Workers' Compensation

Recent Posts

Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Student-Athletes?
Posted on 23 Sep 2011 by John Stahl

Civil Rights Expert Says Generating Billions in Revenue for NCAA and Universities Should Trigger Employee Status By John M. Stahl, Esq. An article that civil-rights historian Taylor Branch wrote for the October 2011 edition of The Atlantic magazine... Read More

NCCI Studies Excess Loss Development
Posted on 21 Oct 2011 by John Stahl

Largest Claims Develop Down and Smaller Ones Develop Up Over Time By John M. Stahl, Esq. A September 2011 NCCI research brief entitled “Workers’ Compensation Excess Loss Development” followed up on NCCI’s 2007 study of the... Read More

Reforming Chronic Pain Treatment: New Attitudes and Better Knowledge Advocated
Posted on 3 Feb 2012 by John Stahl

The 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. Obamacare authorized the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to study issues related to chronic pain. One reason for this effort was that chronic pain issues annually cost the workers’ compensation... Read More

Trends in Workers’ Compensation Narcotics Use: Avoiding Early Use is Key
Posted on 6 Jun 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. A May 2012 report from the National Council on Compensation Insurance Holdings, Inc. , (NCCI) addressed the conclusions of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) that “the overuse of opioid... Read More

Alternative Approaches to Treating Chronic Back Pain
Posted on 3 Feb 2012 by John Stahl

Drugs aren’t the only solution This is a hard pill to swallow for “pill mill” doctors and pharmaceutical companies that provide their supply, but alternative workers’ compensation approaches to managing chronic pain are increasingly... Read More

How Washington State Is Beating the High Cost of Prescription Drugs
Posted on 20 Nov 2011 by John Stahl

Washington State Combines Preferred Drug List and Volume Buying By John Stahl, Esq. Like the weather, increasingly high costs of the deluge of prescription drugs prompt complaints by everyone who provides workers’ compensation coverage... Read More

Experts, Officials, Media Offer Their Two Cents on U.S. Supreme Court’s Decision on Affordable Care Act
Posted on 29 Jun 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. The U.S. Supreme Court announcing its decision that the Affordable Care Act, also known as ACA and Obamacare, was constitutional was a “where were you” moment in American history. Key quotes from the majority and dissent... Read More

Workers’ Compensation Under Romneycare Provides Clues for Nationwide Future of Systems
Posted on 29 Jun 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. Uncertainty regarding how the U.S. Supreme Court deciding that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was constitutional would impact workers’ compensation systems makes this a good time to review an expert’s... Read More

California 2007 Reforms Reduced Costs of Physician-Dispensed Drugs: Study Shows Success Spawned Imitators
Posted on 19 Jul 2012 by John Stahl

The fact that the 53-percent of all of the 2010/2011 prescriptions in the California workers’ compensation system that physicians dispensed cost a proportional 52-percent of the total for every prescription in the system showed the effectiveness... Read More

NCCI’s State of the Workers’ Compensation Line 2012: The Struggle Continues
Posted on 25 May 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. The State of the Workers’ Compensation Line 2012 presentation at the National Council on Compensation Insurance Holdings. Inc.’s , (NCCI) 2012 Annual Issue Symposium discussed trends in workers’ compensation insurance... Read More

Many Work-related Disabilities Go Uncompensated: Compromising "The Great Compromise"
Posted on 18 Jun 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. Evidence that many workers’ compensation claimants have not received payments under “The Great Compromise” – the bargain that traded the right to sue employers regarding employment-related harm for the right... Read More

Regulatory Challenges Regarding Self-Insured Groups: Failures Prompt New Regulation
Posted on 1 Jun 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. An April 2012 International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC) report entitled “ Self-Insured Groups for Workers’ Compensation: Effective Regulatory Strategies ” on obtaining workers’... Read More

Experts Address Pre-loss Control Programs
Posted on 14 Oct 2011 by John Stahl

Panel Shows Benefits of Shifting Focus From Post-Injury Costs to Incident Prevention By John M. Stahl, Esq. An October 11, 2011, webinar entitled “ Injury Prevention & Pre-Loss Controls: A Paradigm Shift in Workers' Compensation, sponsored... Read More

Study Estimates Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Cost $250 Billion
Posted on 20 Jan 2012 by John Stahl

Comprehensive Look Shows Astronomical Increase By John M. Stahl, Esq. A study by J. Paul Leigh, Ph.D., estimates that direct and indirect costs of occupational injuries and injuries in 2007 was $250 billion. This is a 71-percent increase since 1992... Read More

Unnecessary Litigation in Workers’ Comp Claims Process: Training and Communication Are Key
Posted on 11 May 2012 by John Stahl

By John Stahl, Esq. Dr. Bogdan Savych of the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) said at the outset of his May 10, 2012 webinar entitled “Avoiding Litigation: What Can Employers, Payers and States Do” that the goals of... Read More