I wrote a post last week entitled, “For Texas Subrogation, the Devil is in the (Policy) Details.” It concerned a Texas Supreme Court Decision where an insurance carrier had attempted to collect from an injured workers’ third-party liability suit despite the existence of a waiver of subrogation in the policy issued to their insured. The…
Thanks, Dad.
Last week I saw a message on Twitter sent by a friend. She was re-tweeting a meme acknowledging the June 6th anniversary of D-Day. She had added with her tweet, “God bless them for their courage and sacrifice.” I re-tweeted her message with the simple comment, “Thanks Dad!” Given the historical significance of that fateful…
When the Law of Unintended Consequences Screws Good Samaritans
I hear employers complain about having to carry workers’ comp all the time. Many of them do not understand the protections that workers’ compensation coverage can provide, and instead simply view it as a “pain in the ass” mandatory expense that they must endure. They really should educate themselves as to what comp can do…
For Texas Subrogation, the Devil is in the (Policy) Details
An interesting decision has emerged from the Texas Supreme Court, and I predict there will be a whole lot of workers’ comp insurance policy revision going on in the Lone Star State as a result. The court ruled Friday that a workers’ compensation insurer was not entitled to claim settlement proceeds from an injured worker…
South Carolina Slavery Case Tells Us Attitudes Still Need to Change
I was sickened last week when I read an article written by our own Liz Carey, telling us about a restaurant manager in South Carolina who pled guilty to enslaving and abusing a mentally challenged employee. While I am certain that everyone who read that story was repulsed by what they learned, for me it…
I Hope They Didn't Spank The Monkey
You’d think the damn ICD-10 billing codes would be able to accommodate this, but no. With a bazillion different codes for every possible injury, illness or malady, you would hope someone somewhere would have seen this coming. But they didn’t. There is not a single, solitary ICD-10 code for Monkey Bite in a Home Depot.…
With Vocational Recovery Project, Washington L&I Returns to Return to Work. The Private Sector Should Pay Attention to Their Results
It was one of the most inspirational presentations I’ve seen in years. They almost sounded surprised at the comments they were making. They were clearly enthusiastic and were describing outcomes of the experiment they were part of, yet they still sounded astonished at what they were conveying. This was clearly something new and unique for…
Does Kansas Pardo Decision Affirm Legislated Disability?
The Kansas Court of Appeals issued a decision last week that could have significant repercussions for the state. Just as importantly, it may also provide a glaring example of why we need to rethink workers’ compensation, strip it to its core and build anew to create a system that proffers a true culture of recovery.…
Ordering Participation Ribbons for the Next Hot Seat Webinar
It seems hard to believe that we are already approaching our fourth Hot Seat Webinar. As many of you know, the Hot Seat was the brainchild of Florida Deputy Chief Judge David Langham and WorkersCompensation.com, and was designed to take on important topics for the workers’ comp industry with frank and open discussion. Our next…
Building a Better Recovering Worker – The Advocate, The Adversary and The Addled
I am in Washington State this morning for the second time in just over 2 weeks. Earlier this month I spoke to the Washington Self-Insurance Association. Today I am speaking at a Vocational Conference produced by the Washington Department of Labor & Industry. My topic for this presentation is called “The Cost of Anti-Engagement.” I…