Tag: Workers Comp

California accounted for 20.1% of all cash and medical benefits paid to injured workers throughout the country in calendar year 2020, according to a California Workers’ Compensation Institute bulletin released Monday summarizing findings in a National Academy of Social Insurance report.

NASI reported state and federal work comp programs covered 135.6 million jobs and $8.69 trillion in payroll in 2020. Workers compensation paid $58.9 billion in benefits in 2020, including $27.7 billion for medical care and $31.2 billion in indemnity benefits.

Payments in 2020 were down 6.5% compared with 2019, largely the result of a decline in medical benefits during the first year of the pandemic.

“Although California was hit hard by COVID-19 and the ensuing recession in 2020, the state’s workers compensation system remained the largest in the country, with more than 16.1 million covered jobs, nearly $1.28 trillion in covered wages and close to $11.9 billion in benefit payments — just slightly below the combined total for New York, Florida and Pennsylvania, which ranked second, third and fourth, respectively, and more than 3.6 times the total paid to injured workers under federal programs,” CWCI said.

The $11.9 billion in benefit payments accounts for 20.1% of all benefit payments. The $5.9 billion in medical payments in California is about 21.3% of nationwide medical payments, while the $5.9 billion in indemnity was about 19.1% of nationwide indemnity payments.

 

 

California accounted for 20.1% of all cash and medical benefits paid to injured workers throughout the country in calendar year 2020, according to a California Workers’ Compensation Institute bulletin released Monday summarizing findings in a National Academy of Social Insurance report.

NASI reported state and federal work comp programs covered 135.6 million jobs and $8.69 trillion in payroll in 2020. Workers compensation paid $58.9 billion in benefits in 2020, including $27.7 billion for medical care and $31.2 billion in indemnity benefits.

Payments in 2020 were down 6.5% compared with 2019, largely the result of a decline in medical benefits during the first year of the pandemic.

“Although California was hit hard by COVID-19 and the ensuing recession in 2020, the state’s workers compensation system remained the largest in the country, with more than 16.1 million covered jobs, nearly $1.28 trillion in covered wages and close to $11.9 billion in benefit payments — just slightly below the combined total for New York, Florida and Pennsylvania, which ranked second, third and fourth, respectively, and more than 3.6 times the total paid to injured workers under federal programs,” CWCI said.

The $11.9 billion in benefit payments accounts for 20.1% of all benefit payments. The $5.9 billion in medical payments in California is about 21.3% of nationwide medical payments, while the $5.9 billion in indemnity was about 19.1% of nationwide indemnity payments.

 

 

 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Thursday announced that it is fining two contractors nearly $700,000 after the collapse of a mezzanine platform at a former power plant in Boston on May 5 caused a worker to lose his legs.

The incident, which occurred during demolition and asbestos abatement operations, also caused injuries to two workers.

OSHA said an inspection of NorthStar Contracting Group Inc. and the project’s Boston-based general contractor, Suffolk Construction Inc., found that the employers failed to ensure adequate demolition and asbestos safeguards for their employees.

OSHA issued citations to NorthStar Contracting for three willful violations, four serious violations, and one other-than-serious violation of workplace safety standards. The agency proposed $399,864 in penalties. OSHA also issued two willful and three serious citations to Suffolk Construction and proposed $292,116 in penalties.

Each company has 15 business days to contest the citations.

 

 

 

 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Thursday announced that it is fining two contractors nearly $700,000 after the collapse of a mezzanine platform at a former power plant in Boston on May 5 caused a worker to lose his legs.

The incident, which occurred during demolition and asbestos abatement operations, also caused injuries to two workers.

OSHA said an inspection of NorthStar Contracting Group Inc. and the project’s Boston-based general contractor, Suffolk Construction Inc., found that the employers failed to ensure adequate demolition and asbestos safeguards for their employees.

OSHA issued citations to NorthStar Contracting for three willful violations, four serious violations, and one other-than-serious violation of workplace safety standards. The agency proposed $399,864 in penalties. OSHA also issued two willful and three serious citations to Suffolk Construction and proposed $292,116 in penalties.

Each company has 15 business days to contest the citations.

 

 

 

 

(Reuters) — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Thursday rejected a bid to prevent New York City from enforcing its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for municipal workers against a group teachers, firefighters and others who challenged the policy.

The justice denied an emergency request, received by the court on Nov. 4, to block the policy by individual municipal workers, as well as a group called New Yorkers For Religious Liberty, while their appeal of lower court decisions siding with the city proceeds.

The plaintiffs — firefighters, building inspectors, police officers, emergency medical technicians, teachers, sanitation workers and others — are represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom conservative religious liberty group.

Sotomayor, who is the justice designated by the court to act on emergency matters arising from New York and certain other states, has repeatedly rebuffed challenges to New York City’s vaccine mandate including by a police detective in August and public school teachers and assistants last year.

The court as a whole in June refused to take up a religious challenge to New York state’s vaccine mandate for health care workers.

 

 

(Reuters) — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Thursday rejected a bid to prevent New York City from enforcing its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for municipal workers against a group teachers, firefighters and others who challenged the policy.

The justice denied an emergency request, received by the court on Nov. 4, to block the policy by individual municipal workers, as well as a group called New Yorkers For Religious Liberty, while their appeal of lower court decisions siding with the city proceeds.

The plaintiffs — firefighters, building inspectors, police officers, emergency medical technicians, teachers, sanitation workers and others — are represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom conservative religious liberty group.

Sotomayor, who is the justice designated by the court to act on emergency matters arising from New York and certain other states, has repeatedly rebuffed challenges to New York City’s vaccine mandate including by a police detective in August and public school teachers and assistants last year.

The court as a whole in June refused to take up a religious challenge to New York state’s vaccine mandate for health care workers.

 

 

The Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division adopted permanent rules, effective Dec. 4, that clarify when apportionment is still acceptable for a denied condition, based on a state Supreme Court decision issued earlier this year.

Oregon’s highest court, in Johnson v. SAIF Corp., held that a worker is entitled to the full value of the total impairment, including a portion attributed to a denied condition, when a compensable injury is a material cause.

The new rules will clarify that apportionment for a denied condition is not allowed unless the denied condition is a combined condition denied for a major contributing cause or a combined condition denied entirely. The rules also establish that a worker’s residual function capacity cannot be adjusted due to a denied condition without a denial of a combined condition for either major contributing cause of a condition in its entirety.

The rules also allow for apportionment of irreversible findings of impairment or surgical values if the loss is caused in part by a superimposed condition or a preexisting condition that is part of a denied combined condition.

WorkCompCentral is a sister publication of Business Insurance. More stories here.

 

The Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division adopted permanent rules, effective Dec. 4, that clarify when apportionment is still acceptable for a denied condition, based on a state Supreme Court decision issued earlier this year.

Oregon’s highest court, in Johnson v. SAIF Corp., held that a worker is entitled to the full value of the total impairment, including a portion attributed to a denied condition, when a compensable injury is a material cause.

The new rules will clarify that apportionment for a denied condition is not allowed unless the denied condition is a combined condition denied for a major contributing cause or a combined condition denied entirely. The rules also establish that a worker’s residual function capacity cannot be adjusted due to a denied condition without a denial of a combined condition for either major contributing cause of a condition in its entirety.

The rules also allow for apportionment of irreversible findings of impairment or surgical values if the loss is caused in part by a superimposed condition or a preexisting condition that is part of a denied combined condition.

WorkCompCentral is a sister publication of Business Insurance. More stories here.