability systems.

The authors note a 75% increase in those receiving Social Security Disability benefits for working age people during the period 2000 and 2012. The basis of the inability to work has shifted from cardiovascular to musculoskeletal, arguably injuries that could have been prevented with safer work practices.

Our experience at Fraulob, Brown, Gowen & Snapp is consistent with these findings. Just today, one of our client’s reported that the expert medical evaluator in his case, agreed to by the insurance company, advised him that had his neck surgery been approved when his doctor requested, rather than going through the utilization review process, he would have had less residual disability. This of course does not even address the pain and suffering he endured waiting for approval; pain and suffering which is not paid by workers’ compensation.

The only way to change this system is through legislation. Which means that people need to vote and need to make it their mission to contact their legislators and the governor with their horror stories.

.....
*Melissa C. Brown is a frequent lecturer at legal conventions and seminars. Ms. Brown has been recognized in America’s Top Attorneys for over 20 years. She has studied Mediation at the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva, Switzerland.

Ms. Brown is a certified specialist in Workers’ Compensation as well as a national expert on Social Security Disability , Elder Law, Health Care Planning and decision-making. She is a law professor and published author.

Her practice includes serving as a court appointed and agreed upon Arbitrator for Workers’ Compensation matters. Her legal treatise, Advising the Elderly or Disabled Client, is utilized by law schools throughout America as well as Elder Law, Disability and Personal Injury attorneys. She been retained as an expert witness by the NFL Players association regarding compensation for brain and other serious injuries sustained by professional athletes.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

AIG Reaches For Its Wallet to Cover $4.1 Billion in Work Comp Claims and Asbestos Liabilities

American International GroupImage via Wikipedia
The American International Group (AIG), the huge insurance company that the US Government bailed out financially, is still hard pressed to raise funds to cover on going claims. AIG has announced that it will need to raise another $4.1 Billion dollars to cover such costs as primary and excess workers' compensation claims and asbestos liability claims.

AIG's long and troubled history was the subject of investigative reporting in the Academy Award nominated film, Inside Job. The Many factors have impact on an insurance company's solvency including the ability to collect premiums in a down economic cycle, the investment of the premiums collected and colateral bad investments the have a massive economic impact of the financial worth of the company in general.

Workers' compensation claims continue despite  a low employment cycle. Latent diseases, such as asbestos related lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, may be dormant for decades before  manifesting into a chronic and  terminal medical condition.

The industry continues to struggle on how workers' compensation should be employed to insure industries and employers from these condition. Originally the workers' compensation acts did not cover occupational conditions such as silicosis or asbestosis. In the 1950s acts were amended, at industries insistence to bring these occupational conditions under the umbrella of coverage and shield employers from civil lawsuits. With the expansion of products liability claims, based on the intentional concealment of information of the hazards of these conditions, as well as low economic recoveries from struggling workers' compensation systems put the boat back into the bottle, "the longest running tort", asbestos litigation, was born.

Industry continues to try to put the genie back into the bottle, which is reflected in the latest attempt in Missouri to bar liability claims against employers and co-workers. One of the incentives of a workers' compensation program is to prevent industrial accidents, but the system continues to struggle both economically and procedurally in achieving that objective.

The need for AIG to raise additional cash to pay claims raises a concern as to whether premium dollars to pay claims are being adequately protected in the first place, and whether those premiums ared being directed to injured workers and victims of occupational illness. Instead of trying to figure how to further restrict the payment of benefits, perhaps more attention should be paid to making a safer workplace by banning asbestos use, and providing more convenience access through universal medical care.

Related articles

Thursday, October 10, 2013

ABA president, others express concern over shutdown’s effects on judiciary

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

Silkenat

American Bar Association President James Silkenat is calling on members of Congress to send a budget to the President.

Silkenat, a partner in the New York office of Sullivan & Worcester, took office in August.

In a statement last week, Silkenat called the government shutdown, which began Oct. 1, a “historic failure that imperils justice.”

“The political brinksmanship that brought our government to a standstill reflects the same intransigence and unwillingness to compromise that imposed sequestration on our national government and hardships on many who contract with, work for or receive certain nonentitlement benefits from the federal government,” he said.

“Federal courts already face staff reductions and programmatic cuts that threaten public safety. The failure to reach accord on a continuing resolution to fund the government has also scuttled both chambers attempts to add extra funding to pay for indigent defense representation.”

