The Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission announced that state lawmakers have approved the updated 2024 Medical Fee Schedule. The state House of Representatives voted 94-1 to pass House Joint Resolution 1035 in…

A divided Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that two workers employed by a local delivery contractor for Amazon Inc. could not be compelled to arbitrate their workers’ compensation retaliation claims. Case: Mathis…

The Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission provided contact information for the newly created court that will hear legacy claims from before the 2014 reforms that created the state’s administrative program. Gov. Kevin…

The Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Court of Existing Claims is implementing a preliminary review docket for active cases pending as of July 1. The court’s preliminary review docket will be held at…

The U.S. Department of Labor's federal Black Lung Program has set outreach events for current and former coal miners with disabilities related to black lung disease in Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky. Miners' families and…

ATF Medical appointed Katherine Nelson to serve as vice president of sales. Katherine Nelson Nelson will be based in Las Vegas and oversee the company’s efforts to market mobility and accessibility…

The Workers Compensation Research Institute is holding a 30-minute webinar on June 6 to discuss the impact of excessive heat on workplace injuries. WCRI recently released a study measuring the extent…

A federal appellate court ruled that it had no jurisdiction over a petition for review of a denial of survivor’s benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act filed one day…

AppliedVR appointed Michael Marsau as its executive director of workers’ compensation. Michael Marsau Marsau is overseeing the launch of the company’s flagship RelieVRx prescription therapeutic into the workers’ compensation market, the…

A federal appellate court upheld an award of black lung benefits to a coal industry employee despite the administrative law judge’s evidentiary error. Case: Coastal Coal Co. LLC v. Harrison, No.

A federal appellate court upheld a worker’s convictions and sentence to embezzlement and workers’ compensation fraud. Case: U.S. v. Holmes, No. 23-4700, 06/21/2024, unpublished. Facts and procedural history: Federal prosecutors in South…

A divided federal appellate court overturned an award of black lung benefits to a coal miner based on an administrative law judge’s misapplication of the burden of proof for a legal…

A federal appellate court upheld an award of compensation under the Black Lung Benefits Act to a worker, finding that the time he spent as a truck driver was “substantially…

The Workers Compensation Research Institute is holding a 30-minute webinar Aug. 1 to discuss key findings from its study of interstate variation and trends in work comp drug payments. The WCRI…

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed an employer’s challenge to a decision of the Benefits Review Board remanding a worker’s motion to modify his partial disability award under…

The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking nominations for four positions on the National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health. The department said it is seeking one public representative, one…

The Travelers Cos. said a review of more than 1.2 million work comp claims from 2017 to 2021 revealed that overexertion was the most frequent cause of injury, but slips,…

The federal Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs is holding a basic orientation course Aug. 21 for providers recently authorized to render medical treatment and evaluations for injured federal workers. The program will…

The U.S. Department of Labor announced that the federal court for the Northern District of New York found that an ophthalmologist and his practice illegally fired a worker who complained…

A federal appellate court rejected an employer’s petition for review of black lung benefits to a miner’s widow. Case: Harman Mining Corp. v. Bartley, No. 22-2283, 08/20/2024, unpublished. Facts: Jerry W. Bartley…

Workplace safety regulators in California and Washington state proposed nearly $500,000 in penalties for 10 employers accused of exposing workers to crystalline silica dust. The California Division of Occupational Safety and…

The National Council on Compensation Insurance said its analysis of impairment ratings in 33 states plus the District of Columbia found that the average whole-body impairment rating for permanently disabled…

Attune Insurance launched a new workers’ compensation solution, EverPeak Insurance, and started providing coverage to businesses in Arizona and South Carolina. Attune said the work comp product caters to small businesses…

Tower MSA Partners is holding a webinar Oct. 2  covering the ins and outs of Medicare set-asides. Dan Anders The program will cover topics including the appropriate time to obtain a…

The U.S. Labor Department said it received more than $350,000 in back wages for workers at a Michigan construction company who were misclassified as contractors and for a truck driver…

