Workers' Comp Headlines
Vol. 12 Number 15, Wednesday, August 14, 2002
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News:
Burden of Rising Comp Rates Not Distributed Equally
A computer analysis shows that pure-premium rates for some professions
jumped as much as 388 percent since 1995 while the rate for others actually
dropped.
IMC Mulls Regulations That Could Force QMEs to Treat Patients
The state's only disabled Qualified Medical Examiner finds himself the
center of debate over proposed regulations that would require QMEs to spend
at least 10 hours a week treating patients.
Texas Lawsuit Rattles California Sabers
California medical providers are warning that a lawsuit filed by the Texas
Medical Association to block implementation of a fee schedule there portends
trouble should California follow suit and use Medicare's Resource Based
Relative Value System.
WCIRB Estimates AB 749 Cost Savings
The Workers' Compensation Ratings Bureau issues a final analysis on the
benefits bill passed this year and for the first time estimates potential
savings from cost-saving reforms in the bill.
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And that, as we in the news business say, is -30-
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Workers' Comp Headlines for the California Workers' Comp Advisor are
what you've just finished reading and are delivered to you by means of
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WORKERS' COMP ADVISOR
Electronic Summary Edition
Volume 11, No. 19
RBRVS Study Points to Winners and Losers
The Lewin Group releases preliminary findings that show which medical
providers would lose and which would gain if the state were to make a simple
conversion to a Resource-Based, Relative Value System now used by Medicare.
Lawyer's Side Job Leads to Ethics Dilemma
An Industrial Medical Council lawyer had been working for years as a
part-time instructor in an industry that he helped regulate, leading to at
least one complaint that he has a conflict of interest.
SB 71 Veto Could Lead to Ballot Initiative Tying Benefits to National
Average
As expected, Gov. Gray Davis vetoed the benefits bill, and now labor groups
are considering a ballot initiative that would tie California's workers'
comp benefits to the national average.
'Average' Benefits Subject of Debate
Determining the nation's average benefits won't be easy because there are
several ways to measure each state's level of compensation.
New York Seeks Terrorism Relief for its Workers' Comp System
Gov. George Pataki asks for federal assistance to hold New York state rates
down, while the state's ratings bureau looks for a way to cushion the impact
of thousands of death claims.
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IMC CHIEF TO QUIT NEXT YEAR
Allan MacKenzie, executive medical director of the Industrial Medical
Council, announced today that he will resign his post next March.
MacKenzie said he had originally planned to work at the council for only
two or three years, but his tenure stretched into six years as the agency
struggled with tight deadlines to accomplish new mandates passed by the
Legislature. He said Gov. Gray Davis' veto of Senate Bill 71 provided a
pause and an opportunity for the IMC to change leadership without disrupting
the workflow.
The IMC licenses and disciplines Qualified Medical Evaluators, approves
continuing-education courses and issues treatment guidelines for the
workers' comp industry.
MacKenzie, 63, plans to do consulting work in organizational dynamics after
he leaves the IMC. He was chief of orthopaedics and rehabilitation for a
public hospital in Ventura County before accepting his current position.
Flash Report: Lewin
Group study would bring big changes in fees
Some medical providers could see fees paid by the Workers'
Comp System decrease as much as 28%, while others would see
corresponding increases, under the first draft of an official
medical fee schedule report released today.
The Lewin Group, under contract with the State to convert the fee
schedule to a resource-based, relative value system, reported its
preliminary findings to the Industrial Medical Council today. The
study outlines potential changes to fees collected by 48 medical
specialty groups if the State were to simply convert the Medicare
fee schedule to fit California's Workers' Comp System without
changing the total amounts paid. That conversion would decrease
fees to neurological surgeons by 28.5% while optometrists would
see a 27.8% increase. A lot more work has to be done, however,
before the numbers are finalized and put into state codes.
For a full report on the Lewin Group study, read the October 24th
edition of the Advisor.
FLASH REPORT: DAVIS
VETOES BENEFITS BILL
As expected, Gov. Gray Davis vetoed Senate Bill 71 and its companion bill,
AB 1176, late Sunday night.
In his veto message, Davis said he believes it is time to increase benefits
for injured workers, but the legislative package approved by Democratic
lawmakers does not meet his goals of promoting injured workers' return to
work, controlling medical costs and targeting benefit dollars to achieve the
best outcomes.
"I am concerned about the net economic impact of SB 71 and AB 1176 in these
shaky economic times," Davis said.