He added, “Congress has practically abdicated its constitutional responsibility to provide a budget for the government. It is time to end the scorched earth tactics and send a budget to the President.”
Silkenat, who argues that citizens’ access to justice will increasingly be in jeopardy, testified on Capitol Hill Tuesday about the effects of the shutdown on the judiciary.
He, along with other lawyers and former judges, told members of the...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Heath Concerns About the Misuse of Pesticides for Bed Bug Control

Hotel workers as well as consumes are being cautioned cautioned about exposure to pesticides to control bed bugs.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are alerting the public to an emerging national concern regarding misuse of pesticides to treat infestations of bed bugs and other insects indoors. Some pesticides are being applied indoors even though they are approved only for outdoor use. Even pesticides that are approved for indoor use can cause harm if over applied or not used as instructed on the product label.
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of bed bug-related inquiries received by the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) over the past several years, with many involving incidents of pesticide exposure, spills, or misapplications. From January 2006-December 2010, NPIC reported 169 calls to their hotline where residents, homeowners, or pesticide applicators sprayed pesticides indoors to treat bedbugs. These cases involved pesticides that were misapplied, not intended for indoor use, or legally banned from use. Of those, 129 resulted in mild or serious health effects (including one death) for persons living in affected residences.
ATSDR warns that outdoor pesticides should not be used indoors under any circumstances. Homeowners and applicators should always carefully read the product label to make sure that:
it has an EPA registration number
  • it is intended for indoor use
  • it is effective against bed bugs (the label should say it is meant to be used to treat your home for bed bugs) and
  • you know how to properly mix the product (if a concentrate) and where and how to apply it safely within the home.
  • ....
    Jon L.Gelman of Wayne NJ, is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson).  
More About Pesticides
Aug 22, 2012
Based on reports from the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) arial spraying of pesticides has been mandated in Texas because of the number of reported cases of West Nile Flu. Questions are now being raised ...
Feb 14, 2012
Consistent with an enforcement trend by the EU to reduce agricultural pesticides used by 50% between 2008-2018, a French court on Monday declared U.S. biotech giant Monsanto guilty of chemical poisoning of a French ...
Aug 11, 2010
A US District Court in NJ is allowing a claim of injured agricultural worker to proceed against an employer directly for an intentional tort flowing from a pesticide spraying. The workers, residents of Puerto Rico, were employed ...
Jul 02, 2009
A recent study by the McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment of the University of Ottawa finds that an increased risk of childhood leukemia is associated with the mother's exposure at work to pesticides.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Washington Workers' Advisor Blog Launched



A new blog, Washington Workers' Advisor, has been launched to provide information about law, policy and safety in the workplace. Jay Causey, of the Causey Law Firm said, that the "blog will apply decades of legal experience and expertise to keep the reader informed about trends and developments in workers' compensation law, social security disability, maritime claims, and other legal issues important to working people."

Attorney Jay Causey has practiced for over 30 years in the area of workers' compensation and disability law, including Washington State workers' compensation claims, Social Security Disability cases, Longshore and Harbor workers' Act cases, Defense Base Act claims, and maritime injury. The Causey Law Firm, located in Seattle, Washington, is a nationally recognized firm serving clients in Washington State. It exclusively represents individuals who have been injured or have become disabled.


Related articles

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Common Themes, The Green Mountain System & Newt Gingrich

Common themes of a single payer medical system are emerging. History can repeat itself. The announcement by Newt Gingrich to run for the presidency in 2012, and the anticipated signing of the Vermont Single Payer medical care legislation, may set the stage for "the perfect storm" to gather impetus for a system that brings workers' compensation care into a unified system.

As the Vermont legislation goes to Governor Peter Shumlin for signing in a couple of weeks, the eyes of the nation will switch focus to the debate in Washington and the presidential race of 2012. Congress and the new administration will be required to focus on the issue of waivers that will be effective in 2014. 

Newt Gingrich had advocated in the past to move the cost occupational medical care onto the backs of employees. He would relieve employers from contributing to workers' compensation medical care and Medicare.

Workers' Compensation is a summary and remedial system that affords injured workers medical care to cure and relieve medical conditions that result from occupational exposures and accidents. In most instances employees find it necessary and prudent to retain the professional assistance of an attorney to assist them in obtaining medical treatment for work related accidents and occupational exposures.