CompIQ Solutions and Bardavon announced a partnership to create an automated referral process for injured workers who need specialized care. The companies said they were integrating CompIQ’s IQSymphony claims portal with…

The U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee passed a bill that would authorize physician assistants and nurse practitioners to treat injured federal workers. The committee on Wednesday voted 12-3…

A federal judge ordered CSX Transportation Inc. to pay $453,510 to two railroad workers who were fired after raising workplace safety concerns in 2017. The judge also ordered the company to…

The Iowa Supreme Court overturned a finding that the Second Injury Fund was not liable for a worker’s permanent total disability after she suffered two different leg injuries. Case: Delaney v.

The Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents announced that employers must use and display a revised employee notice form, starting Sept. 16. Employers are required to fill out the posters by providing…

The Massachusetts Appeals Court upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s civil suit against his employer and a colleague who had accidentally struck him with a truck while he was…

Federal workplace safety investigators fined a Massachusetts waterproofing contractor $283,115 for safety violations they say led to a worker's death. Gerceir Osvaldo DeFaria, 51, was killed in February 2024 when part…

A finding that an injured worker is totally incapacitated does not create an entitlement to permanent disability benefits as a matter of law, a split Connecticut Supreme Court said in…

The Virginia Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a firefighter with an aortic aneurysm had presumptively occupational heart disease. Case: Hanover County v. Moore, No. 0715-23-2, 07/09/2024, unpublished. Facts: Scott Moore…

The Virginia Court of Appeals upheld benefit awards of closed periods for an injured paramedic, finding that she failed to prove her entitlement to additional compensation. Case: Martinka v. PHI Group Inc.,…

The Virginia Court of Appeals overturned an award of benefits to a worker who suffered identical foot injuries 11 years apart. Case: HealthSouth Corp. v. Hawthorne, No. 2058-23-3, 09/03/2024, unpublished. Facts: Pamela…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals ruled that a worker was entitled to benefits for his injuries from being struck by a car while attempting to aid a motorist…

The West Virginia Supreme Court ruled that a former coal miner was entitled to an increased impairment award for the worsening of his occupational pneumoconiosis, even though he had undergone…

A divided West Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the doctrine of collateral estoppel did not bar a worker who failed to prove his occupational disease claim from seeking a civil…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a denial of authorization for nerve block treatments for an injured worker. Case: Cooper v. Lowe’s Home Centers Inc., No. 24-ICA-55, 07/30/2024, unpublished. Facts:…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of a worker’s application for permanent total disability. Case: Murray American Energy Inc. v. Harshey, No. 24-ICA-73, 07/30/2024, unpublished. Facts: Dustin Harshey…

The West Virginia Supreme Court overturned an award of permanent partial disability benefits to an injured worker, finding that it was improperly based on the opinion of a doctor who failed…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a worker’s request to expand his claim and for authorization for a magnetic resonance imaging scan. Case: Hill v. Lowe's Home…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned an award of permanent partial disability benefits to an injured mine worker, finding that neither doctor who provided impairment ratings had performed valid…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned the closure of a worker’s claim and ordered that additional evidence be developed as to his preexisting conditions and whether they contributed to his…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a denial of benefits for a hospital maintenance worker’s COVID-19 infection. Case: Morrill v. Lifepoint Hospitals Inc., No. 23-461, 09/23/2024, published. Facts: Curtis Morrill was a…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a referral to a neurosurgeon for evaluation of a condition that had not been accepted as compensable in a worker’s claim. Case:…

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry's Compliance, Records and Training (CRT) unit has created a new training video to assist administrators who file denials of primary liability. The video provides information about: The…

The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that an injured employee’s right to assert a direct claim for unpaid medical expenses is not precluded by a medical provider’s failure to intervene in…

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry opened registration for a mandatory rehabilitation provider update webinar being held Sept. 13. The webinar will cover topics including a department update, legislative and rule…