Women Sue Coast Guard Over Husbands’ Murders
By JULIE ST. LOUIS The wives of two men killed by a disgruntled colleague at the U.S. Coast Guard Communications Station on Kodiak Island claim bosses put their husbands in harm's way by allowing a...
View ArticleMSHA Announces 2016 National Mine Rescue Competition Winners
A team from Carlsbad, N.M., beat out 35 teams from 16 states nationwide to finish first at the 2016 National Metal and Nonmetal Mine Rescue Contest in Reno, Nev. This year’s winner, the Waste Isolation...
View Article#WCI2016: Ultimate Bloggers Panel, Tuesday, August 23
It’s the fourth annual Ultimate Bloggers Panel at the 71st annual Workers’ Compensation Educational Conference in Orlando on Tuesday, Aug. 23, from 1:15 - 2:30 p.m. The session is part of the National...
View ArticleDoctors Need a New Skill Set for This Opioid Abuse Treatment
By KAREN SHAKERDGE In a big hotel conference room near New York’s Times Square, six doctors huddle around a greasy piece of raw pork. They watch as addiction medicine specialist Michael Frost...
View ArticleSyncing Up Drug Refills: A Way to Get Patients to Take Their Medicine
By SHEILA LUTHRA You have your red pill and your green pill. There’s the one you take at breakfast, the one you take before bed and the one you have to take six hours after eating. All told, it is a...
View ArticlePG&E Guilty on Charges Stemming From 2010 Blast
By NICHOLAS IOVINO A federal jury on Tuesday found Pacific Gas and Electric guilty of five counts of violating pipeline safety laws and one count of obstructing an investigation of the 2010 San Bruno...
View ArticleFour New Zika Cases Bring Miami Count to 21
By SEAN DUFFY Four new Zika infections acquired locally from mosquito bites have been reported in northern Miami, Florida Gov. Rick Scott said Tuesday, bringing the total number of locally transmitted...
View ArticleVirginia Reports Dramatic Rise in Workplace Deaths
C. Ray Davenport, commissioner of the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry, reports that 29 workers have died of job-related injuries and illnesses from Jan. 1, 2016, through July 31, 2016. In...
View ArticleWCI Briefs: 8.11.16
To save you time, here’s a sampling of workers' compensation and insurance news, each in 400 words or less. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation will conduct a public hearing to discuss the...
View ArticleMedical Canvassing: 6 Things Every Claims Organization Should Know
By STEVE DEROSSETT In today’s climate, the need for claims organizations to develop and maintain a strong medical canvass program—traditionally viewed as an à la cart service—borders on a best...
View ArticleNCCI, Florida OIR and Commissioner Named in Lawsuit
James F. Fee, Jr., a Florida attorney and the owner of Druckman & Fee, P.A. in Miami-Dade, is the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed August 10 against the National Council on Compensation Insurance, the...
View ArticleMine Safety Agency Issues Safety Alert for Drill Operators
Mine drill operators face their share of on-the-job risks. Failing to follow safe drilling practices can lead to fatal outcomes, as has been the case in recent years. In April 2014, a 53-year-old miner...
View ArticleCourt Upbraids EPA for Delays on Pesticide Ban
By BARBARA LEONARD The Ninth Circuit scoffed Friday at the latest attempt by the Environmental Protection Agency to drag its heels on banning a dangerous pesticide. "EPA's nine-year delay in taking...
View Article#WCI2016: Vincent Donnelly, Steve Spurrier to Offer Keynote Addresses
Each year, the Workers’ Compensation Educational Conference features two keynote speakers—one from the insurance industry, and one nationally recognized person noted for achievement in his personal and...
View ArticleThe Trouble With Compounds
By NiIKI INGRAM As many in our industry know, compounded medications have become an increasing driver of costs in workers’ compensation cases. Over the course of the past few years, there have been...
View ArticleAdvocacy Expanded: Empirical Studies and Practical Solutions
By DARRELL BROWN Advocacy is rooted in the notion of putting the injured employee’s needs first and making information and resources readily available to improve the overall claims experience....
View ArticleAs States OK Medical Marijuana Laws, Doctors Struggle With Knowledge Gap
By SHEFALI LUTHRA Medical marijuana has been legal in Maine for almost 20 years. But Farmington physician Jean Antonucci says she continues to feel unprepared when counseling sick patients about...
View ArticleFederal Law Makes Medical Marijuana Legal Services Out of Bounds in Ohio
Ohio lawyers may not ethically provide legal services to a client who is establishing a medical marijuana business because of prohibitions in federal law, the Board of Professional Conduct declared...
View ArticleInsurance Industry Employment Trends: 1990-2016 (June 2016)
By DR. STEVEN WEISBART The U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) just published data as of June 2016 on detailed insurance industry employment, and the Insurance Information...
View ArticleMass Shooters and Workers’ Compensation Claims
By LANCE J. EWING On March 27, 1981, in Washington, D.C., six bullets were fired in 1.7 seconds as President Ronald Reagan and his entourage left the Washington Hilton. The first bullet struck White...
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