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 occupational accidents and illnesses.

Related articles

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Jury awards Texas family nearly $3 million in fracking case

Fracking in Texas

Today's post was shared by FairWarning and comes from www.latimes.com

In a landmark legal victory that centered on fracking, a middle-class north Texas ranching family won nearly $3 million from a big natural gas company whose drilling, they contend, caused years of sickness, killed pets and livestock, and forced them out of their home for months.

Tuesday's $2.95-million civil verdict by a six-person Dallas jury is thought to be the first of its kind in the nation. Other landowners have sued over drilling and reached settlements, but legal experts think this is the first jury verdict.

Robert and Lisa Parr filed suit against Aruba Petroleum Inc. in 2011, contending that its operations near their land had contaminated the air and harmed their health. Their lawsuit has been closely watched by both critics and supporters of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, which involves pumping water laced with chemicals into shale formations to unlock trapped oil and gas.

"I am just overwhelmed," Lisa Parr said in a telephone interview Wednesday. "I feel like I am just this little bitty girl, this little family who just beat the biggest, most powerful industry in the world."

Aruba Petroleum, based in Plano, Texas, said it had done nothing wrong and had operated within safe and legal guidelines. "We contended the plaintiffs were neither harmed by the presence of our drilling operations nor was the value of their property diminished because of our natural gas development," Aruba said in a statement.

The company said it would...

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Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Toyota settles acceleration lawsuit after $3-million verdict

Today's post was shared by FairWarning and comes from www.latimes.com


Toyota Motor Corp.'s first loss in a sudden acceleration case, in an Oklahoma courtroom this week, could embolden attorneys nationwide who are looking to bring hundreds of similar cases.
Worse for the Japanese automaker, the verdict centered on the company's electronics, which have been a focus for plaintiffs seeking to prove safety defects in the company's cars.
Toyota on Friday confirmed that it had reached a confidential settlement in the lawsuit, which involved the fatal 2007 crash of a Camry. The settlement came hours after a jury assessed $3 million in compensatory damages but before the panel could levy a punitive award.
The verdict could provide a road map for attorneys seeking to hold the automaker liable for injuries and deaths.
Toyota has denied any safety defects in its cars, arguing that many incidents of unintended acceleration stemmed from drivers who stepped on the gas instead of the brake. But plaintiffs in the Oklahoma case successfully argued that Toyota's electronic throttle system was flawed, causing the car to speed out of control.
The 2005 Camry crashed into an embankment, severely injuring the driver, 76-year-old Jean Bookout, and killing her passenger, Barbara Schwarz.
By striking a quick settlement, the company likely sought to avoid bad publicity and damage to its reputation, said Jill Wieber Lens, a product liability expert at Baylor University Law School in Waco, Texas.
The Oklahoma defeat could increase pressure on the automaker to come up...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]

Friday, August 23, 2013

National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries In 2012 (Preliminary Injuries)

A preliminary total of 4,383 fatal work injuries were recorded in the United States in 2012, down from a revised count 
of 4,693 fatal work injuries in 2011, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) 
conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2012 total represents the second lowest preliminary total 
since CFOI was first conducted in 1992. The rate of fatal work injury for U.S. workers in 2012 was 
3.2 per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers, down from a rate of 3.5 per 100,000 in 2011.

Over the last 5 years, net increases to the preliminary count have ranged from 84 in 2011 to 211 in 2009. 
The revised 2011 figure represented a 2 percent increase over the preliminary total, while the 2009 figure was 
a 5 percent increase. Revised 2012 data from CFOI will be released in the late Spring of 2014. 

Key preliminary findings of the 2012 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries:

- Fatal work injuries in the private construction sector increased 5 percent to 775 in 2012 from 738 in 2011. 
 Total hours worked in the private construction industry increased one percent in 2012. The increase in fatal 
 occupational injuries in 2012 follows five consecutive years of declining fatal injury counts in the 
 construction sector. Fatal construction injuries are down 37 percent since 2006. 
- Since 2011, CFOI has identified whether fatally-injured workers were working as contractors at the time of 
 the fatal incident. In 2012, 708 decedents were identified as contractors, many of whom worked in construction 
 and transportation occupations.
- Fatal work injuries declined among non-Hispanic white workers (down 10 percent) and Hispanic or Latino workers 
 (down 5 percent) in 2012. Fatal work injuries were higher among non-Hispanic black or African-American workers 
 and non-Hispanic Asian workers.
- Fatal work injuries involving workers under 16 years of age nearly doubled, rising from 10 in 2011 to 
 19 in 2012—the highest total since 2005. Fatal work injuries in the other age groups declined in 2012. 
 Fatal work injuries among workers 55 years of age and older declined for the second straight year.
- Work-related suicides declined 10 percent from 2011 totals, but violence accounted for about 17 percent 
 of all fatal work injuries in 2012.
- Fatal work injuries in the private mining sector rose in 2012, led by an increase in fatal injuries to workers 
 in oil and gas extraction industries. Fatal work injuries in oil and gas extraction industries rose 23 percent 
 to 138 in 2012, reaching a new high for the series. 

