The Oregon Court of Appeals ruled that an insurance carrier did not have to treat a worker as having a combined condition when none of her impairment was related to her compensable…

The Oregon Court of Appeals overturned a jury’s $10 million verdict in favor of a worker’s widow for his asbestos exposures. Case: Ibarra v. C.H. Murphy/Clark-Ullman Inc., No. 411, 06/20/2024, unpublished. Facts…

Oregon's Workers' Compensation Division has posted amendments to rules governing the assessment that supports the state's Workers' Benefit Fund. The proposed changes are as follows: Amended Rule 003 includes the effective date for OAR 436-070,…

The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that a worker was entitled to permanent total disability benefits for the loss of use of the eyes, plus additional permanent partial disability benefits for…

A federal appellate court upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s claim of retaliation for pursuing workers’ compensation benefits. Paula Emerson began working for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in 2008.

The Illinois Chamber of Commerce and Illinois Self Insurers’ Association opened registration for their Workers’ Compensation and Safety Conference scheduled for Oct. 9 in Lisle. The conference will feature a case law…

A federal appellate court ruled that a worker’s claim that his employer’s health plan administrator violated Illinois law was preempted by federal law. Case: Carnes v. HMO Louisiana Inc., No. 4:22-cv-04179,…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected an injured police officer’s constitutional challenges to the state’s new impairment rating evaluation scheme. Case: Powell v. City of Philadelphia (WCAB), No.  406 C.D. 2023,…

The Pennsylvania House Labor and Industry Committee on Tuesday held an informational meeting to hear testimony from industry experts on the harmful effects of worker misclassification. Christopher Hallock, deputy secretary of…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that Amazon.com was not entitled to join an injured employee’s prior employer as a defendant in her claim and that she was entitled to…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected an injured municipal employee’s constitutional challenges to the state's new impairment rating process. Case: Epps v. City of Philadelphia (WCAB), No. 835 C.D. 2023, 07/08/2024,…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a determination that a worker was required to pay the full amount of her employer’s lien against her third-party recovery, even though the estimate…

Billing agents can pursue payments for workers' comp prescriptions outside of the fee-review process, under a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision. The high court on Tuesday published a split decision in…

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court split on whether a physician should be limited to assigning an impairment rating only for accepted work-related injuries, but it doesn't change a decision allowing the doctor to consider…

Pennsylvania employers would be allowed to make adverse employment decisions against employees and job applicants who legally use medical cannabis, under recently introduced legislation. Senate Bill 1290, introduced Wednesday by Sen. Patrick…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the modification of an injured worker’s benefits from wage loss to a specific loss based on the partial amputation of a toe. Case: Perkins v.

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that an employer should have been allowed to set aside its stipulation of facts agreeing to the enlargement of an employee’s claim. Case: VNA of…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected a worker’s constitutional challenges to the state's new impairment rating evaluation process. Douglas Bellamy worked for the City of Philadelphia. He suffered injuries in a…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the termination of a worker’s benefits for her injuries from a slip-and-fall accident. Case: Tarawallie v. Magee Memorial Hospital for Convalescents (WCAB), No. 717 C.D.

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected yet another constitutional challenge to the state's new impairment rating evaluation procedure. Case: Perilli v. City of Philadelphia (WCAB), No. 1110 C.D. 2023, 08/01/2024, unpublished. Facts:…

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will weigh in on the applicability of the “no-fixed-place-of-work” exception to the “going-and-coming rule” for a tree-trimming supervisor. In February, the Commonwealth Court issued a decision finding that Jorge Martinez…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a determination that a union painter’s direct employer was liable for his benefits but was entitled to a pension offset — and that the worker had…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected another constitutional challenge to the state's new impairment rating evaluation procedure and scolded the attorney responsible for bringing the repetitive claims. Case: Bernard v. City…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that a pension offset is not available when the retiree returns to work for a former employer on a part-time basis and suffers an…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected another repetitive challenge to the constitutionality of the state's new impairment rating evaluation process. Case: Miles v. City of Philadelphia (WCAB), No. 1111 C.D. 2023,…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the modification of a worker’s status from totally to partially disabled. Case: Hines v. Aria Health (WCAB), No. 708 C.D. 2023, 08/22/2024, unpublished. Facts and procedural…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a finding that a worker sustained a compensable aggravation of his preexisting lumbar spine degenerative disease and lumbar radiculopathy. Case: Chester Water Authority v. Swiggett,…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected yet another constitutional challenge to the state's new impairment rating evaluation process. Pamela Barrett Walker worked for the City of Philadelphia. She suffered injuries at…