Even advocates predicted that Davis would veto the sweeping
benefits-increase bill, but Davis waited until just before a constitutional
deadline that requires him to take action on end-of-session bills within 30
days of adjournment.
The governor added that he believes his staff and the Legislature should
work together to craft pass another benefits bill before the beginning of
the 2002 session in January.
The Oct. 24 edition of the Advisor will contain a full report on the veto
and the reaction within the workers' comp industry.
FLASH REPORT: SB 71 VETO
LIKELY TO COME AT LAST MINUTE
Sources at the Capitol say Gov. Gray Davis probably won't take action on
Senate Bill 71 until Sunday, his possible chance to take action on the bill
before missing a deadline set by the state constitution.
Davis is widely expected to veto the workers' comp benefits increase, but
one Capitol insider joked that the governor isn't likely to do anything
until 11:50 p.m. on Sunday. The governor must take action on bills passed
within two weeks before the close of the Legislative session within 30 days
of adjournment.
Stay tuned for an e-mail update on Monday. Full coverage will appear in the
next editions of the Workers' Comp Executive and Workers' Comp Advisor.
NEWS: Workers' Comp
Headlines
Vol. 11 Number 18, Wednesday, October 10, 2001
FLASH REPORT: New York Asks For Workers' Comp Relief
New York Gov. George Pataki has proposed a bail-out for workers' comp as
part of a $54 billion relief package for his state, but scant details left
industry experts puzzled over the governor's intentions.
In a press release, Pataki asked for "special accommodations" to
prevent
any increase in workers' comp rates resulting from the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks. But Pataki did not say what kind of accommodations he wanted.
Neither his press office nor the New York State Workers' Compensation Board
could provide any details on Wednesday.
The workers' comp money was part of a wide-ranging request for federal
assistance to rebuild infrastructure, stimulate the state's economy and
reimburse the state and New York City governments for extraordinary expenses
relating to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Pataki asked
for $3 billion for New York state government, but did not give a specific
amount for the workers' comp aid.
The New York State Compensation Insurance Fund, which insures about one
third of the state's workers, has not asked for any funding, said
spokeswoman Ann Formel.
The National Association of Independent Insurers was left to guess at
Pataki's intentions. Nancy Schroeder, assistant vice president for workers'
compensation, said she hopes that the Republican governor was referring to a
request by insurers that the federal government set up a reinsurance pool to
cover catastrophic losses from terrorism.
"I don't know how you do what he's suggesting, unless you address the one
issue that's likely to have the greatest impact, and that is the fact that
a lot of reinsurers are pulling back their terrorist coverage or writing
terrorist exclusions into their contracts," Schroeder said.
HCOs TAKING OFF:
The Department of Industrial Relations licenses
another Health Care
Organization, continuing a trend twoard massive expansion of managed-care
within California's workers' comp industry.
WORKERS' COMP INDUSTRY VULNERABLE:
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners begins assessing the
damage that terrorists did to the nation's workers' comp industry, which
some experts say will likely be impacted far more than other insurance
sectors.
FRAUD INVESTIGATOR PROMISES CRACKDOWN ON EMPLOYERS:
The chief investigator for the Department of Insurance's Sacramento fraud
office says her agency is shifting focus away from applicant fraud, much to
the delight of applicants' attorneys.
COMP BENEFITS SMALL PART OF RELIEF PACKAGE FOR TERRORIST VICTIMS:
Charities and a provision in an airline-bailout bill will add to benefits
paid by workers' comp insurers for terrorist victims.
FLASH REPORT: Labor
Rallies for SB 71
Labor organizers took another crack at persuading Gov. Gray Davis to sign a
benefits-increase bill today, trotting out injured law-enforcement officers
in an apparent attempt to capitalize on public sentiment stirred by the
heroism of New York City firefighters during the World Trade Center
collapse.
Tom Rankin, president of the California Labor Federation, said at a press
conference that he has received no indication whether Gov. Gray Davis will
sign Senate Bill 71. Rankin's group kept the heat on the governor by
presenting two former law-enforcement officers who were injured in the line
of duty and the wife of a law-enforcement pilot who was killed in a crash.
Each pleaded for an increase in benefits, but the event didn't receive much
media attention. Only a handful of reporters attended.
Lori Krammerer, a lobbyist for employers, said labor groups are likely
trying to keep the spotlight on workers' comp because they've heard that
Davis has been quietly hinting that he will veto the bill. She predicted the
governor will sign a less costly bill that increases unemployment insurance
benefits.