Worker characteristics

The number of fatal work injuries involving non-Hispanic white workers declined 10 percent in 2012, but rose 
by 13 percent for non-Hispanic Asian workers. Despite the increase, Asian workers still recorded a lower rate of 
fatal injury than the rate for workers overall (1.8 per 100,000 FTE workers for non-Hispanic Asians versus 
3.2 per 100,000 FTE workers for workers overall).

Fatal work injuries among Hispanic or Latino workers dropped to 708 in 2012 from 749 in 2011, a decrease of 5 percent. 
Of the 708 fatal work injuries incurred by Hispanic or Latino workers, 454 (or 64 percent) involved foreign-born 
workers. Overall, there were 777 fatal work injuries involving foreign-born workers in 2012, of which the 
greatest share (299 or 38 percent) were born in Mexico.

Fatal work injuries increased for workers under 16 years of age, rising to 19 in 2012 from 10 in 2011, reaching 
its highest level since 2005. Fourteen of these young decedents were employed as agricultural workers. Fatal work 
injuries involving men fell from 4,308 in 2011 to 4,045 in 2012—the lowest total since the inception of the 
fatality census in 1992.

Fatal injuries to both wage and salary workers and self-employed workers declined in 2012.

For more detailed information on fatal injuries by worker characteristics, see the 2012 tables 
at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

Type of incident

Transportation incidents accounted for more than 2 out of every 5 fatal work injuries in 2012. (See chart 1.) 
Of the 1,789 transportation-related fatal injuries, about 58 percent (1,044 cases) were roadway incidents involving 
motorized land vehicles. Nonroadway incidents, such as a tractor overturn in a farm field, accounted for another 
13 percent of the transportation-related fatal injuries. About 16 percent of fatal transportation incidents in 2012 
involved pedestrians who were struck by vehicles. Of the 283 fatal work injuries involving pedestrians struck 
by vehicles, 65 occurred in work zones. (Note that transportation counts presented in this release are expected 
to rise when updated 2012 data are released in Spring 2014 because key source documentation detailing specific 
transportation-related incidents has not yet been received.)

Fatal work injuries among those fatally injured in aircraft incidents in 2012 declined by 14 percent from 2011, 
accounting for 125 fatalities or about 7 percent of the transportation total.

Overall, 767 workers were killed as a result of violence and other injuries by persons or animals, including 
463 homicides and 225 suicides. The work-related suicide total for 2012 declined 10 percent from the 2011 total 
and the homicide total was also slightly lower. Shootings were the most frequent manner of death in both 
homicides (81 percent) and suicides (48 percent). Of the 338 fatal work injuries involving female workers, 
29 percent involved homicides.

Fatal falls, slips, or trips took the lives of 668 workers in 2012, down slightly from 2011. Falls to a lower level 
accounted for 544 or about 81 percent of those fatalities. In 2012, the height of the fall was reported in 437 of the 
fatal falls to a lower level. Of those cases, about one in four occurred after a fall of 10 feet or less. Another 
one-fourth of the fatal fall cases occurred from falls of over 30 feet.

While the total number of fatal work injuries involving contact with objects and equipment in 2012 remained about 
the same as in 2011, the number of workers fatally injured after being struck by objects or equipment increased by 
7 percent (to 509 fatal work injuries in 2012 from 476 in 2011). This total includes 233 workers struck by 
falling objects or equipment and 199 struck by powered vehicles or mobile equipment not in normal operation.

There were 142 multiple-fatality incidents in 2012 (incidents in which more than one worker was killed) 
in which 341 workers died.