Pennsylvania’s Superior Court upheld a jury’s $15.5 million award to a worker for his electric shock injuries. Case: Feldman v. CP Acquisitions 25 LP, No. 501 EDA 2023, 09/12/2024, published. Facts: The…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a utilization review determination that a worker’s ongoing treatments were neither reasonable nor necessary. Michael Perry worked for the Mid Atlantic Hose Center LLC. He…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania continues to reject repetitive challenges to the constitutionality of the state's new impairment rating evaluation process. Case: Kittles v. City of Philadelphia (WCAB), No. 1058 C.D.

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rejected an employer’s challenges to orders reinstating a worker’s benefits, the expansion of his claim and the imposition of penalties. Case: Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board v. Berardi (WCAB),…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania overturned a ruling that an employer had waived its subrogation claim for the benefits it paid to an injured worker in a settlement. Case: American General Life Insurance…

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the denial of a municipal employer’s petition to convert an injured worker’s status from temporarily totally disabled to temporarily partially disabled. Lamont Turner worked for…

The Missouri Court of Appeals reinstated a jury’s verdicts in favor of an injured worker on his disability discrimination claim. Scott Caldwell worked for the UniFirst Corp. as a district sales…

Missouri Employers Mutual announced a new brand identity, MEM, that unites the work comp carrier and its subsidiary, Previsor, under a single banner. The rebranding coincides with the carrier’s transition to…

Although the Idaho Industrial Commission erred in several credibility findings, the remainder of its determinations finding that an injured worker was not a reliable witness were supported by substantial and…

The California Senate unanimously passed a bill that would allow carriers to continue using debit cards to pay benefits for another two years. The Senate on Monday voted 38-0 to pass…

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Tuesday announced two appointments to the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau Governing Committee and the California Insurance Guarantee Association board of governors. C. Bryan Little (www.fels.net) …

California’s 2nd District Court of Appeals published its July decision finding that the Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund is required to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that it…

The California Assembly Appropriations Committee passed bills that would create a presumption that heat injuries are compensable for agricultural workers and would expose employers to penalties for denying injured workers’…

The owner of a vocational school in Los Angeles was charged with fraud for billing carriers for services not provided and allegedly paying illegal kickbacks to vocational counselors for referrals,…

A California appellate court ruled that the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board lacks jurisdiction to act on a petition for reconsideration more than 60 days after it was filed. Joseph Mayor worked…

California lawmakers closed out the 2024 legislative session by passing a bill that would allow electronic signatures on all work comp documents, and a bill requiring that doctors who do utilization review on claims…

The California Coalition on Workers’ Compensation opened registration for its 21st annual Conference, Legislative and Educational Forum. The three-day event will feature four general sessions and 15 breakout discussions about issues…

An injured worker’s 2023 medical malpractice action was time-barred because more than three years had passed since she underwent the physical therapy that allegedly caused the additional injuries, a California…

A trial court did not abuse its discretion when it reviewed new medical reports finding that a man was unable to return to work and in ordering San Francisco’s retirement system to…

The California Chamber of Commerce on Thursday issued a statement urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to veto a bill that would create a presumption of compensability for certain heat-related injuries suffered…

The California Division of Workers’ Compensation opened registration for its 32nd annual Educational Conference that will be held in March. The conference is the largest work comp training event in the…

A California appellate court revived a worker’s claims against his employer for harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Jose Rivera worked for FSC Corp. at Il Pastaio restaurant in Beverly…