Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines

All the headlines from our Workers' Compensation Topic Page, ordered by recency.

OSHA Unveils Details of Workplace Vaccine Mandate Rule with Deadline After Holidays

Nov 4 2021 // The nation’s workplace safety agency will officially publish tomorrow emergency guidelines for companies that must implement President Biden’s mandatory vaccine policy for employees.The policy covers employers...

Massachusetts Construction Company Owner Pleads Guilty to Tax, Workers’ Comp Fraud

Nov 4 2021 // The owner of a now-defunct Peabody, Massachusetts, construction company pleaded guilty in connection with a scheme to defraud the IRS of payroll taxes and to defraud his workers’ compensation insurance carrier by...

7 Arrested for Failing to Report $40 Million in Payroll and Shirking Workers’ Comp

Nov 2 2021 // Seven Florida residents have been charged with under-reporting payroll by $40 million in order to avoid workers’ compensation premiums, along with money laundering and other alleged violations, state officials said...

OSHA Seeks Input for Worker Safety Rule on Heat Hazards

Nov 1 2021 // The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is publishing an advance notice of proposed rulemaking for heat injury and illness prevention.Currently, OSHA does not have a specific...

Texas Workers’ Comp Telemedicine Utilization Soared During Pandemic

Nov 1 2021 // Utilization of telemedicine services in the Texas workers’ compensation rose dramatically during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recently published report from the Texas Department of Insurance...

California Workers’ Comp Hospital Stays Decline as COVID Affects Quantity and Types of Admissions

Oct 29 2021 // The latest update to California Workers’ Compensation Institute research on California workers’ compensation inpatient hospital stays shows the number of injured worker hospitalizations fell 17.2% in 2020,...

Senate Confirms Parker as OSHA Chief

Oct 28 2021 // The U.S. Senate has approved Douglas Parker, former California workplace safety chief, as assistant secretary of labor at the Labor Department and the new head of the federal Occupational Safety and Health...

Florida Posts New Workers’ Comp Doctor Reimbursement, But Lawmakers Must Review

Oct 28 2021 // The Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation has adopted a new reimbursement manual, governing fee schedules and payments to doctors and other health care providers.The 2020 Health Care Provider Reimbursement Manual...

Unlicensed California Insurance Agent Arraigned in $1.4M Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme

Oct 28 2021 // Unlicensed insurance agent Karyl Lynn Reed, 57, formerly of Cosa Mesa, Calif., was arraigned this week on multiple felony counts of grand theft, forgery, embezzlement, and aggravated white-collar crime after allegedly...

Study: Indiana Workers’ Comp Average Medical Claims Higher than Most States

Oct 27 2021 // A recently published study from the Workers Compensation Research Institute found that the average medical payment for Indiana workers’ compensation claims with more than seven days of lost time was higher than the...

OSHA Program Aims to Protect Midwest Workers From Exposure to Hazardous Materials

Oct 26 2021 // To reduce employee exposure to health hazards and encourage companies to make workplace safety and health a priority, the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s regional office in...

California Announces Workers’ Comp Temporary Total Disability Rates for 2022

Oct 25 2021 // California’s Division of Workers’ Compensation announced that the 2022 minimum and maximum temporary total disability rates will increase on Jan. 1, 2022.The minimum TTD rate will increase from $203.44 to...

NCCI Launches Workers’ Comp Learning Academy for Carriers

Oct 22 2021 // The National Council on Compensation Insurance has launched a workers’ compensation learning academy for member carriers. “NCCI affiliates have asked for convenient training and development programs focused on...

Texas Workers’ Compensation Saw Telemedicine Services Skyrocket During Pandemic

Oct 22 2021 // Utilization of telemedicine services in the Texas workers’ compensation rose dramatically during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recently published report from the Texas Department of Insurance...

Origami Risk Enhances Workers’ Comp Claims Administration Package

Oct 20 2021 // Origami Risk, a risk, safety and insurance Software as a Service (SaaS) technology firm, announced it has packaged its online workers’ compensation claims administration into a standard offering to help insurance...

Florida Law Officers Want Change to Workers’ Comp PTSD Law

Oct 18 2021 // Three years after first responders in Florida won a hard-fought victory to make mental stress a compensable condition, officers now hope lawmakers can tweak the law to correct some problems.The Florida Police Chiefs...

Benefits of Vaccine Mandates Outweigh Workers’ Comp Costs of Vaccine Injuries

Oct 18 2021 // Vaccinations have served to significantly reduce the spread of COVID-19 in populations with high take-up rates, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC). In the past months, many businesses and...

Workers’ Compensation Reserve Redundancy Reaches $14 Billion, Reports NCCI

Oct 18 2021 // Workers’ compensation insurers continue to stow away more money than necessary in reserves, even as reported loss ratios continue to climb, according to a report released by the National Council on Compensation...

Workers’ Compensation Insurers Find That as Opioid Cost Slows, Marijuana Grows

Oct 15 2021 // Workers’ compensation insurers have slashed spending on opioids, reducing the risk of addiction and delayed recovery, but now they are under increasing pressure to reimburse injured workers for a new kind of...

OSHA Submits Language for Company Vaccine Mandate to White House

Oct 14 2021 // The U.S. Labor Department on Tuesday submitted to the White House the initial text of President Joe Biden’s plan to require private-sector workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or get tested regularly.The...