For more detailed information on fatal injuries by incident, see the 2012 tables at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

Industry

In the private sector, there were 3,945 fatal work injuries in 2012, down 6 percent to a new series low. Both 
goods-producing industries and service-providing industries showed declines.

Among goods-producing sectors, the number of fatal work injuries in the private construction sector increased 
5 percent in 2012. Total hours worked were higher by one percent in 2012. The increase in 2012 was the first 
in construction fatalities since 2006. Construction fatalities are down 37 percent over that time. Construction 
accounted for the highest number of fatal work injuries of any industry sector in 2012. (See chart 2.)

Fatal work injuries in the private mining sector increased 14 percent to 177 in 2012 from 155 in 2011—the highest 
level since 2007. The number of fatal work injury cases in oil and gas extraction industries rose to 138 in 2012 
from 112 in 2011; the 2012 figure represents a series high. Fatal work injuries in coal mining increased slightly, 
and fatal work injuries in support activities for mining increased 9 percent. CFOI has used the North American 
Industry Classification System (NAICS) to define industry since 2003, and data on oil and gas extraction industries 
in CFOI comprise NAICS 21111 Oil and gas extraction, NAICS 213111 Drilling oil and gas wells, and 
NAICS 213112 Support activities for oil and gas operations.

Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting fatalities decreased 16 percent to 475 in 2012 from 566 in 2011. 
This follows a 9 percent drop in agriculture fatalities in 2011. Fatal injuries in the crop production, 
animal production, forestry and logging, and fishing sectors were all lower in 2012. Despite the declines in 
fatal work injuries in this sector over the last two years, agriculture recorded the highest fatal injury rate 
of any industry sector at 21.2 fatal injuries per 100,000 FTE workers in 2012.

Among service-providing industries in the private sector, fatal work injuries in transportation and warehousing 
accounted for 677 fatal work injuries in 2012, a decrease of 10 percent over the revised 2011 count (749 fatalities). 
The number of fatal injuries in truck transportation, the largest subsector within transportation and warehousing 
in terms of employment, decreased 6 percent in 2012. (As noted, transportation counts presented in this release 
are expected to rise when updated 2012 data are released in Spring 2014.) Among other transportation subsectors, 
fatal work injuries in air transportation were slightly higher, but fatalities in water and rail transportation 
were lower in 2012.

Fatal work injuries in the financial activities sector declined 17 percent in 2012 to 81. The professional and 
business services sector also reported lower numbers of fatal injuries in 2012, down 10 percent from 2011.

Fatal occupational injuries among government workers decreased 13 percent from 2011 to 438 fatal work injuries, 
the lowest fatal work injury total since the start of the fatality census. Both state government and 
local government showed declines (19 percent and 16 percent, respectively), though fatal injuries among 
federal government workers remained about the same.

For more detailed information on fatal injuries by industry, see the 2012 tables at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

Occupation

Fatal work injuries in construction and extraction occupations rose for the second year in a row to 838—a 5 percent 
increase from 2011. Hours worked increased one percent in this occupation group during that period. Fatal injuries 
among construction trades workers rose in 2012 to 577 after 5 years of decline. This marked an 8 percent increase 
over the series low of 533 in 2011, but a 41 percent drop from the high of 977 reported in 2006. Fatal work injuries 
to construction laborers, the subgroup in this category with the highest number of fatalities, increased 10 percent 
to 210 in 2012, following a series low of 191 in 2011. Fatal injuries to roofers, another subgroup within 
construction trades workers, rose to 70 in 2012, a 17 percent rise from 2011 marking the highest count in 5 years.
 
Fatal work injuries in transportation and material moving occupations were down 7 percent to 1,150 in 2012. 
Fatal work injuries in this occupational group accounted for about one quarter of all fatal occupational injuries. 
Drivers/sales workers and truck drivers was the subgroup within transportation and material moving occupations with 
the highest number of fatal injuries. Dropping 4 percent, this subgroup recorded 741 fatalities in 2012. Fatal 
injuries to taxi drivers and chauffeurs were down 28 percent to a series low of 46. (As noted, transportation and 
material moving counts presented in this release are expected to rise when updated 2012 data are released 
in Spring 2014.)

The number of fatal work injuries among protective service occupations decreased 21 percent in 2012 
to 224 fatalities–reaching the lowest count since the occupational series began in 2003. The decline was led 
by lower numbers of fatal injuries to police and sheriff’s patrol officers, which dropped 20 percent to 104 in 2012 
to continue a two-year downward trend. Fatal injuries to both security guards and firefighters reached series lows 
with 48 and 17 fatalities, respectively.

