Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines

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

Lawyer Says OSHA Looking into Arrest of Worker in New Orleans Hotel Collapse

Nov 27 2019 // The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating allegations that the immigration arrest of a construction worker hurt in the collapse of the Hard Rock Hotel construction site in New Orleans was...

Missouri Contractor Faces $210K in Penalties for Workplace Safety Hazards

Nov 26 2019 // Federal workplace safety officials have proposed $210,037 in penalties against a Missouri contractor protect employees from trench collapse and electrical hazards.The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety...

Washington Workers’ Comp Rates Dropping Third Straight Year

Nov 25 2019 // The price of workers’ compensation insurance is dropping in Washington for the third consecutive year.The Washington Department of Labor & Industries on Monday announced a 0.8% decrease in the average amount...

Study Says Medical Payments Per Workers’ Comp Claim Decreased in North Carolina

Nov 22 2019 // Medical payments per claim in North Carolina decreased five to seven percent per year since 2014, according to a recent study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). These decreases likely reflect fee...

Statewide Overall Decrease of 7.5% Approved for Florida Workers’ Comp Rates

Nov 21 2019 // Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier has issued a final order granting approval to the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) for a statewide overall decrease of 7.5% for Florida workers’...

Report on California Workers’ Comp Shows Steady Independent Medical Review Activity

Nov 20 2019 // More than 15,400 independent medical reviews a month are issued in California’s worker’s compensation system, according to a new report from the Department of Industrial Relations.The DIR this week issued a...

Insurer Market Conduct Troubles Often Traced to Claims Handling Errors

Nov 19 2019 // Mistakes by claims professionals were the most common reason for enforcement actions taken against U.S. property and casualty insurers in 2018, taking the No. 1 and No. 2 spot on a top 10 list issued by the Wolters Kluwer...

WCRI: Workers’ Comp Medical Payments in Minnesota Stable

Nov 18 2019 // A recent study by a national workers’ compensation research organization found that Minnesota workers’ compensation medical payments per claim remained stable from 2012 to 2017.The study, CompScope Medical...

Alabama Court Allows Workers Comp Suit Against AIG, Coventry

Nov 18 2019 // An Alabama appellate court has cleared the way for a lawsuit that alleges outrageous and fraudulent conduct by American International Group and Coventry against a worker who was injured in an explosion and sought...

Carolina Amusement Park Fined $42K by OSHA Over Maintenance Worker Injury

Nov 15 2019 // Federal safety officials have fined an amusement park on the North Carolina-South Carolina line after a maintenance worker was injured last March. The Charlotte Observer reports the Occupational Safety and Health...

California Insurance Commissioner OKs Workers’ Comp Pure Premium Reduction

Nov 14 2019 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has adopted and issued a revised average advisory pure premium rate, lowering the benchmark to $1.52 per $100 of payroll for workers’ compensation insurance, effective...

Drop in California Workers’ Comp Opioid Use Reducing Claims $6.5B, Report Shows

Nov 12 2019 // The prevalence of opioids in California workers’ compensation lost-time claims has dropped 51% over the past decade, reducing both average benefit payments and average days away from work on those claims, according...

Insurtech Pie Launches TV Campaign in California for Workers’ Comp

Nov 12 2019 // Workers’ compensation insurtech Pie Insurance has launched its first national television advertisement campaign with an initial focus in California.The two 30-second spots depict Pie coming to the rescue,...

Workers’ Comp Rate Decrease Approved for Louisiana

Nov 8 2019 // A filing by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) that would reduce workers’ compensation insurance rates in Louisiana by 8.4% next year has been approved by Louisiana Insurance Commissioner...

Oklahoma Workers’ Comp Commission Names Hammonds Johnson General Counsel

Nov 7 2019 // Lauren Hammonds Johnson has been appointed general counsel at the Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission (WCC). The general counsel will work directly under Commissioners Mark Liotta, Jordan Russell and Megan...

WCRI: Workers’ Comp Medical Payments in Minnesota Stable

Nov 6 2019 // Minnesota workers’ compensation medical payments per claim remained stable from 2012 to 2017, according to a recent study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI).The study, CompScope Medical Benchmarks...

Philadelphia Fire Highlights Dangers of Old Infrastructure at U.S. Refineries

Nov 6 2019 // How did a piece of piping installed when Richard Nixon was U.S. president go without once being checked before leading to a fire that devastated the East Coast’s largest and oldest oil refinery?That’s a...

Ergonomic Tracking Helps Cut Workers Comp Claims but Privacy Concerns Remain

Nov 6 2019 // Every morning when he goes to work in the freezer room of a warehouse in eastern Pennsylvania, Jack Westley throws on a hooded sweatshirt to keep warm and grabs a radio to talk to his coworkers. He was recently given a new...

Ohio Woman Ordered to Repay $41K After Workers’ Comp Fraud Conviction

Nov 5 2019 // A Cincinnati, Ohio, woman must repay the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) nearly $41,000 after being convicted of workers’ compensation fraud.The BWC reported that Michelle D. Smith, 57, pleaded...

The Lowdown: Cannabis 101 in 300 Minutes or Less

Nov 5 2019 // On October 17th, the Insurance Journal hosted a virtual, 6 hour, live summit on insuring the cannabis industry. With 2,300 pre-registrants, an additional 200 joined in as the day progressed. These viewers represented over...