Asbestos and Mold in Schools: Paterson NJ Safety Officer Claims Mishandling

The presence of asbestos and mold in schools and the potential exposure of students and employees has been a major health concern for decades. A Paterson NJ health and safety office now claims that the Paterson NJ school system improperly mishandled the removal of these hazards in violation of Federal regulations.

Social Security Disability Trending Downward

Both Social Security Disability Applications and Social Security Disability Awards are now trending downward. Additionally, terminations from Social Security Disability Awards are now trending upward (8.62%) according to November 2016 statistics released by the Social Security Administration.

Insurance Rating Company Increases Estimate for Net Ultimate U.S. Asbestos Losses to $100 Billion

A.M. Best has increased its estimate for losses that U.S. property/casualty insurers can ultimately expect from third-party liability asbestos claims by approximately 18% to $100 billion. The $15 billion increase to the net ultimate asbestos loss estimate comes as insurers are incurring approximately $2.1 billion in new losses each year while paying out nearly $2.5 billion on existing claims. The updated figures are contained in a new Best’s Special Report, titled “A.M. Best Increases Estimate for Net Ultimate Asbestos Losses to $100 Billion.” The report also states that A.M. Best is not making any change to its $42 billion estimate on net ultimate environmental losses; therefore, A.M. Best’s view of ultimate industry losses for asbestos and environmental (A&E) is now $142 billion.

Victimizing Undocumented Injured Workers

NY TIMES QUOTATION OF THE DAY

"I was shot by terrorists, and it feels like the people I worked with are 

victimizing me all over again."

VALERIE KALLIS-WEBER, 59, a victim of a mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., last year, on medical treatments that have been denied or delayed under the workers' compensation system that covers her care.

Click here to read the entire article, "‘Victimizing Me All Over Again’: San Bernardino Victims Fight for Treatment" NY Times 11.30.2016

In New Jersey, "...without benefit of a legislative directive to the contrary, undocumented aliens are entitled to workers' compensation benefits. While undocumented aliens are not performing any illegal work, the court has reasoned that the New Jersey Workers' Compensation Act is not subject to any prohibitions similar to the unemployment law of each state which must comply with Federal standards; granting unemployment benefits to undocumented aliens would violate these standards."
Montoya v. Gateway Ins. Co., 168 N.J.Super. 100, 401 A.2d 1102 (App.Div.1979), certif. den. 81 N.J. 402, 408 A.2d 796 (1979). "The need for medical treatment is not a benefit derived from immigration status but rather from employment status. Mendoza v. Monmouth Recycling Corporation, 288 N.J.Super. 240, 672 A.2d 221 (App.Div.1996)." Gelman, Jon L., 38 N.J. Prac., Workers' Compensation Law § 11.8 (3d ed.).

…

Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thomson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thomson-Reuters). 

For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman  1.973.696.7900  jon@gelmans.com  has been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.

New Jersey Workers Are at High Risk for Asthma

The US Centers for Disease Control reported today that workers in various industries and occupations are at risk for work-related asthma. CDC analyzed data from the 2013 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Asthma Call-back Survey and determined that in 21 states among an estimated 74 million adults employed at some time in the 12 months preceding the interview, 7.7% had current asthma.

Cybersecurity is an imminent and costly threat to lawyers and their clients

Cybersecurity is a critical issue in handling the workers’ compensation claims process. Regulatory authorities and clients are mounting an increased concern that the legal profession must employ adequate measures to protect data from cyber attacks. The fragmented century old social insurance system is complex and expensive to operate and is now confronted with security measures that are more time consuming, cumbersome and expense to implement.

The progress of technology and the Internet of Things (IoT) is advancing logarithmically. The participants in the present workers’ compensation system need to be aware of the seriousness of cyber vulnerabilities as well their responsibilities to maintain the confidentiality of client’s interests and protect the legal strategies of the case.

Weighing Genetic Factors in Cardiovascular Cases

Cardiovascular cases involving occupational risks are complicated causation proof issues in workers' compensation cases. The association of the work exposure and/or effort is usually a challenging proof battle where literature and medical experts are caught in a contentious duel.