eNews - September 19, 2008
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| Three
Significant Workers' Compensation Bills Sent to Governor |
Three significant workers' compensation bills
are pending in the Governor's office for his review. He will
either sign them into law or veto them. You can make a difference
by contacting the Governor's office and urging him to sign
these bills into law.
SB 1717 would phase in over three years a doubling of the
number of weeks of permanent disability payments and also
eliminate the benefit reduction when an employer offers return
to work. Numerous studies, including the DWC's own reveal
that regulations to implement the 2004 "reforms,"
have reduced benefits by more than 50% across the board. Employers'
premiums have dropped by 60%, and employers profits set record
highs in each of the last four years. Carriers easily could
absorb the cost increase without raising premiums.
SB 1115 would prohibit apportioning (i.e., reducing) PD benefits
on the basis of asymptomatic, non-disabling "risk factors."
It reiterates into the Labor Code existing law in the Government
Code that protects the civil rights of women, ethnic minorities,
and older persons, adds an additional factor - "genetic
predisposition."
AB 2081 cracks down on utilization review (medical treatment
request) fraud and employer fraud. The former prohibits kickbacks
between third party claims administrators and utilization
review providers, and the latter prohibits deliberate misclassification
of employees and corporate officers or shareholders to avoid
the obligation to provide workers' comp coverage.
You can call or fax or write the Governor at:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-558-3160 (new number)
You can email the Governor here.
If you know someone interested in consulting an attorney about
a workers' compensation or personal injury case, please contact
us at (213) 739-7000 or please click
here for more information.
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