Fatal work injuries to workers in management occupations declined 8 percent to 429 in 2012—the lowest level 
in the series. This decrease was driven primarily by the 19 percent decline in fatal injuries to farmers, ranchers, 
and other agricultural managers from 268 in 2011 to 216 in 2012.

Fatalities among farming, fishing, and forestry occupations declined 6 percent to 245 in 2012. This was led by the 
24 percent drop in fatalities to fishers and related fishing workers from 42 in 2011 to a series low of 32 in 2012. 
Fatal injuries to logging workers have remained somewhat level for the last three years, decreasing slightly 
to 62 in 2012.

Fatal injuries to resident military personnel reached a series low in 2012, dropping 25 percent from 
57 fatalities in 2011 to 43.

For more detailed information on fatal injuries by occupation, see the 2012 tables at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

Contract workers

In addition to identifying the industry in which a decedent was employed, CFOI began in 2011 to identify whether 
a worker was a contractor. A contractor is defined as a worker employed by one firm but working at the behest of 
another firm that exercises overall responsibility for the operations at the site where the decedent was 
fatally injured. This information helps to identify the location and type of work being performed when 
the fatal work injury occurred.

In 2012, the number of fatal occupational injuries incurred by contractors was 708, or 16 percent of all 
fatal injuries, compared to 542 reported in 2011. Falls to a lower level accounted for 30 percent of contractor 
deaths while struck by object or equipment (18 percent) and pedestrian vehicular (11 percent) incidents also were 
frequent events among contractors.

Fatally-injured contractors were most often contracted by a government entity (151 or 21 percent of all contractors) 
and by firms in the private construction (133 or 19 percent); mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction 
(68 or 10 percent); and manufacturing (67 or 9 percent) industry sectors.

The majority of contractors (381 or 54 percent) were working in construction and extraction occupations when fatally 
injured. Decedents in this occupation group were most often employed as construction laborers (101), first-line 
supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers (42), electricians (39), and roofers (32). Among contractors 
who were employed outside the construction and extraction occupations group, the largest number of fatal occupational 
injuries was incurred by heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (50); tree trimmers and pruners (16); 
security guards (15); landscaping and groundskeeping workers (14); welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers (14); 
and athletes and sports competitors (13).

For more detailed information on fatal injuries incurred by contract workers, see the 2012 charts 
at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

State and metropolitan statistical area (MSA)

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia reported higher numbers of fatal work injuries in 2012 than in 2011, 
while 32 states reported lower numbers. Two states reported the same number as in 2011. For more detailed state 
results, contact the individual state agency responsible for the collection of CFOI data in that state. Although 
data for Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam are not included in the national totals for this release, 
results for these jurisdictions are available. Participating agencies and their telephone numbers are listed 
in Table 6.

Counts for over 300 MSAs are also available for 2012 from CFOI and detailed data are available for more than 50 MSAs. 
The MSAs with the most fatal occupational injuries in 2012 were New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island (NY-NJ-PA) 
with 178, Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown (TX) with 90, Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI) with 81, and Los Angeles-Long 
Beach-Santa Ana (CA) with 81.

For more detailed information on fatal injuries by state and MSA, see the 2012 tables at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm.

Background of the program

The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the BLS Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) 
program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI program 
uses diverse state, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries. 
This assures counts are as complete and accurate as possible. For the 2012 data, over 19,000 unique source documents 
were reviewed as part of the data collection process.

The Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII), another component of the OSHS program, presents frequency 
counts and incidence rates by industry and also by detailed case circumstances and worker characteristics for 
nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses for cases that result in days away from work. Incidence rates for 2012 
by industry and case type will be published in October 2013, and information on 2012 case circumstances and worker 
characteristics will be available in November 2013. For additional data, access the 
BLS Internet site: www.bls.gov/iif/. For technical information and definitions for the CFOI program, 
please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch9.pdf.


….
Jon L.Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson). For over 4 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 occupational accidents and illnesses.
Read more about the "national census" and workers' compensation.

Mar 17, 2011
US Lacks a Census of Occupational Illness and Disease. In a series of articles, Celeste Monforton discusses the absence in the U.S. of a comprehensive system for surveillance of occupational illnesses sand disease.